Eccleston: AdBlue in the Diesel Tank? Find Your Situation
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: if the motor has been run since it was put in. Not started yet? Then keep it like that, whether the vehicle is — Eccleston or Heskin Green. Leave the motor and the ignition off then call 0333 366 0103; it's generally a drain and a thorough flush, done where the vehicle is in Eccleston. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. It is a bigger job, though step one doesn't change.
Further down: the cases our technicians see, anywhere across Lancashire. Choose the one that fits.
On a Eccleston forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you just spot it as you're stood at the pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. It might be the Gulf, or perhaps the Texaco, or a different station in Eccleston.
What it means: this is the ideal spot to find out. Still inside the tank, with nothing drawn onwards: that's where the AdBlue sits.
Next: avoid the urge to start it only to move away from the petrol pump. A few jobs: a shove into a bay with the attendants helping, the receipt kept, and a call to us from where you stand. Draining it right at the petrol pump is fine if it can't be shifted, since the equipment is explosion-proof.
At home around Eccleston with AdBlue in the diesel tank
The warning light had been on for days. Only by the recycling, the empty container in hand, did you look back at the cap you'd used at the drive. Homes just off Tincklers Lane get hit as often as everywhere else.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of your tank and waits there. Overnight does not change that.
Next: the keys indoors, and so no one takes your car anywhere at breakfast. After that, ring. Our engineers drain the car on your drive, whether that is in Eccleston or out in Ulnes Walton. Late-night empties beside a house are fine: the pumps are low-noise.
On the road in Eccleston with AdBlue in a diesel
A short way beyond topping up, your motor started playing up: rough running, smoke, lost power, warnings on the dash. Somewhere on Towngate Court or else on the road towards Preston — under 10 miles away.
Meaning? Your pump has sucked the AdBlue in. Through your filter, through the pipework, and — the more the mileage — deeper into the high-pressure pump and every injector. It travels deeper with every mile driven and each restart.
Your move: stop somewhere safe, then turn the engine off. On the M6, under 3 miles from Eccleston, that means the next exit, not the services further on. Starting it again to test gets nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear on its own. Roughly what distance had it gone? Tell us when you phone.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
It's a vehicle you have had for a week. Unbeknown to you, the two inlets are next to each other here — unlike your own car, which has none or stores it elsewhere. Anyone, wherever in Lancashire, could make it.
The upshot: exactly as above, divided by whether it ran, only with one added stage. Many rental and fleet contracts need the owner's sign-off for work.
What to do: ring the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That is quicker settled before our technicians arrive than after. Stranded by St. Mary The Virgin or outside Croston until someone replies, your vehicle remains turned off the whole time.
Eccleston: unsure whether it was AdBlue in the diesel tank?
"I think so" is often as honest as it gets. A faint ammonia smell hangs around your filler, the bottle feels too light, and which cap came off is a blur. A hurried top-up by the gates of Eccleston Primary School, or a call to a friend in Towngate: either fit.
Put simply: a spill round the filler does the engine no harm. Inside your diesel tank, however, AdBlue harms it. Turning on the car won't tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in the tank it will suck it in.
Do this: behave as if it did, and don't start your engine. Call us and describe what you saw; we'd rather check a tank that turns out free of AdBlue than drain one that has already been run.
Each AdBlue drain in Eccleston shares these steps
Whatever the situation, one start applies. Our engineers come to the car, whether it is at a forecourt, a drive, the car park at The Original Farmers Arms or a side street near Eccleston Library, and ask three things: what got in, about how much, and if your motor has run. Answers shape the work; the price follows by phone while nobody has set off yet.
Emptying the tank comes next, then a careful flush — more important with urea than after petrol, since crystals and corrosion won't clear on their own, however long you wait. Fresh diesel is put in after your filter is cleaned or changed, and your car is finally tested. The majority of unrun cars are a half-hour visit from the moment our technicians get there.
The last step is starting the car. Our engineers confirm it runs correctly on new diesel before we go. Long-term damage is very rare if it's caught quickly, and the entire job is done where your car is. Payment comes on the day, never upfront. For your insurer, there is a VAT invoice plus a report from the engineer. Many policies cover misfuelling, so check yours as we head over.
About Eccleston and where it is
Eccleston is a village in Lancashire, situated on the riverside at a low elevation of around 25 metres. Eccleston lies near the city of Preston, approximately 7.7 miles away, and is surrounded by nearby places such as Ulnes Walton and Newtown. Eccleston has a population of around 1279 people, predominantly living in semi-detached housing. Eccleston is located in the North West region of England, about 184.1 miles from London.
Eccleston and Lancashire: AdBlue drains across the area
Eccleston is a village, and the same teams that cover it work the towns near it too, Newtown and Shaw Green among them, across the PR postcode area. Telling us a PR7 5 postcode finds you quickest of all.
Parked heading to Eccleston Cricket Club, or right in the heart of Eccleston, your vehicle stays put — there's no need to move it at all. The van drains it in place. Guessing doesn't help near Saint Agnes RC Church, close to a border or somewhere hard to pin down; ring and ask.
Your scenario, summed up
Motor not started: ring, and leave it switched off. Run by now: pull over, power down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the remainder, within Eccleston or anywhere across Lancashire.