Bishopthorpe: How Does AdBlue End Up in a Diesel Tank, and How Do You Prevent It?
AdBlue already in the diesel tank? Then set this page aside for now, leave your ignition and engine off, and ring 0333 366 0103. A drain plus a full flush, done right where your vehicle sits around Bishopthorpe, is usually what it takes if found before your motor runs. The rest of this page covers why it happens and how to ensure it doesn't — handy if you are reading before it has happened.
AdBlue in a diesel car: two tanks, two fillers
Many newer diesels on the roads round Bishopthorpe and Acaster Malbis carry two liquids, not one. Diesel goes to your engine. AdBlue's own tank keeps it, and from there it goes to the exhaust, where spraying treats the gas.
Every tank has a filler of its own. Plenty of vehicles have a single flap for the two, while others put the AdBlue filler to the boot or under the bonnet. At the pump, the diesel side is topped up constantly. A driver who has to stop and work out where it goes normally tops up the AdBlue side, from a bottle, and much less frequently. It is in the gap that the mistake happens.
How does AdBlue in the diesel tank occur in Bishopthorpe?
Carelessness rarely explains it. Instead is three things coming up together.
On a drive off Appleton Road before work, or in the car park at Bishopthorpe Sports and Social Club heading home: that's where the rushed top-up happens. Why the rush? As AdBlue gets low your car warns you, and once it is gone, limp mode kicks in.
The old car's filler is where your hand goes — but a rental car, a new vehicle or a company car puts the fillers somewhere else. That's the second factor: a strange vehicle.
Third, the bottle goes in: a diesel filler or AdBlue one, it slides in as readily, and after the pour starts, nothing stops it. Whether it occurs in Middlethorpe or the middle of Bishopthorpe, it's the same few seconds.
Which filler is for AdBlue, and which for diesel?
Before you pour anything, whether on a driveway in Naburn or a forecourt around Bishopthorpe, check these. They take a couple of seconds.
- Check the cap rather than going by position: AdBlue caps are often blue or marked "AdBlue", and diesel caps normally are not.
- Look at the size: the smaller filler neck is, on plenty of motors, the AdBlue one.
- A label inside your fuel flap frequently says which fuel goes where, on plenty of cars. Check for it.
- Cannot see it beside the diesel inlet? Then look below the bonnet or in the boot — the owner's manual says where.
- Check with the person who drove it last — before you leave, not when the light comes on — when you pick up a hire or company car from somewhere like the car park at York.
Keeping AdBlue out of the diesel tank when you top up
Wherever around North Yorkshire the light comes on, here is a routine for that day.
- Switch off once parked — level ground, motor off, and never rushed by School Lane on the verge.
- Silly as it sounds, saying "AdBlue" out loud as you unscrew the cap does the trick — after you have found the filler and read the cap.
- If both sit under one flap, check your diesel cap is still closed before you lift the bottle — then leave the car on.
- Tip slowly, using the bottle's own spout. Stop when it is full or when the bottle is empty.
- Only then, start your car: close the cap, check once more, and make sure your diesel cap was never opened.
Find during the second or third stage that AdBlue went in the diesel filler? That is where you stop. Stage five stays out.
Bishopthorpe: already put AdBlue in the diesel tank?
Don't start your engine: that is how the short order of things begins. The fuel pump runs on plenty of diesels the moment the ignition is switched on — so leave it off. Don't top up with diesel to dilute it: AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel, it sinks to the bottom of the tank, where the fuel is pulled from.
The staff at BP, Tesco or another forecourt will normally help pushing your car clear when asked. On your own drive in Bishopthorpe? So your car stays where it is.
If the motor has already run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. Come off the A1(M) — under 15 miles out of Bishopthorpe — at the next junction. Tell us about how far it went: a run towards York, under 3 miles away, is a bigger job than a short hop across Bishopthorpe.
When our engineers arrive around Bishopthorpe, what happens?
Our technicians come to the car wherever it has stopped, whether that is outside Archbishop of York's CofE Junior School, Bishopthorpe, close to Bishopthorpe Common Library or on your own driveway. Both the work and our price rest on three replies — which fluid, which amount, and whether it has run — so our engineers ask. You hear that quote by phone, before anybody sets off.
Emptying your tank comes next, then a thorough flush of the system. More than with petrol, it matters here: the crystals build up, some metals corrode, and none of that washes out on its own, no matter how long it sits. Testing comes last: before that, clean diesel is added, and the filter is flushed or changed if necessary. Your engine is fired up next and tested to confirm it runs properly, all before we go.
If your motor has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there, using pumps that are fine on a working forecourt and quiet enough to use outside a house after dark. Nothing upfront; you settle up on the day. At the end, a VAT invoice and a report from the engineer are handed to you for the insurer. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it is worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Bishopthorpe
Bishopthorpe is a village situated on the banks of the River Ouse in North Yorkshire, close to the city of York. Bishopthorpe has a low elevation of around 12 metres above sea level and is located near other local places such as Middlethorpe and Fulford. Bishopthorpe is characterized by its semi-detached housing and is home to a population of approximately 2014 residents. Bishopthorpe is also near the Knavesmire area, which is known for its racing and outdoor events.
Bishopthorpe and North Yorkshire: AdBlue drains across the area
Over YO postcodes, the vans covering Bishopthorpe — a village — work the surrounding spots too, Knavesmire and Fulford among them. Quickest of all: quote a YO23 2 postcode to our van.
Your car stays where it is. A drive, a lay-by on the way to Naburn Marsh, a side street close to Bishopthorpe Methodist Church: we drain the vehicle where it sits. Awkward to explain, like the back of Bishopthorpe Village hall? Close to a border? Asking is better than guessing, and so phone.
For Bishopthorpe people, the short version
Always, the cap; then, the pour. Even so AdBlue in the diesel tank? Petrol in Diesel can drain it where it is, wherever across North Yorkshire: switch it off and call 0333 366 0103.