Five Signs of Bad Fuel

Diluted or low-quality fuel is the fear of every driver. Unfortunately, in our time such an "incident" is not uncommon. It often happens that drivers fill up at untested gas stations, especially in their desire to save a few cents. And although the authorities check the quality of the fuel, the likelihood that you will fill the tank of your car with bad gas is not small.

For this reason, you should refuel only at gas stations that are known for high-quality fuel. Consider five signs that will help you find out that you have refueled with poor quality fuel.

1 Unstable engine operation

The engine does not start after refueling or seizes not the first time. This is one of the first signs that a fake hit the fuel system. Of course, if the fuel system was faulty, and before that the engine did not differ in smooth operation, then refueling with high-quality gasoline would not “cure” the ICE.

Even if nothing changes in the operation of the motor, it will not be superfluous to listen to the sound of the engine. Dips when the accelerator pedal is depressed can also indicate poor fuel quality. Violation of the smoothness of idling, jerks when driving after refueling - all this also indicates bad fuel.

2 power loss

We accelerate and feel that the car is not as dynamic as before. If this problem appeared after refueling, this is another signal that you should not become a regular customer of this gas station.

It is possible that gasoline with a lower octane rating was poured into the tank. You can check if this is really the reason. Just drop a couple drops of gasoline on a piece of paper. If it does not dry out and remains greasy, it means that some impurities have been added to gasoline.

3 Black smoke from the exhaust

Also, after refueling, pay attention to the exhaust system. If there is black smoke (provided that the engine did not smoke before), then there is every reason to blame low-quality fuel. Most likely, this is the problem.

The fact is that if there is a high content of impurities in gasoline, they will form a characteristic black smoke during combustion. Such refueling should be bypassed, even if a few drops of gasoline remain in the tank. In such cases, it is always better to have a reserve of 5 liters of high-quality gasoline than to solve problems with a clogged fuel system.

4 Check Engine

If, after a recent refueling, the “Engine Check” indicator lights up, this can also be caused by poor fuel quality. Most often this happens with diluted fuel, in which oxygen-containing additives are present in large quantities.

Such substances are used by some manufacturers to increase the octane rating of fuels. Of course, such a solution does not bring any benefit to the car, but only harms.

5 increased consumption

Last factor on the list, but no less important. A sharp increase in the “gluttony” of the engine after refueling is a possible sign that we have added low-quality fuel. Most often, the problem manifests itself only a few kilometers after refueling.

Do not ignore this factor. Excessive consumption of gasoline or diesel fuel easily leads to clogging and subsequent failure of the fuel filter. It can also lead to clogging of the fuel injector nozzles.