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UK oil refiners have introduced a voluntary test for their diesel in response to a wave of breakdowns across the country caused by filters becoming blocked by a gel-like substance in the diesel.

It affected a small minority of motorists throughout last winter with the largest number in March, but the problem disappeared over the summer. However, in November the RAC alone attended almost 600 such incidents.

The problem is not “waxing”, which used to be an issue in very cold weather, as modern diesel produced for UK winter use is formulated with additives to prevent waxing. The symptoms of the current problem are similar to waxing but the cause appears to be different. And, unlike waxing, when the weather warms up the gel does not dissolve back into the fuel which means a new filter has to be fitted.


UK refiners introduce filter blocking test for diesel - Forecourt Trader