--- title: Cowie: AdBlue in a Diesel Tank, Explained canonical: https://www.petrolinadieselcar.co.uk/adblue-in-diesel/cowie-aberdeenshire/ location: Cowie county: Aberdeenshire latitude: 56.972270 longitude: -2.202350 service: AdBlue in a Diesel Tank updated: 2026-10-28 --- # Avoiding AdBlue in a Diesel Tank in Cowie: Why It Happens AdBlue already in the diesel tank? Then set this page down for now, leave the ignition and motor off, and call 0333 366 0103. Caught before your motor runs, it is usually a drain and a thorough flush, done where the vehicle is around Cowie. If you are reading before it has happened, the rest of this page is about why it takes place and how to make sure it does not. ## AdBlue in a diesel car: two tanks, two fillers Plenty of modern diesels in Glithno, as well as Cowie, carry on two liquids; the motor gets only your diesel. AdBlue's own tank holds it, and from there it goes to the exhaust, and there a spray cleans the gas. Each tank has its own filler. Many of motors share a single flap for both, while others put the AdBlue filler to the boot or under the bonnet. At the petrol pump, your diesel side is topped up constantly. The AdBlue side is fuelled far less often, normally from a bottle, and usually by somebody who has to stop and think where it goes. The mistake grows in the gap between them. ## AdBlue in your diesel tank in Cowie: how it occurs It is seldom carelessness. Three things tend to line up. Hurry follows from the warning. The vehicle tells you as AdBlue runs low, and a dry tank sends it into limp mode — so the top-up gets done quickly, before work on a drive off Amy Row, or on the way home in the car park outside Queen's Hotel. New-to-you vehicles are second, as well. Rentals, new motors and company vehicles place their fillers differently, and habit reaches for the cap it used on the old one. Third, the bottle goes in: diesel filler or AdBlue one, it goes in as readily, and after the pour begins, nothing stops it. Whether it takes place in Stonehaven or the middle of Cowie, it's the same few seconds. ## How to tell the AdBlue filler from the diesel one Before you tip anything, whether on a drive in Bridge of Muchalls or a forecourt around Cowie, check these. They take a couple of seconds. - Where it sits misleads; the cap does not. AdBlue caps are often blue or carry the word "AdBlue" — diesel caps usually don't. - The size. On plenty of cars the AdBlue filler neck is the smaller of the two. - A label inside your fuel flap frequently shows which fuel goes where, on plenty of motors. Look for it. - Cannot find it next to the diesel inlet? In that case check below the bonnet or inside your boot — the owner's manual says which. - The person who drove the car last. On a hire or company car picked up from somewhere like the car park at Stonehaven, ask before you leave, not when the light comes on. ## Topping up AdBlue without it reaching your diesel tank On the day the light comes on — anywhere you are in Aberdeenshire — a routine to use. - Switch off after you park — flat ground, engine off, and never rushed beside Braeside Crescent at the roadside. - Daft as it sounds, speaking "AdBlue" aloud as you unscrew the cap works — once you've located your filler and read the cap. - The two under a single flap? Then make sure the cap on the diesel side stays shut ahead of lifting the bottle. - Finish when your tank fills or the bottle is empty; before that, pour gently through the own spout. - Close the cap and check again. Make sure the diesel cap was never opened. Only then start the car. Stop there if you find, at stage two or three, that you have already poured into the diesel side. Never go on to stage five. ## Cowie: already put AdBlue in your diesel tank? Do not start your engine: that is how the short order of things begins. Leave the ignition off too, because on many diesels switching it on by itself runs the pump. AdBlue does not mix with diesel — it sinks to the bottom of the tank, where the fuel is sucked from — so do not top up with diesel to dilute it. Ask the attendants to help push the vehicle away from the pump if you are at a forecourt — the BP, the Esso or anywhere else. Leave it where it is if you are on your own driveway around Cowie. Already run? Stop when it is safe, then turn off. Cowie sits over 50 miles from the M90; on it, take the next junction. A short hop across Cowie is a smaller job than a run towards Aberdeen, under 15 miles away, so tell us about how far it went. ## What takes place when we arrive in Cowie The van comes to the car wherever it has come to rest — your own driveway, near Stonehaven Leisure Centre, or outside the local primary school. Both the work and our price depend on three answers — what liquid, what quantity, and if it's run — so our engineers ask. You get that price on the phone, before anyone heads out. Emptying the tank comes next, then a full flush of the system. Unlike petrol, AdBlue forms crystals and eats at some fuel-system metals, and none of it clears away unaided. Hence it counts more. The filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the car is tested. The motor is started next and tested to make sure it runs correctly, all before our technicians head off. Most jobs are done in about half an hour once our technicians arrive, as long as the motor has not run — and the pumps our engineers use are fine on a live forecourt and quiet after dark outside a house. Your insurer will ask for the engineer's report and the VAT invoice, and you get both once this job is done. Payment comes on the day, with no deposit. Before we get there, have a look at your insurance documents; many carry cover for misfuelling. ## About Cowie itself Cowie is a small suburban area situated on the coast of Aberdeenshire, with a relatively low elevation of around 20 metres. Cowie lies near the larger city of Aberdeen, approximately 12.9 miles to the north, and is close to other nearby places such as Stonehaven and Kirktown of Fetteresso. Cowie is characterised by its predominantly flat-type housing, which reflects the local architectural style. Cowie has a small population of around 716 residents, who live in close proximity to the coastal scenery. ## Cowie and Aberdeenshire: AdBlue drains across the area Being a residential suburb, Cowie has the same vans as surrounding areas — Redcloak, Kirktown of Fetteresso — all the way through AB postcodes and the wider area around them. Quickest of all: give a AB39 2 postcode for our van. Shifting the vehicle is not needed. Wherever it stands — near Stonehaven Open Air Pool, on a lay-by en route to Mineralwell Park, at home — that is where it gets emptied. Guessing doesn't help at the back of Stonehaven & District Men's Shed, close to a boundary, or anywhere hard to pin down; ring and ask. ## In short, for Cowie motorists Before you tip, read the cap. Still AdBlue in your diesel tank? Petrol in Diesel can drain it wherever it is, wherever in Aberdeenshire: switch the car off then phone 0333 366 0103.