Detecting off road fuel usage?

[NetWareHead]

A curiosity I've always had is how do police catch people using the dyed off road fuel in their tank?

I guess it is all up to the police officer who decides there is reasonable suspicion exists and then what? Do they siphon part of the tank and inspect the fuel?

I drive a diesel Jetta TDI and the thought has run through my mind every time I get stopped. How common is this for a cop to ask to check the diesel tank?

 

[weadjust]

They check log hauling trucks where I live every time the truck is stopped to check the weight. All they have to do is look at the color of the fuel. They keep a close watch on the logging industry because they purchase large quantities of off road diesel for the heavy equipment and the untaxed fuel is readily available for their on road vehicles.

I do have a friend that owns a farm and used to have a diesel Mercedes that he always filled with off road diesel. He was never checked or caught. So I doubt you would ever get caught in your Jetta. They mainly target 18 wheelers and other trucks that are stopped for other inspections, weight, & moving violations.

 

[Ferzerp]

It isn't something easy to check, and yes, it is typically a visual inspection of the fuel. The dye is pretty concentrated, so even if you dilute it, it's still visible. If you filled up with it, it would take quite a few tanks of normal fuel for it to be gone.

It's really going to be checked more often with semis, etc.

 

[herm0016]

it also stains your fuel filter and any soft parts in your system. We get checked all the time in the oil field too.

 

[Ferzerp]

With the drill machines going through so much dyed stuff, the bulldozers using it, etc, I can see how you would be a big target for it. (or are you talking bigger, stationary equipment)

Back when I drilled water wells, we went through up to 250 gallons of it in a day, easily. We only had the one machine on it, and it wasn't overly large. not really enough pullback to do oil, and the compressor was only something like 900 cfm@350psi.

I come from oil stock and helped with the business in my early 20's though at that time it was water. I did drive the bulldozer and make roads and load/unload it when I was 5-6... Can you imagine that now? Hah.

 

[mmntech]

Yep, we used to get checked. Parents business ran diesel RAMs. Ironic. We paid the government to pay us to fix the road. Only people that can legally drive with coloured diesel are the natives. SOBs don't pay tax. We get saddled with a 30% tax for the privilege to drive to work to pay more tax.

 

[herm0016]

we go through 1000's of gallons on a frac job, running 6 or 8 pumps, each with a 12 or 16 cyl engine. plus the tractors, generators, light plants, etc... so yes, large equipment. Not to mention what a drilling rig will go though running their generators, usually about 4 locomotive size engines.

 

[Zivic]

They check log hauling trucks where I live every time the truck is stopped to check the weight. All they have to do is look at the color of the fuel. They keep a close watch on the logging industry because they purchase large quantities of off road diesel for the heavy equipment and the untaxed fuel is readily available for their on road vehicles.

I do have a friend that owns a farm and used to have a diesel Mercedes that he always filled with off road diesel. He was never checked or caught. So I doubt you would ever get caught in your Jetta. They mainly target 18 wheelers and other trucks that are stopped for other inspections, weight, & moving violations.

I know of examples where a trooper would be at a farm auction and would stick any and all diesel tanks of antendees.... long story short, it isn't worth it

 

[PlasmaBomb]

The most reliable way to test the diesel is to pull a sample and send it to a lab, there they can run it through a spectrophotometer and tell if there is any dye present (even though the diesel may appear normal to the eye).

 

[Meghan54]

I drive a diesel Jetta TDI and the thought has run through my mind every time I get stopped.

My question is how often are you getting stopped by cops and why? I'm 58 and I haven't gotten stopped for any reason in over a decade.....and I do exceed the speed limit on the interstate quite regularly.

 

[MrA79]

Pardon the noobish question, but why exactly is that illegal? Is it an emissions\toxicity\hazmat thing, or just Uncle Sam making sure you don't try to get over on the fuel tax?

 

[theevilsharpie]

Pardon the noobish question, but why exactly is that illegal? Is it an emissions\toxicity\hazmat thing, or just Uncle Sam making sure you don't try to get over on the fuel tax?

Bolded your answer.

 

[Bartman39]

All about the taxes... Fuel is the same as non dyed diesel 15 PPM Sulfur...

 

[skyking]

The revenuers have a test strip kit that will indicate at a very small concentration of dyed fuel. we are talking 5 gallons in your tank 1000 gallons ago, very low concentration. Moral of the story is, don't do it.

 

[Instan00dles]

I had an old jetta turbo diesel and my ex lived on a farm, always filled up with coloured diesel with no mechanical or law problems.

 

[skyking]

you'll likely never have any law problems. The usual suspects are trucks in a company that also has a lot of offroad equipment.

 

[PlasmaBomb]

I had an old jetta turbo diesel and my ex lived on a farm, always filled up with coloured diesel with no mechanical or law problems.

The mechanical problems usually crop up when people try to "clean" the diesel of the dye, happens a lot locally with fuel being so expensive - buy cheap red diesel and take the dye out then resell at "full" price.

Here is a story from just a few days ago...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-19570275

And a larger plant from not too long ago -

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-19080488

I think some of the biggest they have found is capable of 10 million litres a year, or 2.6 million US gallons.

And with tax being 73.1p per litre the Government aren't too happy at losing £73 million in tax.

 

[Viper GTS]

Does the law require that vehicles be dedicated 100% to on or off road use?

If you use a truck on your farm can you never take it on the road unless you run on-road diesel all the time?

Viper GTS

 

[LTC8K6]

I was under the impression that off-road diesel did not have to be ULSD. Modern vehicle diesels would not tolerate the 500ppm or higher stuff too well.

 

[herm0016]

If you use a truck on your farm can you never take it on the road unless you run on-road diesel all the time?

Viper GTS

yes.

 

[slag]

I know of examples where a trooper would be at a farm auction and would stick any and all diesel tanks of antendees.... long story short, it isn't worth it

I believe, but dont quote me on this, that it is legal to use it in trucks as long as they are used primarily for farm duty like hauling hay to cattle, etc.

For example, if a farmer drove his truck a few miles down to the road to an auction to purchase implements for his farm, that would be ok, right?