What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Springfield
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: if your motor has run since it got in. If it has not, keep it that way, whether your car is in Springfield itself or out in Thorpe. Keep nothing on, ring 0333 366 0103, and count on a thorough flush after a drain, carried out just where the vehicle sits around Springfield. Pull over the minute it is safe then switch off, if it has already run. It's a bigger job, yet step one doesn't change.
Below: the situations our technicians meet, wherever around West Yorkshire. Pick yours.
On a Springfield forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
Imagine it: stood by the pump, holding the bottle, you spot the cap you opened wasn't the correct one. It might be the Morrisons, or perhaps the Sainsbury's, or another station in Springfield.
In short: no better spot exists to spot it. Still inside that tank, with no fuel pulled onwards: that's where the AdBlue sits.
Next: avoid the urge to fire it up only to move away from the pump. Ask the attendants to help you push the vehicle into a parking space, keep the receipt or the bottle, and call us from the forecourt. Emptying it there at the pump is possible when it can't be moved, since the equipment is explosion-proof.
Springfield, at home: AdBlue in the diesel tank
Several days had gone by with the warning light on. Only at the recycling bin, the empty bottle in your hand, did you look back at the cap you had used at the drive. Right off Rowantree Drive is not different from any other place.
What it means: if you haven't driven since, this is almost as good as the forecourt. Being unable to blend, AdBlue drops low in the tank and stays. A night standing alters nothing.
Your move: the keys in the house, and so nobody drives the vehicle off first thing. After that, phone. Moor End or Springfield: wherever your drive is, that is where it gets emptied. The equipment runs quietly enough that it won't wake the street at night.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel around Springfield?
Rough running, smoke, lost power or a glowing dashboard arrived a mile or two after the fill. Farm Hill Road, say, or the route towards Bradford — a run of under 3 miles.
Meaning? The pump has sucked the AdBlue in. It's been through the fuel filter and your lines and, the further you went, into the high-pressure fuel pump and your injectors. It travels further with each extra mile driven and each restart.
Your move: pull up somewhere safe, then switch your motor off. Leave at the next junction — not the services further along — if you're on the M606, under 5 miles from Springfield. No test restarts: clearing is not something AdBlue does. Call us and say how far you travelled.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
A week back, it was unknown to you. The AdBlue filler is right alongside the diesel one, which you did not know, because your own car either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. It can happen to anyone, anywhere across West Yorkshire.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more stage. The owner frequently has to sign off the work, under many rental and fleet contracts.
Your move: hire firm or fleet manager to begin with, us second, because sorting it beforehand cuts time. Stuck near Rockwell Community Centre or at Apperley Bridge until the firm replies, your car stays switched off the whole time.
Springfield: unsure whether it was AdBlue in your diesel tank?
Now and then, "I think so" is all you can honestly say. Which cap came off, you can't recall; but the bottle weighs lighter than expected, and ammonia hangs by your filler. It might have been at a friend's driveway in Eccleshill, or rushing by Blakehill Primary School on the school run.
In short: a spill near your filler does your engine unharmed. The diesel tank with AdBlue inside is a different matter. You cannot tell which by turning the key, and doing so would pull in any AdBlue that is in that tank.
Your move: act as though it did, and don't start the engine. Tell us what you noticed on the phone. A clear tank looked at counts as a happier result than a run one emptied.
What every AdBlue drain around Springfield has in common
The work opens identically, whatever your situation. Three questions are asked once our technicians reach your car — on a filling station, a driveway, a street by St John's or the car park outside Springfield Hotel: the liquid, the amount, and whether it has run. Those replies decide this work, and you hear our price by phone, before anybody sets off.
A thorough flush comes after the drain. With petrol it is standard; with AdBlue it's crucial, because deposits build up and certain metals are attacked, and neither washes away unaided. Last are the fuel filter, cleaned or replaced if necessary; clean diesel; and a check of the vehicle. Most unstarted vehicles are a half-hour visit from the moment our engineers arrive.
Our engineers start the engine at the end. We make sure it runs correctly on new diesel before we go. Long-term damage is very unusual if it is caught early, and the entire job is done where the vehicle is. Payment is on the day, never in advance. For your insurer, there is a VAT invoice plus a written report from the engineer. Many insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it is worth checking yours whilst we're on the way.
About Springfield and where it is
Springfield is a suburban area in West Yorkshire, situated near the River Aire and close to the city of Bradford. Springfield sits at an elevation of 169 metres, with semi-detached housing being the predominant type of accommodation in the area. Springfield is located near other residential areas, including Moor End, Bank Top, and Thorpe Edge, and is approximately 2.7 miles from Bradford city centre. Springfield has a population of around 8128 people, making it a moderately sized suburban community.
Springfield and West Yorkshire: AdBlue drains across the area
As a residential suburb, Springfield has the same vans as the surrounding places — Thorpe Edge, Bank Top — all the way through BD postcodes. The location is quickest from a postcode that starts BD10 8.
Centre of Springfield or a layby towards Idle Cricket Club: wherever it sits, the car doesn't need to move an inch for us. The drain is done on the spot. If you are somewhere hard to explain, near St Francis of Assisi Catholic Church or close to a border, ring and ask instead of assuming.
Your scenario, summed up
Engine not started: phone, leaving it alone. Run by now: stop, power down, phone 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, within Springfield or wherever across West Yorkshire.