"Water in fuel from Tesco"

[MikeNash]

The above is the headline in an article in today's Andover Advertiser, our local paper. The store and its petrol station is at River Way, built near marshland and requiring water to be regularly pumped away from the area. "The [Tesco] spokesman said: "Due to the rainy weather water levels have built up. Unfortunately there was an issue with the pumps, which means not all of the excess water has been drained".
Now water in fuel that you've just bought is something I've not seen for 50 odd years, and in those days I ran my old Oxford with a fuel filter off a 1960s Ford Consul/Zephyr, you know, the type with a glass bottle in which you could see the water collect. You needed it too 'cos then many garages still had their original 1920/30 steel tanks that were getting rather old and porous. Of course, all those old tanks have been replaced but perhaps the replacements are now in their turn getting leaky.
Anyway, I think its time to dig that old filter out and put in the Trav's fuel line; that Tesco garage is where I buy most of my petrol! (And if water leaks in when its high, does fuel leak out when its low?)
beware! Mike Nash.

[bmcecosse]

I hope you're not criticising a much loved and trusted supplier Mike !!! Or it will be the naughty step for you........i've kept it nice and warm though...... The fuel tanks could be neck deep in water - and it shouldn't get inside the tank - this is the most ridiculous idea in the world. As you say Mike - IF water can get in, then fuel will run out even more easily...... Water in fuel either comes with the tanker - or is from condensation within the less than full tank - dripping down into the fuel. If they were smart they would have water trapping silica gel filters on the tank breathers..... Fortunately the good old SU carb can handle a spot of water without any great problem.

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

If anybody has a drain plug on their car petrol tank, it can be loosened and any water drained off, as the petrol sits on top of the water.

[Matt]

Yes water in fuel can still be a problem - it gets reported on other forums on a fairly regular basis

[bmcecosse]

Problem perhaps for non SU carb equipped cars.

[philthehill]

I had better make sure that I do not let the petrol tank run so low as to pick up water (if there was water in the fuel?) because I filled up there on Friday!!!!!!
The tanks the Andover Tesco are not that old and my experience of receiving and filling petrol tanks when working in the garage trade is that the fuel fillers are water tight and the only vent to the tank is quite high off the ground and to my knowledge there has not been that amount of flooding at the Tesco site though it is located on a wet site. I note that the reference was to pumps (the drainage ones I suspect) and not tanks so we might be OK; fingers and everything else crossed.

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

The problem is rust, and as we know they go from the inside out. This is something that can be guarded against, fortunately.

[bmcecosse]

The problem is that as the fuel in the tank goes down - it sucks in damp air, which then causes condensation to form inside the tank on the steel surface - so dripping water (and yes rust!) . If the ingoing air was dried with silica gel - the problem wouldn't arise. But of course - they would need to change (and then dry out) the gel filters.

[bassman1]

Fact ,i had a petrol tank replaced on my nissan micra 2 years ago , i regularly filled up at pump no2 at Tesco esso garage top end of lord street southport, after a couple of weeks i started to have cutting out problems we checked pretty much everything on the car the carb is electronic and an early form of nissan petrol injection the later k11 is fitted with proper petrol injection, the problem was traced back to the fuel tank having water and not clean water but yup you got it brown coloured water, in fact in 1.5 gallons of fuel there was over a pint of water , i took the container to the petrol station and asked for the manager to have a look , i was escorted from the premises and made to wait outside , the irate manager then accused me of trying to con his staff into a free fill up of petrol when in fact i had just presented him with a bill for £200 to have the tank taken out for cleaning and all of the fuel lines cleared new petrol filters fitted , he was a complete twot , i then got on to tesco who informed me that it was not their problem but esso's , i got in touch with esso , they said that they would check the tanks and report back to me , they replied two weeks later , saying that no other report of customers having water in the fuel had come to light and that the water levels in the tanks were minimal and not sufficient to get into the supply , they denied any responsibility and i was basically shafted. i now avoid using that filling station , i heard from an old boy who was chatting about cars remembers the fire brigade used to pump water from the old petrol station tanks years ago , but i have no idea whether that was a bit of romancing or not.

[JOWETTJAVELIN]

I hope the fire brigade cleaned their hoses out properly afterwards!