Out of the frying pan...

[toasty]

...and into the fire.

One of my friends made 2 big mistakes at the weekend.

First mistake, he half filled his B Class diesel with petrol. OK not the cleverest thing to do but we all have ditzy moments at times.

Second mistake, he phoned Mercedes to sort it out.

A quick google and you'll find SOS companies that'll come drain your tank for £100.

AA will do it for £150-£200.

Mercedes, that'll be £800 for your ditzy moment Mr G.

I appreciate they'd have a markup but £800 is seriously taking the piss.

I've suggested he try calling MB UK in the vain hope they'd help him out seeing as he's bought 3 new Mercs in the past few years.

£800.... Ouch.

[SaltyToe]

So he paid it or not?


ETA: Is that 'mate' or mate?

[jonno990]

Take the fuel pipe off where it enters the fuel filter. Wrap a rag around an airline and jam in the fuel filler. Pull the trigger on the airline until all the fuel is blown out. Re-attach fuel line, fill with correct fuel and crank away

[toasty]

SaltyToe said:

So he paid it or not?


ETA: Is that 'mate' or mate?

His car's still with them afaik. I guess he'll pay now as it's under warranty and they've said if someone else does it then he'll lose the warranty.

[mxspyder]

toasty said:

His car's still with them afaik. I guess he'll pay now as it's under warranty and they've said if someone else does it then he'll lose the warranty.

Ah the old, pay us £800 or we will void your warranty bks! Nice to see Mercedes main dealers holding a gun to customers heads, buisiness as usual.

[Rich_W]

jonno990 said:

Take the fuel pipe off where it enters the fuel filter. Wrap a rag around an airline and jam in the fuel filler. Pull the trigger on the airline until all the fuel is blown out. Re-attach fuel line, fill with correct fuel and crank away

I suspect the OP doesn't have access to a compressed air source. And I wouldn't disconnect at the filter. But at the tank. Stick a pipe over the outlet, direct into a tank of some description. Then depending on the car just turn the igntion on or send a 12V to the pump and it wil be empty in 20-30mins.

Saying that £800 is a bit steep for a job that should take at most 2 hours. IIRC the "call out vans" jam a pipe down the filler neck. Not ideal. Not sure how indepth the AA would go either.

[toasty]

Update - A call to his regular dealer and one to trading standards has resulted in a reduction in charges to a more reasonable but still eye watering £400.

It just goes to show that a little moaning in the right ears can make a big difference.

[Chiswickboy]

Now that's a nice little earner.

I normally have to go to a petrol station to fill up and also have to hand over money for the fuel.

Now if I offer a service of emergancy call-out I can get fuel for free and also be given money! At today's fuel prices I think this could be a winner.

[tubbystu]

Chiswickboy said:

Now that's a nice little earner.

I normally have to go to a petrol station to fill up and also have to hand over money for the fuel.

Now if I offer a service of emergancy call-out I can get fuel for free and also be given money! At today's fuel prices I think this could be a winner.

:

[miniman]

Chiswickboy said:

Now that's a nice little earner.

I normally have to go to a petrol station to fill up and also have to hand over money for the fuel.

Now if I offer a service of emergancy call-out I can get fuel for free and also be given money! At today's fuel prices I think this could be a winner.

The resulting concoction is known in the trade as "dual fuel".

[tubbystu]

toasty said:

Update - A call to his regular dealer and one to trading standards has resulted in a reduction in charges to a more reasonable but still eye watering £400.

It just goes to show that a little moaning in the right ears can make a big difference.

I guess Merc main dealer labour rates are £120 per hour maybe ? And they have to dispose of the fuel (although we know it'll end up in the workshop managers fuel tank in all probability).

And by charging a stupid amount you your mate will probably not do it again. Education isn't cheap.

[Matt_N]

tubbystu said:

I guess Merc main dealer labour rates are £120 per hour maybe ? And they have to dispose of the fuel (although we know it'll end up in the workshop managers fuel tank in all probability).

Unless for a pratical joke, why would they put a petrol / diesel mix in the workshop managers car?

[toasty]

tubbystu said:

And by charging a stupid amount you your mate will probably not do it again. Education isn't cheap.

Thankfully not me. I prefer my cars to be petrol based from Bavaria so I get to visit the pumps rather more often than my unfortunate buddy.

[miniman]

Matt_N said:

Unless for a pratical joke, why would they put a petrol / diesel mix in the workshop managers car?

Because if it's a petrol engine, it will smoke a bit but otherwise suffer no ill effects. Well, not whilst the workshop manager has it anyway.