AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Primrose, and What to Do Next
All of it hinges on a single fact: if your engine has been run after the AdBlue went in — more than anything else. Wherever the car is — Pendleton, Primrose — never start a motor that has not run yet. Call 0333 366 0103 with the ignition and engine both off. In Primrose, such a case is typically emptied and cleaned where it stands. When your engine has run, pull in safely straight away, then turn the car off. The job is bigger, but the first stage is the same.
Wherever across Lancashire it took place, one of the cases below fits yours.
At the pump in Primrose: AdBlue in a diesel
Picture it: standing by the pump, gripping the bottle, you spot the filler you opened wasn't the right one. Anywhere around Primrose, then — Shell, Esso, or anywhere else nearby.
Meaning? Spotting it on the forecourt is as good as it gets. Nothing has drawn it through, and so the AdBlue sits only inside that tank.
What to do: do not get back in and fire it up to clear the petrol pump. Phone us from the forecourt once the car sits in a space — the staff will lend a hand to roll it — and save the receipt. If it can't be moved, it can be cleared at the pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a working forecourt.
At home in Primrose with AdBlue in your diesel tank
Days had gone by with the warning light on. You bought a bottle, poured it in on the driveway, and only when you put the empty bottle in the recycling did you look again at the cap. Just off Beverley Close is not less likely from anywhere.
The point: no driving since makes it nearly equal to spotting it at the pump. Being reluctant to mix, AdBlue drops to the base inside that tank and waits. One night standing changes nothing.
What to do: leave the keys inside the house so nobody moves the vehicle in the morning. Then call. In Standen Hall or here in Primrose, the drain happens on your drive. The pumping kit runs quiet enough not to disturb the neighbours at night.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel in Primrose?
Lumpy running, smoke, falling power or a glowing dashboard arrived a mile or two after the top-up. Beverley Drive, say, or the route towards Preston — a trip of under 15 miles.
What it means: your fuel system has pulled the AdBlue in. It has been through the filter and the fuel lines and, the further you went, into the high-pressure fuel pump and the injectors. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Next: find a safe spot, stop, then switch the engine off. Primrose lies under 10 miles from the M65; on it, pull off at the first junction instead of pushing on for the services. It will not have cleared, and so there's no point restarting to check. Phone us and say how far you drove.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
It's a car you have had for a week. Unbeknown to you, the two inlets sit next to each other here — unlike your own car, which has no AdBlue or keeps it in another spot. Anyone, anywhere in Lancashire, might make the same.
In short: one extra stage on top of the situations above, which turn on whether it's run. Many hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on your car.
Do this: hire firm or your fleet manager to begin with, us second, since sorting it early cuts time. Waiting for an answer at the car park at Clitheroe, or near Owl? Leave the car off throughout.
Primrose: unsure whether it was AdBlue in the diesel tank?
"I think so" is often the most honest as it gets. A slight ammonia-like whiff lingers around the filler, the bottle feels too light, and which cap came off is hard to recall. The gates of St James' Church of England Primary School, Clitheroe in a hurry, say, or someone's driveway over in Pimlico.
In short: a spill round the filler does your engine no harm. In the diesel tank, however, AdBlue damages it. You cannot tell which by turning the key, and doing so would draw in any AdBlue that is in the tank.
Next: assume it went in, and leave the motor off. Phone and give what you saw: we would rather find a tank free of AdBlue than empty one once the motor has run.
Primrose: what each AdBlue drain has in common
Whichever situation you are in, the job starts the same way. Three questions are asked once our engineers reach the car — on a filling station, a drive, a road by Saint James or the car park outside Brown Cow: the liquid, the amount, and if the motor has run. The price is given on the call, ahead of anyone setting off, and those replies shape the job.
AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some metals used in fuel systems, and so it won't wash out unaided; that is why the flush, after the drain, matters far more with AdBlue than with petrol. Fresh diesel goes in after your filter is flushed or changed, and the car is finally checked. If your motor has not run, most jobs take about half an hour once we're there.
Starting it comes last. Our engineers confirm it runs properly on fresh diesel before we leave. Permanent damage is very rare if it is caught soon, and the entire job is done where the vehicle is. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. Many insurance policies cover misfuelling, so check yours while the van travels.
About Primrose
Primrose is a suburban area in Lancashire, situated on the riverside at an elevation of 97 metres, with terraced housing being the predominant type of accommodation. Primrose lies approximately 14 miles from Preston and 188 miles from London, making it a relatively accessible location. Primrose is close to nearby places such as Standen Hall and Low Moor, and is also not far from the town of Clitheroe. Primrose has a population of around 4470 residents.
AdBlue drains across Lancashire, Primrose included
Being a residential suburb, Primrose has the same vans as the surrounding towns — Clitheroe, Low Moor — all the way across BB postcodes. A postcode starting BB7 1 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
Stopped en route to Primrose Nature Reserve, or bang in the centre of Primrose, your vehicle remains put — there is no need to shift it at all. Wherever it stands, that is where it gets emptied. Assuming doesn't help beside British Legion, on a county line or anywhere awkward to pin down; ring and check.
Your situation, in one line
Not run yet: keep it off and call. Run already: stop, power down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the remainder, within Primrose or anywhere across Lancashire.