What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Atterbury
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: if your engine has run since it was put in. Over in Milton Keynes Village or here in Atterbury, an unstarted motor must stay that way. Usually that is draining and thoroughly flushing it on the spot around Atterbury — and so leave your ignition and engine off then ring 0333 366 0103. Pull over the minute it is safe and turn off, if it has already run. It's a bigger job, though step one doesn't change.
Find the scenario below that matches yours, wherever around Buckinghamshire it happened.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Atterbury forecourt
The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you just notice it while you are stood at the pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. Perhaps you're at the Shell, perhaps at the Tesco, possibly somewhere else around Atterbury.
What it means: this is the best spot to find out. Just that tank holds AdBlue; no part past it has drawn any in.
Clearing the petrol pump is no excuse to start it — and so do not get back in. Have the attendants to lend a hand pushing it to a space, save the receipt, then phone us from there. The equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a live forecourt, and so a vehicle that cannot be pushed clear is emptied right at the petrol pump.
AdBlue in the diesel tank on a Atterbury drive?
For days the dash had been nagging you. Bought a container, tipped it in at home, recycled the empty — and only then looked at the cap again, after the fact. Just off Cavan Way is no different from anywhere.
The point: no miles since leaves it nearly as good to spotting it at the pump. Diesel and AdBlue keep separate: the AdBlue settles to the base of that tank and remains there, however long the night.
Next: keys indoors, and so nobody drives your vehicle anywhere at breakfast. After that, phone. Your drive is where it is drained, whether around Atterbury or Broughton. The pumping kit runs quietly enough that it won't wake the street at night.
Set off with AdBlue in a diesel in Atterbury?
Topped up, drove away, and soon the engine was turning unevenly, blowing smoke, losing power, or lighting up the dash. Perhaps it was on Ferry Meadows Close, maybe on the way out towards Milton Keynes, under 3 miles away.
The point: your system has drawn AdBlue in by now. Mileage decides how far it gets: filter and pipework first, then the injection pump and every injector. More driving, more starts: further it travels.
What to do: pull over where it's safe and switch off. Atterbury lies under a mile from the M1; there, pull off at the first junction rather than pressing on for the services. No trial starts: clearing itself isn't something AdBlue will do. Phone, and say how far the vehicle went.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
It's a vehicle you have had for a week. Your own vehicle either does without AdBlue or keeps it somewhere different, and so no one warned you the AdBlue inlet sits right next to your diesel. Any driver, anywhere around Buckinghamshire, might make the same.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Any work on the car often requires the owner's go-ahead under rental or company terms.
What to do: call the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's faster settled before our technicians get there than after. Leave the car off while the answer arrives, whether you are parked outside Woburn Sands or near Broughton Pavilion.
Atterbury: unsure if it was AdBlue in your diesel tank?
Occasionally the fair answer is "I think so". Lighter, the bottle; a hint of ammonia near your filler; a hazy memory of which cap. Sound familiar? The gates of Broughton Fields Primary School in a hurry, say, or a friend's drive over in Monkston.
In short: spillage round the filler does the motor no harm. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. You cannot tell which by turning the key, and doing so will suck in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
What to do: treat it as if it got in. Do not fire it up. Tell us what you noticed on the phone. A clean tank checked is a happier result than an already-run one drained.
What each AdBlue drain around Atterbury has in common
The work opens identically, whatever the situation. Our engineers come to your car, whether it is on a forecourt, a driveway, the car park outside The Broughton or a side street near Broughton & Milton Keynes Parish Council, and ask three things: what was put in, about how much, and if the motor has run. Those answers determine this work, and you get the price by phone, before anybody sets off.
Emptying the tank comes next, then a careful flush — more important with urea than with petrol, since crystals and corrosion will not clear on their own, no matter how long you wait. Clean diesel is put in after your filter has been cleaned or changed, and your car is then checked. Not started? In that case roughly half an hour once we are there covers most jobs.
Finally, our technicians start it. With new diesel in, it runs while our engineers make sure it is running correctly, and then we head off. Lasting damage is very uncommon if it is noticed quickly, and the entire job is done where the car is. Nothing is paid upfront, settlement happens on the day, and you get what the insurer asks for: an engineer report plus a VAT invoice. Check your insurance before we arrive: misfuelling cover is built into plenty of policies.
About Atterbury itself
Atterbury is a suburban area in Buckinghamshire, situated near the River Great Ouse and close to the city of Milton Keynes. Atterbury sits at an elevation of around 65 metres, with detached housing being the predominant type of accommodation in the area. Atterbury is located near several other suburban areas, including Broughton, Northfield, and Fox Milne, and is approximately 44.7 miles from London. Atterbury has a population of around 4344 residents.
AdBlue drains about Atterbury and across Buckinghamshire
Atterbury is a residential suburb, and the same teams that cover it work the places around it too, Northfield and Fox Milne among them, across the MK postcode area. Telling us a MK10 9 postcode finds you fastest of all.
Whether the car is on a lay-by on the way to the green space at the edge of the village or in a car park in the middle of Atterbury, it does not need to move. We drain it where it is. Guessing won't help beside St Lawrence, on a border or anywhere awkward to pin down; phone and ask.
Your scenario, in one line
Engine not started: phone, and leave it switched off. Run by now: pull over, power down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the remainder, in Atterbury or wherever in Buckinghamshire.