What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Newtonhill
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank depends on one thing more than any other: whether the engine has been run since it was put in. Over in Cammachmore or here around Newtonhill, an unstarted engine must remain that way. Keep nothing on, phone 0333 366 0103, then expect a thorough flush plus a drain, done right where your car sits in Newtonhill. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. Stage one remains unchanged, even if the work is bigger.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever around Aberdeenshire it happened.
At the petrol pump in Newtonhill: AdBlue in a diesel
The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you just notice it as you're standing at the petrol pump, bottle or nozzle in your hand. Possibly you're at the Asda, maybe at the EG On the Move, possibly somewhere else around Newtonhill.
The upshot: of every spot to find out, the forecourt is the best. Only the tank holds AdBlue; no part beyond it has drawn any in.
What to do: do not get back in and start the car to clear the petrol pump. Get the attendants to help pushing it into a space, save the bottle, then ring us from there. Stuck by the petrol pump? Our explosion-proof kit keeps a busy forecourt safe, and so we can drain the vehicle in place.
At home around Newtonhill with AdBlue in your diesel tank
Days had passed with the warning light on. Picked up a container, poured it in outside the house, binned the empty — and only then checked the cap a second time, after the fact. It takes place on driveways just off Elsick Place as frequently as anywhere.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. At the floor of that tank is where AdBlue stays, because it will not blend with diesel — and a night going by changes no difference.
Next: prevent any early-morning move by keeping the keys indoors, then ring us. Our technicians drain it on your drive, whether that is in Newtonhill or out in Windyedge. The pumps are quiet enough to use outside a house at night.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving in Newtonhill?
A mile or two beyond filling up, your motor started playing up: rough running, smoke, lost power, lights on your dash. Maybe it was on Newtonhill Road, maybe on the way out towards Aberdeen, under 10 miles away.
In short: the AdBlue has been sucked through the fuel system. It's been through the filter and the fuel lines and, the further you went, into the high-pressure pump and your injectors. Each restart, like every mile, carries it deeper.
Stop safely — that is the next job — then turn it off. Leave at the first junction — not the services beyond — if you are on the M90, over 50 miles from Newtonhill. Do not restart it to see if it has cleared; it will not have. Tell us hear the distance covered when you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company vehicles
It's a motor you have had for a week. On your own car, AdBlue is absent or elsewhere. On this one, its cap is right next to your diesel inlet — news to you. Anywhere you happen to be around Aberdeenshire, every motorist could slip up.
Meaning? Whichever applies above applies here — run or not — plus one further step. Plenty of hire and company agreements want the owner to approve work on the vehicle.
Next: phone the rental company or the fleet manager first, then us — settling it before our arrival is quicker. Leave the vehicle off while the reply arrives, even if you're parked at Portlethen or near Newtonhill Parish Church.
AdBlue in the diesel tank? Not sure, in Newtonhill
Occasionally the fair answer is "I think so". Too light, that bottle; a hint of ammonia round your filler; no clear recollection of which cap. Sound familiar? It might have been on a friend's driveway in Downies, or rushing outside the local primary school at the school run.
Put simply: a spill round the filler does your motor no harm. If it is inside the diesel tank, though, it does. You can't tell which by turning the key, and doing so will suck in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
Assume it was put in, and don't start your engine. Ring and give what you saw: we'd sooner confirm a clean tank than empty one after your engine has run.
Each AdBlue drain around Newtonhill shares these steps
The work begins the same way, whatever the situation. Our engineers come to the car, whether it's on a forecourt, a driveway, the car park at Quoiters or a side street close to Newtonhill Library, and ask three things: what went in, roughly how much, and whether your motor has run. Answers shape the work; the quote comes by phone while no one has set off yet.
AdBlue forms crystals and eats at certain metals used in fuel systems, so it does not wash out on its own; that's why a full flush, after the drain, counts far more with AdBlue than with petrol. Last are your filter, cleaned or renewed as needed; fresh diesel; and a test of the vehicle. If the engine has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Last, our technicians start it. Our technicians confirm it runs correctly on clean diesel before leaving. If it's spotted quickly, the vehicle very seldom has long-term damage, and the entire job happens where it is. Paying comes that day, never in advance. For the insurer, there is a VAT invoice and a written report from the engineer. Plenty of insurance policies cover misfuelling, and so look at yours as we head over.
About Newtonhill and where it is
Newtonhill is a coastal village in Aberdeenshire, situated approximately 8 miles south of Aberdeen. Newtonhill sits at an elevation of around 65 metres, overlooking the North Sea. Newtonhill has a mix of housing types, but detached homes are predominant, and the village is close to other nearby communities such as Windyedge and Chapelton.
AdBlue drains in Newtonhill, and across Aberdeenshire too
Being a coastal village, Newtonhill has the same vans as the surrounding places — Muchalls, Chapelton — all the way across AB postcodes. The whereabouts comes clearest from a postcode that starts AB39 3.
No towing is required, be it stopped in the centre of Newtonhill or in a lay-by en route to Newtonhill Park, and so keep it where it is. Our engineers drain the car where it is. Ring and check rather than guess if you're by Skateraw Hall, near a boundary, or anywhere awkward to explain.
The one-line version
Engine not started: ring, leaving it switched off. Run already: pull over, power down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, in Newtonhill or wherever across Aberdeenshire.