What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Kingston upon Thames
All of that hinges on one detail: if your motor has been run since the AdBlue went in — far more than anything else. Not started so far? Then keep the vehicle that way, wherever the car is — Kingston upon Thames or Surbiton. Ring 0333 366 0103 with the key and engine still off. In Kingston upon Thames, that is generally drained and flushed on the spot. When your engine has been run, stop safely first, then switch the vehicle off. The job is bigger, but the first stage is the same.
Further down: the situations our technicians meet, anywhere in Greater London. Choose yours.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Kingston upon Thames forecourt
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you just spot it while you are stood at the pump, bottle or the nozzle in your hand. Perhaps you are at the Shell, maybe at the BP, perhaps somewhere else in Kingston upon Thames.
The point: of all places to notice, this is the best. Only that tank holds AdBlue; not one part beyond it has drawn it in.
Clearing the pump is no reason to run it — so do not get back in. Phone us from the forecourt after the car is in a bay — the staff will lend a hand to push it — then save the receipt. Draining it there at the petrol pump is fine when it cannot be shifted, since the equipment is explosion-proof.
AdBlue in your diesel tank on a Kingston upon Thames drive?
The warning light had been on for days. Picked up a bottle, tipped it in at home, recycled the empty — and only then checked the cap again, after the fact. Driveways close to Eden Street get it as much as anywhere.
In short: if the vehicle hasn't been driven since, it's nearly as good as finding out at the forecourt. Diesel and AdBlue keep separate: the AdBlue settles to the base of your tank and stays there, no matter how long the night.
Your move: keys in the house, and so no one drives your car off first thing. Then, phone. Hampton Wick or Kingston upon Thames: wherever your driveway sits, that's where it gets drained. Night-time empties beside a house are fine: the pumps are quiet.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving around Kingston upon Thames?
Filled up, drove away, and before long your engine was turning roughly, blowing smoke, losing power, or lighting up the dash. Perhaps it was on Brook Street, perhaps on the way out towards Westminster, under 10 miles away.
Meaning? The fuel pump has sucked the AdBlue in. Past the filter, through the pipework, and — the more the distance — deeper into the injection pump and every injector. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Stop somewhere safe — that's the next step — then switch it off. Leave at the first junction — not the services beyond — if you are on the M3, under 5 miles from Kingston upon Thames. It will not have cleared, so there's no point starting it again to find out. Phone, and say what distance your vehicle went.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
It is a vehicle you have had for a week. Unknown to you, the AdBlue and diesel fillers are next to each other here — not like your own car, which has none or keeps it elsewhere. Wherever you happen to be in Greater London, every driver can slip up.
What it means: the same as the scenarios above, depending on whether it has run, with one more step. The owner often needs to sign off any work, under many hire and fleet agreements.
Settling it before the van arrives is faster, and so ring the rental company or your fleet manager, then us. Stuck by Marks & Spencer or outside Kingston till someone replies, the car remains switched off the whole time.
AdBlue in your diesel tank? Not sure, in Kingston upon Thames
At times the honest answer is "I think so". Too light, the bottle; a hint of ammonia near your filler; a hazy recollection of the cap. Look familiar? Possibly it happened in a hurry at the school gates at St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, or on a friend's drive in Seething Wells.
Meaning? Spills outside the filler don't touch the motor at all. Once it is inside the diesel tank, though, that changes. If there is AdBlue in that tank, firing up the car will draw it in, and it would not tell you which either.
Your move: act as if it did, and don't start the engine. Tell us what you noticed on your phone. A clear tank looked at is a better outcome than a run one emptied.
Every AdBlue drain around Kingston upon Thames shares these steps
Every situation has the same opening to the job. Anywhere your car stands — O'Neills's car park, a road beside Kingston Baptist Church, a drive, a forecourt — the van gets there and we ask for the liquid, the quantity, and if the engine has been run. Over the phone, ahead of dispatch, you are told our quote, and those answers shape the job too.
Then the tank is emptied and the system purged thoroughly, which matters more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, so it doesn't rinse out on its own. The filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and your car is tested. Most unstarted cars are a half-hour job from the moment we turn up.
Starting it comes last. With clean diesel in, it runs while our technicians check it is running properly, and then we go. Permanent damage is very rare if it is noticed early, and the whole job is done where the car is. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling cover, so it is worth checking yours whilst we're on the way.
About Kingston upon Thames itself
Kingston upon Thames is a locality in southwest London, situated on the River Thames at an elevation of around 14 metres. Kingston upon Thames has a mix of old and new buildings, including historic structures and modern flats, which reflect its long history and recent development. Kingston upon Thames is close to neighbouring areas such as Hampton Wick, Norbiton, and Kingston Hill, and is about 10 miles from central London. Kingston upon Thames has a population of approximately 4676 people, with flats being the predominant type of housing.
AdBlue drains around Kingston upon Thames, and across Greater London too
As a small village, Kingston upon Thames has the same vans as the nearby towns — Kingston Hill, Norbiton — right through KT postcodes. Quickest of all: a KT1 1 postcode to show your location.
Whether the vehicle is on a lay-by on the way to Memorial Gardens or in a car park in the middle of Kingston upon Thames, it does not need to shift. The van empties it where it stands. Awkward to explain? By Kingston upon Thames Guildhall or a county line? Checking is better than guessing, so phone.
The one-line version
If it has not started, phone and leave it off. Run by now: pull over, power down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel takes over the rest, in Kingston upon Thames or wherever across Greater London.