AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Saltcoats: What Now?
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: whether the engine has been run since it went in. Wherever the car is — Stevenston, Saltcoats — never start a motor that hasn't run yet. Leave your engine and the ignition off and phone 0333 366 0103; it is generally a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is around Saltcoats. Where your motor has been run, stop somewhere safe straight away, then switch the vehicle off. Stage one stays the same, even if the job grows.
Compare your case to a situation from the ones below, wherever in North Ayrshire you happen to be.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Saltcoats forecourt
Only at this point, nozzle yet in your hand, you realise that the cap you took off was the wrong one, there at the pump. Be it BP, JET or anywhere else around Saltcoats, the case is the same.
Meaning? Spotting it on the forecourt is as good as it can be. Still inside that tank, with nothing drawn onwards: that is where the AdBlue is.
Clearing the pump is no excuse to run it — so do not get back in. Ask the attendants to help you push your car into a parking bay, keep the receipt or the bottle, and ring us from the forecourt. If it can't be moved, it can be emptied at the petrol pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and safe on a busy forecourt.
Saltcoats, at home: AdBlue in the diesel tank
Several days had gone by with the dash light on. A bottle bought at the garage, tipped in on the driveway — and it was just by the bin that the cap caught your eye. Drives close to Vernon Street see it as much as any other street.
Meaning? As long as the vehicle has not moved since, it is close to the forecourt case. Being unable to mix, AdBlue settles low in that tank and waits. A night standing changes nothing.
What to do: leave your keys inside the house so no one moves the car in the morning. Then call. Our engineers drain it on your driveway, whether that's around Saltcoats or out in Auchenharvie. Our equipment runs quiet enough not to disturb the neighbours at night.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel in Saltcoats?
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later your engine began to run unevenly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Possibly it was on Manse Street, perhaps on the way out towards Glasgow, under 50 miles away.
The point: the system has pulled AdBlue through already. It has been through your filter and the lines and, the further you went, into your high-pressure pump and your injectors. Each mile and each restart takes it further.
Next: find a safe place, pull in, then switch your engine off. On the M77, under 15 miles from Saltcoats, that means the next junction, not the services further on. No trial restarts: clearing isn't something AdBlue will do. About how far did it go? Say so when you call.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
You have only had this car for days. Your own vehicle either does without AdBlue or keeps it somewhere different, so nothing warned you the AdBlue inlet sits right beside the diesel. Anywhere you happen to be across North Ayrshire, every motorist could slip up.
Meaning? Whatever case above applies here — run or unrun — and one further step. Plenty of rental and company agreements require the owner's sign-off before work.
Your move: rental firm or fleet manager first, us second, since sorting it early cuts time. Leave it off while the answer comes, whether you are parked at the nearest station or near Kirkgate Parish Church.
Not sure it was AdBlue in the diesel tank, Saltcoats?
Truthfully, the best answer may be that you think so. Which cap came off, you cannot say; meanwhile the bottle feels less than expected, and a whiff of ammonia lingers by your filler. Maybe on a friend's drive in Kilwinning, or in a rush outside the local primary school on the school run.
Meaning? Spills around the filler don't reach your motor at all. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. You can't tell which by turning the key, and doing so would suck in any AdBlue that is in that tank.
Take it that it was put in, and never turn your engine. Ring us and describe what you saw; we'd rather check a tank that turns out clean than drain one that has already been run.
Every AdBlue drain in Saltcoats shares these steps
No matter the situation, a single opening is used. Filling station, driveway, The Salt Cot's car park or a road beside John Paterson Memorial — the van reaches your vehicle, and three answers follow: what liquid, which quantity, and if it ran. Replies set the job; the price comes by phone whilst nobody has set off yet.
AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some metals used in fuel systems, so it does not wash out on its own; that's why a full flush, after the drain, counts much more here than with petrol. Then is the filter — cleaned, or swapped where necessary — then clean diesel, and a test of the car. Never started? Then about half an hour once we are there is most jobs.
Finally, our engineers fire it up. Before our engineers leave, it's checked to be sure it runs smoothly on clean diesel. Permanent damage is very uncommon if it's spotted quickly, and the whole job is done where the car is. Nothing is paid upfront, settlement happens on the day, and you receive what the insurer wants: an engineer report plus a VAT invoice. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it's worth checking yours whilst we are on the way.
About Saltcoats, for a moment
Saltcoats is a coastal town in North Ayrshire, situated on the Firth of Clyde, with a population of around 9323 people. Saltcoats has a relatively low elevation of 5 metres, and its flat landscape is characterised by predominant flat housing. Saltcoats is located near other settlements such as Auchenharvie, Mayfield, and Ardrossan, and is approximately 26.6 miles from Glasgow. Saltcoats sits on the western coast of Scotland, around 343.1 miles from London.
AdBlue drains across North Ayrshire, Saltcoats included
Mayfield and Ardrossan have the identical vans as Saltcoats, a coastal town, along with other places throughout KA postcodes. A postcode starting KA21 5 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
No towing is needed, be it stopped centrally in Saltcoats or on a lay-by en route to Glebe Park, and so keep it put. The van drains it in place. If you're somewhere hard to describe, near North Ayrshire Heritage Centre or close to a boundary, ring and ask instead of guessing.
In one line: your situation
Not run yet: keep it off and ring. Run by now? Stop, switch off, ring. Petrol in Diesel takes over the rest whichever case, across Saltcoats and North Ayrshire, on 0333 366 0103.