ATF red dye?

[wilogger]

My friend was pulled over for not wearing his seatbelt while driving his pickup. The DOT officer dipped his fuel tank which had dexron tranny fluid mixed in it. They gave him a ticket for running, non road taxed fuel. they took a sample, and he's going to fight it. My ? is: Is the red dye solvent 164 thats in off-road diesel the same dye thats in tranny fluid? He's facing a $1-5000 fine and an audit from the IRS! A lot of folks mix red ATF in diesel, just wondering about the dye?

 

[hndrsonj]

Stand by for a good fine. Everyone will tell you how to get out of it but, run diesel and you won't have a problem...

 

[DeucesWild11]

They are thinking it's Heating Oil which has a red dye as well and that is usually like $1 cheaper a gallon because it doesn't have road tax on it. ATF fluid should have already been taxed when it was originally bought. You should be OK on this. I don't think they can just go by color but then again I don't know the laws in your area.. Take a look into the actual law that they wrote the ticket for..

 

[m16ty]

I've heard it's the same dye. The dye is just for the visual test though. He's already failed that.

They may check the composition of the sample which will tell the sulfur content and the ATF should show up. You never know though when it comes to government. I've been preaching not to run ATF just for this reason. He may win but he's going to need a lawyer and it's still going to cost him a bunch.

This thread is a good wake-up call for the people that like to post bragging about running dyed fuel.

 

[Bighurt]

I've heard it's the same dye. The dye is just for the visual test though. He's already failed that.

They may check the composition of the sample which will tell the sulfur content and the ATF should show up. You never know though when it comes to government.

And then hit him up for burning un regulated fuel...they got you you just don't know how yet.

 

[m16ty]

They are thinking it's Heating Oil which has a red dye as well and that is usually like $1 cheaper a gallon because it doesn't have road tax on it. ATF fluid should have already been taxed when it was originally bought. You should be OK on this. I don't think they can just go by color but then again I don't know the laws in your area.. Take a look into the actual law that they wrote the ticket for..

No. You don't pay road taxes when you buy ATF, just sales tax and maybe a impact fee.

 

[scoutmanadam]

in my state, if they dip the tank they do a chemical test on it if you dispute it. then, if you are running random things in there, they take a VERY close look at everything else both in the tank and the vehicle.

 

[DeucesWild11]

No. You don't pay road taxes when you buy ATF, just sales tax and maybe a impact fee.

Ah ha interesting thanks, I thought I read somewhere that you do pay a higher tax.. but then again I don't remember paying a higher tax for Motor Oil or ATF..

Thanks!

 

[wilogger]

Yes I'm afraid he's screwed. The DOT is dipping a lot of tanks around here in WI lately. A lot of us loggers have off-road fuel tanks in our pickup box and, a few guys fill there trucks with it now and then, BIG NO NO as it's a federal offense and that dye stays in the system a long time. Anyway my bud had ATF mixed so I hope the red dye is different than the 164 dye thats used in off-road fuel.

 

[nf6x]

I doubt that adding green dye will work. It might make the fuel look like some color other than red to the naked eye, but if they send a sample to a lab and run a spectrograph plot, the red and green dyes will show up as distinct spikes.

I also don't see what grounds the OP's friend has to fight with. If he claims that the red dye came from ATF, then hasn't he admitted to pouring something other than road taxed fuel in his tank?

 

[swbradley1]

I also don't see what grounds the OP's friend has to fight with. If he claims that the red dye came from ATF, then hasn't he admitted to pouring something other than road taxed fuel in his tank?

Exactly

 

[tgtaylor64]

If you plan on doing this, get legal and apply for a miscellaneous motor fuel license. In SC, you basically end up paying less than .20 per gallon used for the user fee, inspection fee, and environmental impact fee combined. Down here, the application is free, you get a license, and you just have to report (and pay) monthly. I keep a copy of the license in every diesel vehicle I own.

 

[tbearatkin]

This is just a question to help confuse the mix. IF it is against the law to put ATF or other fuel in my vehicle that did not come out of a fuel pump at a gas station because of the road tax issue then why are not all these Gov sponsored elec vehicles being ticketed.

Heck they just used my tax dollars to set up FREE elec charging stations for anybody that has one to use at the park.

Why do they get to drive on the road tax free but the rest of us get fined if we find a way to do the same thing?

 

[Recovry4x4]

This is just a question to help confuse the mix. IF it is against the law to put ATF or other fuel in my vehicle that did not come out of a fuel pump at a gas station because of the road tax issue then why are not all these Gov sponsored elec vehicles being ticketed.

Heck they just used my tax dollars to set up FREE elec charging stations for anybody that has one to use at the park.

Why do they get to drive on the road tax free but the rest of us get fined if we find a way to do the same thing?

Not only are they not paying road taxes, the cost of the car is subsidized by our currently overextended Government. Your tax dollars at work. The bureaucrats are banking on the fact that you get so upset that you give in to the "If you can't beat them, join them" mentality and go out and buy one. If you succumb to that, they have you. You see, freedom isn't free in so many ways. I'm trying to run the straight and narrow on this whole fuel deal these days.

 

[chill63]

It sounds to me like the OP's friend may have been just using the tranny fluid as an additive, not necessarily burning large quantities of it. This in turn 'dyed' the fuel. There are all sorts of additives that we add to fuels that are legal although not taxed like fuel.

I've put marvel mystery oil in my tank before and some red dyed two stroke oil. After I did that, then the thought of the dye came to mind... fortunately, I didn't get pulled over.

 

[doghead]

Is it illegal to add red dye(or additives) to taxed fuel?

At what percentage is it not an additive(and considered your fuel source)

 

[Danl]

Danl M915A1

My friend Felix got pulled over By D O T they found Red in his tank, He told them it was Tranny oil. He had changed the tranny oil in his wife car, and didn't know what to do with it, so he dumped some in his fuel tank a little at a time to get rid of it. They said Oyea, and pulled his fuel filters, right there, and said we will see about that. than gave him a choose. get truck towed or have new filters droped off, and drive truck straigth home. 24 hours later he could run his truck again. the filters proved his story, but he had to pay enought fine so he would not go back on dot for lost time and lost of pay in the end all was droped but felix lost out on pay. so if dot didn't pull the filters on the truck in this thread, My gust is they are 100% sure its off road fuel . NOT GOOD

 

[Cleptomaniac]

Best I could figure on the amount of additives is you are allowed 50 gal per year without a blinders license. Any thing more you need a fuel blender license. Good luck.

 

[islandguydon]

My friend was pulled over for not wearing his seatbelt while driving his pickup. The DOT officer dipped his fuel tank which had dexron tranny fluid mixed in it. They gave him a ticket for running, non road taxed fuel. they took a sample, and he's going to fight it. My ? is: Is the red dye solvent 164 thats in off-road diesel the same dye thats in tranny fluid? He's facing a $1-5000 fine and an audit from the IRS! A lot of folks mix red ATF in diesel, just wondering about the dye?

If they took a sample then you are fine. I have never heard of a DOT officer dipping tanks on any MV. If they issue a ticket it will show ATF and not the dye that is easily detected by their test. I run ATF in the deuce and have never been pulled over and the cops hate me so I am sure you will be fine.

 

[pyro1955]

In my area, I watched a guy fill his dodge truck with off road, I took his plate number, and called the State Police, they did not seem too interested, and I again saw the same guy at the same pump last week, so I guess in my area they just don't care at all.