AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Spring Park, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: if the engine has been run since it was put in. Wherever your vehicle is — Monks Orchard, Spring Park — never run an engine that hasn't been started yet. Leave the engine and the ignition off and ring 0333 366 0103; it's normally a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is in Spring Park. Already started? Pull over when safe, then switch everything off. A bigger job, yes, yet the identical opening step.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever around Greater London it happened.
Spring Park forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
You are at the pump, the nozzle or the bottle still in your hand, and you have just noticed the cap you opened was the wrong one. Maybe you are at the Esso, maybe at the Shell, perhaps somewhere else in Spring Park.
In short: there is no better spot to be to discover it. The AdBlue is in your tank and nowhere else. Nothing has drawn it in.
Do this: stay out of the car, even if the queue needs freeing. Have the staff to help rolling it to a space, hold on to the receipt, then phone us from there. Draining it there at the petrol pump is fine if it cannot be moved, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
At home in Spring Park with AdBlue in your diesel tank
The warning light had been on for days. Picked up a container, tipped it in at home, binned the empty — and at that point checked the cap a second time, after the fact. It takes place on driveways just off Shirley Way as regularly as anywhere.
Meaning? As long as the car has not moved since, it's second to the pump case. On the floor of your tank sits where AdBlue waits, since it will not blend with diesel — and a night going by changes no difference.
Next: stop any early-morning drive by keeping the keys indoors, then ring us. Our technicians drain the vehicle on your drive, whether that is around Spring Park or out in Upper Shirley. The pumps are quiet enough to use outside a house at night.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel in Spring Park?
Lumpy running, smoke, falling power or a glowing dashboard arrived a short way beyond the fill. Anywhere along Bernel Drive or heading towards Westminster — under 10 miles away.
In short: the AdBlue has been sucked into the fuel system. Past the fuel filter, through the lines, and — the further the distance — deeper into the injection pump and every injector. Each restart, like each mile, pushes it deeper.
Stop safely — that is the next step — then turn everything off. On the M25, under 10 miles from Spring Park, that means the next junction, not the services further on. Starting it again to check achieves nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear on its own. About how far did it go? Tell us as you call.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
You've had the car barely a week. The AdBlue filler is right beside the diesel one, which you did not know, because your own vehicle either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Anywhere you happen to be around Greater London, any driver can slip up.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it has run, with one more step. Any work on the car frequently needs the owner's approval under hire or fleet agreements.
Do this: hire firm or fleet manager first, us next, since settling it beforehand saves time. Stuck by All Saints Church Hall or outside West Wickham until someone answers, the vehicle stays turned off throughout.
Not sure it was AdBlue in your diesel tank, Spring Park?
Truthfully, the only answer may be that you think so. Which cap came off, you can't say; meanwhile the bottle feels less than expected, and a whiff of ammonia lingers by the filler. The gates of Forest Academy in a rush, say, or a friend's drive out in Addington.
The point: your engine isn't hurt by a little AdBlue splashed on the outside. If it is inside your diesel tank, though, it does. You cannot tell which by turning the ignition, and doing so would pull in any AdBlue that is in your tank.
What to do: treat it as if it was put in. Don't start the car. Inspecting a tank that turns out clean beats draining one once it's been run — so phone and describe to us what you noticed.
Each AdBlue drain around Spring Park shares these stages
Whatever the situation, a single start applies. Forecourt, driveway, The Apple Tree's car park or a road beside All Saints Church — our van reaches your vehicle, and three questions follow: which liquid, what amount, and if it has run. Over the phone, before anything else, you are told the quote, and those replies decide the work too.
A thorough flush comes after the drain. With petrol it is standard; with AdBlue it's essential, since crystals build up and some metals corrode, and neither rinses out unaided. Next comes the fuel filter — flushed, or swapped when needed — then fresh diesel, and a test of the vehicle. If your engine has not run, most jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Our engineers start the car at the end. Before we head off, it's tested to confirm it runs properly on clean diesel. We do the entire job where the vehicle is, and lasting damage is very uncommon when it has been noticed soon. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, nothing in advance. Worth remembering: many insurers offer misfuelling cover, and so a quick look at your policy as you wait is worthwhile.
About Spring Park
Spring Park is a suburban area in south London, situated near the River Effra and close to the borders of Croydon and Bromley. Spring Park sits at an elevation of around 80 metres, with views of the surrounding countryside and the London skyline. Spring Park is characterised by its semi-detached housing stock and its proximity to nearby places such as Upper Shirley, Shirley, and West Wickham.
AdBlue drains around Spring Park and across Greater London
As a residential suburb, Spring Park has the same vans as the nearby towns — West Wickham, Shirley — all the way through CR postcodes. Fastest of all: a CR0 8 postcode for your location.
No moving is needed, whether stopped in the centre of Spring Park or on a layby heading to Millers Pond, and so leave it put. The drain is done right there. Guessing won't help near Shirley Youth & Community Centre, on a county line or somewhere awkward to describe; phone and check.
The one-line version
Not run yet: keep the vehicle off and call. Whatever line fits, Petrol in Diesel handles the rest on 0333 366 0103, throughout Greater London and within Spring Park — once you pull over, switch off then ring, if it's run.