Wrong fuel put in the tank

2015 CHEVROLET SONIC
25,000 MILES
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C700121
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My husband recently put diesel fuel in our car listed above. He is seventy five years old and has early dementia. When he finally noticed he put the wrong fuel in the vehicle we had someone drain the gas tank and clean out the gas lines. We changed the spark plugs and cleaned the fuel injectors. We put premium unleaded in the tank after we did that and put seafoam in the tank. There is white smoke coming from the tail pipe. The vehicle is not idling right and if you try and drive it it loses power. It will shut off on us but it will start back up with the same symptoms. The check engine light came on when this happened but we took the battery cables off the car and waited awhile and put them back on and the check engine light went off. When the check engine light first came on it was reading misfire. What else could be the problem? They also checked the oil filter on the rail and it said over fifty percent. Please reply.
Nov 19, 2017 at 6:39 PM
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KHLOW2008
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How much mileage was put on the vehicle since then? There could be some residual diesel inside the system and it requires some time before it all clears off. Keep the engine running for a while more and monitor the situation.
Nov 19, 2017 at 10:03 PM
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C700121
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It was driven 10 to 2o miles trying to see if it runs. when it happened it was driven about 3 miles until it cut off and wouldn't start again. It will start now but the idling is not right and if you try and go up a hill it will start to be sluggish and lose power and cut off but it will start back up. The plugs are still getting carbon on them. will they do it till the disel burns off.
Nov 20, 2017 at 5:35 PM
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KHLOW2008
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Yes, it would continue to perform badly if diesel is still present in system.
How much fuel did you add to tank after repairs? If the amount is not much, then the ratio of diesel/gas could still be high as cleaning fuel systems usually do not completely clear residual diesel in system.
I would still recommend running the engine for a longer period of time before you attempt any repairs. Top up fuel if initial refill was not too much.
Nov 22, 2017 at 7:03 AM