my car broke down & i called AA for help, they drained out the petrol & discovered there was water in the petrol. it wont start now, i have a daewoo lanos 1.3, please can someone help me!!

wesley, June 2009

End of the day if its just a few tablespoons full of water it will come out of its own accord after a bit of chugging along, if its in the reason of say half a pint of water then your best draining out most of the petrol and add half a litre of meths in your tank, let it run for a few minutes, dont panic it wont explode or sound like a rocket, you may just get a bit of vapour out of the exhaust pipe, that will be some of the water being burned off.
next change your petrol filter and put in 10 litres of premium fuel, this has additives and other stuff that help lubricate your fuel pump, drive as normal and then put your normal fuel back in once your getting quite low.
advise you drive at least 25 miles with the premium fuel in the tank or just leave the engine running for 30 mins with the heater on to avoid engine overheating

Chemistry, October 2010

Have you changed the petrol filter? This will have been contaminated. Get another one from your dealer first and change it. Having added new petrol, you need to get any air out of the fuel system.
This is best done by unclipping and removing the fuel line where it enters the carb and placing the end in a securely lodged heavy 5litre plastic petrol can or bottle, then just switch on the ignition - DON'T START THE ENGINE!!!!! (You may well start a fire!)
This probably won't work if you have an engine start button - in which case ask the dealer.
The electric pump will then pump fuel thru the system. Watch until it runs clear - no air bubbles, then attach quickly to the carb before switching off the pump. This primes the fuel system. Make sure the fuel line doesn't leak where you have removed it by tightening up on the clip. Remove the petrol can, wait several minutes to let any spilled petrol evaporate and then it should start OK. You can use the pumped surplus fuel in your mower or other garden machinery.

Mike, June 2009