al dente

I accidentally did this the other day (and, you will note, did not die). Of all the places, i would have thought that this would be the most dangerous, what with the heat causing the expansion of the gas and fumes.

Has anyone had a car blow up when refueling when
a) leaving the engine running or
b) using a mobile?

Morecambe Mindy

Doubtful they would be here to tell the tale!

shiva

Leaving the engine running: its done here more often than not so I think that ones been debunked by a few thousand unintentional test subjects

Mobiles: pretty much debunked, radio waved can't cause ignition phones tend not to have an open flame and it's near impossible for them to produce a spark

Much more likely that a static spark will cause a fire so don't jump in and out of the car whilst filling up and if your super paranoid earth yourself before touching the pump.

While I'm debunking, fags don't start petrol fires either, no spark and the tip is at too low a temperature to cause ignition. Lighters will of course but for a fire to ignite while lighting a fag the vapour would have to be so concentrated you'd hardly be able to breathe for fumes anyway. Probably why the Thai petrol stations have ashtrays between the pumps.

All the above said I do turn the engine off and don't stand in a pool of fuel when on the phone

the_red_sheep

I always leave the car running when its getting filled up, never had a problem.

The mobile phone one is a myth that's made it 'mainstream'. There's not a single reported incident of a mobile causing a fire or explosion at a petrol station. I'm sure they tested this on Mythbusters (or something similar), tens of phones in a petrol fume filled room and there wasn't a sniff of an explosion.

Millsyisland

I thought everyone left the engine running when refueling out here?

al dente

Wish they would do one with engines running too.

petrolhead13

I always do. Never occurs to me to switch it off. Also enjoy watching the petrol gauge moving towards full

Bahtatboy

Certainly they do in AD. The biggest risk, especially with an automatic gearbox, is the car moving off with the nozzle still in the tank, but equally I've never heard of that happening over here (but I seem to recall there are some YouTube clips of it happening).

As with all advanced driving (including advanced refuelling), keep an exit route at all times--don't be so close to the car in front that you can't drive round it if something goes off. Think "Tyres and Tarmac": don't be so close to the car in front that you can't see its rear tyres and an area of road between it and the front of your bonnet.

Oyibopeppeh

Mobile phones was truly mythbusted a few years ago.

There is a possibility of the engine overheating if the car is stationary but the electric fans on most modern cars are pretty efficient.

Millhouse

I turn my off out of courtesy of the poor bastard who has to fill it. All those additional fumes and heat from the AC - seems a bit unfair to me.

The biggest risk for explosion is probably my nylon underwear.

paca

More likely to die(in the long term) from breathing the fumes

Mobile phones did have a myth about causing ignition but more likely to stop idiots messing about and getting run over on the forecourt

Charismatic

Petrol fillers are often located over discs/pads which can get quote hot, as can the exhaust. That said the petrol usually goes in the tank…unless you are very drunk trying to refill the car in which case it’s better to leave it to someone else .

auzdafluff

Believe it or not, that's the actual reason they tell you to turn the engine off, not because of a risk of an explosion. It was one of the first things I learnt when I was the manager of a petrol station in the UK.

So congrats to Bahtatboy!

Bahtatboy

I'll buy myself a beer tonight, in that case

northbadawi

Fuel gets some amount of hard substances, sand and rust, especially if gas station is old and not tanks are not cleaned regulary. All those impurities accumulates in your car tank and are very harmfull for the engine. Typically the fuel output hole in the car is bit (few cm) lifted up in order to avoid hard parts laying in the bottom.
While refilling the fuel stream elevates all dirt from the bottom of your tank and it is sucked to the engine. It will not kill the engine immediately however may increase the abrasion and shorten lifetime.
So switch your engine when fueling, and try to avoid old and tumbled gas stations.