Accidentally put diesel exhaust fluid in my fuel tank
 

Hi my name is John Allen. I am brand new to this forum not sure if this is the right place to post this ( hell I barley figured out how to post at all! ). Anyway earlier today I accidentally put DEF fluid in my diesel tank ab half a gallon no more than a gallon. I have a 2011 F-250 with the new 6.7 power stroke. After putting the DEF in the fuel tank I called a mechanic who said it would not hurt but it might smoke. Well after driving ab 2 miles my engine shut off and wouldn't crank back up, well it would try to but just kept sputtering dead. I put 5 more gallons in it to try to dilute it some. After about 30 mins of turning engine over it would crank and idle but when I mash the accelerator it will not respond or rev up at all. And a alarm comes up on my cluster saying low fuel pressure. Anyone know what I could do get it going long enough to get it home or get it to a shop if nessecary? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Anytime you get any type liquid in the fuel system that doesn't belong there you risk damage to very closely fitted fuel pump parts and injectors. Don't know the extent of any possible damage , but it would be best to drain the tank and change the fuel filters to start with. Where possible fill the filter(s) with clean fresh fuel before attempting to start the engine. It will save some cranking time and wear. Also, if possible empty the lines of any contaminated fuel. You have a project there and let's hope it did not have a chance to do any damage.

I acidently put .5 of a gallon into my desil tank about 2 weeks ago. Two days later I blew a high pressure line and had it fixed under waranty not thinking anything of it. Then it blew another line two days ago and brought it in again. They did some tests on it and said that it had all crystalized in the whole fuel system wich was causing to much pressure and was way it was blowing thoses lines. It's not covered under waranty and will cost $10,000.000 to fix!
Not a good day over here!

This is a good time to get a few estimates. An experienced shop that does diesel work might be able to save you some $$$$$.

I thought about it briefly but with only 20000 miles on it, I was told that my warranty would be void if I did not get it done by the dealership. And considering how much it costs to work on these trucks it was a coin toss. All I can hope for is that my business insurance will cover it.

I do think it was not very smart of Ford to put these tank spouts right next to each other. Also you would think they would have a very clear warning that even the smallest amount in the diesel could cause so much damage!

S**t! That is bad.... Sorry that happened...

I would still get a few estimates from reputable shops. Depending on how much you might save you could possibly buy a warranty outside of the dealership offer. Right now what kind of warranty do you have?

DEF in the fuel tank of my 2015 F250
 

Did this on Sunday. While I know it happens a lot it does not make me feel less stupid. I was focused on other things and calmly poured DEF into the fuel tank of my 2015 F250. The moment I realized what I was doing I stopped (cussed) and called the tow truck to take the truck to the dealer. Called them this AM and was asked if I turned the key. Well, of course. That is the only way to get it out of gear to turn the wheel or disengage the transmission. Because of this the fuel has cycled and, before a mechanic has even looked at it, I may be looking at a $10,000 bill. It may go higher after the mechanic raises the hood. I also have to worry that the kid who drives the vehicle into the bay for the mechanic will start my truck just to drive it into the bay and I will have to eat the added engine repair costs.
I have owned only Ford trucks since 1976 and I have bought 9 Ford vehicles from the current dealership but if this costs me that much then I will be looking for different brand of truck and not a diesel. I know the dealer often has their hands tied by the corporate office but using DEF was not my idea and if it is such a common mistake then they should have come up with an easier way to clean it out if you put it in the wrong tank.

Welcome to the site..

First,, if you only cycled the key, ('first' key rotation position off of lock won't power anything On ) and not to ON, the truck was not driven into the service bay or 'they' cycled the key to ON ( get back to that) then draining the tank, fuel module, complete flush of the system and new fuel filters you may dodge the bullet. If it "was" driven into the service area with a 'known' fuel contamination condition per your conversation with the service writer/dept (?) or, to a point where the truck now has fueling/running concerns, you have a point of argument with them.
DEF is certainly damaging, corrosive to many metals and needs to come out quick, any water based for that fact, that said, if "they" ran the truck it may break down to a shared or portion of, responsibility. It's certainly not the first time they've been to that party, and if they knew it was there for that reason, no reason the truck should have 'ever' been started. We wouldn't. Certainly a question I'd ask. Of course they could blame or point to the tow driver and key cycles and such.
DFE contamination instructions should be laminated into the visor, first page in the service manual, or a small warning decal somewhere on the panel.
I never liked the idea of DFE..

If the worse happened,, you might talk to your insurance company, see if they offer any assitance..
let us know what happens

Yes, the insurance would cover most of the cost of a major job but I will write a check if they can keep the cost down. They have not popped the hood as yet so I am still waiting for the call on the cost. I taped a sign to the steering wheel and to the driver's side window telling them "DEF in the fuel DO NOT Start" and I do not think the Service manager or Service rep would intentionally do additional harm but still I am concerned. The dealership and the Service manager would do right by us, providing he knew that it was one of his people but now days I am always surprised when people do the right thing. Adding the DEF never really bothered me too much because the truck is a good truck and I have always been a die hard Ford guy. Right now the DEF is cheap and easy to get but I know that will change when every diesel goes that way. Of course if I had known the high cost of putting DEF in the wrong tank then I might have thought different of it. They say not to do it but never tell you why. I only bought the F250 because I did not like the newer F150s. They just do not seem as hardy as they used to be and when I tried to discuss a large V8 engine the sales person seemed offended that I refused to discuss the 3.somthing engine.