AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Totteridge, and What to Do Next
Has your engine run since the AdBlue went in? This one question settles almost everything else from here. If it hasn't, keep it that way, whether the car is in Totteridge itself or out in East Barnet. Switch nothing on, phone 0333 366 0103, and expect a thorough flush after a drain, carried out just where your car sits around Totteridge. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. A bigger job, then, but the same first step.
Further down: the situations our technicians meet, wherever in Greater London. Choose yours.
On a Totteridge forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you only notice it while you're stood at the petrol pump, bottle or the nozzle in your hand. Be it Esso, BP or anywhere else in Totteridge, the case is identical.
The point: of all places to find out, the forecourt is the best. Nothing has drawn it in, so the AdBlue stays just inside your tank.
What to do: do not get back in and crank it to clear the petrol pump. Ask the attendants to help you roll your car into a parking bay, keep the receipt or the bottle, then call us from the forecourt. Can't move the vehicle beside the petrol pump? Our explosion-proof kit makes a busy forecourt safe, so it can be drained where it is.
Totteridge, at home: AdBlue in the diesel tank
For days the dash had been nagging you. 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. Drives near Greenway get it as much as anywhere.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is almost as good as the forecourt. As it is reluctant to blend, AdBlue drops low inside that tank and stays. A night standing changes nothing.
Next: the keys indoors, so no one takes your vehicle off at breakfast. Then, ring. Out in Whetstone or here in Totteridge, the draining happens on your driveway. Even at night, our pumps stay quiet enough for a driveway.
On the road in Totteridge with AdBlue in a diesel
Rough running, smoke, falling power or a glowing dashboard started a short way after the top-up. Somewhere on Hill Crescent or on the road to London — under 10 miles away.
What it means: the fuel system has sucked the AdBlue in. It has been through the filter and your lines and, the further you went, into your high-pressure pump and your injectors. Every restart, like each mile, pushes it deeper.
Stop safely — that is the first job — then turn it off. Totteridge sits under 3 miles from the M1; on it, pull off at the first junction rather than pushing on for the services. It will not have cleared, so there's no point starting it again to check. About what distance did it go? Tell us when you call.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
You've just driven the car a week. On your own vehicle, AdBlue is missing or elsewhere. On this one, the inlet is just next to the diesel inlet — news to you. Any driver, wherever around Greater London, could do it.
Put simply: an extra step on top of the cases above, and those depend on if it has run. Plenty of hire and company contracts want the owner to approve work on the vehicle.
Next: ring the rental company or your fleet manager first, then us — settling it before we arrive is faster. Waiting for an answer in the car park outside Oakleigh Park, or near The Golden Kilometre Distance Markers? Leave your car off throughout.
Not sure it was AdBlue in your diesel tank, Totteridge?
"I think so" is often as honest as it gets. A faint ammonia whiff hangs around your filler, the bottle seems too light, and which cap came off is a blur. The gates of St John's CofE Primary and Nursery School in a hurry, perhaps, or a friend's drive over in North Finchley.
Meaning? Spills around the filler never touch the motor at all. AdBlue inside your diesel tank does. Starting the car won't tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in that tank it will pull it in.
Do this: act as if it got in, and never start your engine. Inspecting a tank that turns out clean beats emptying one once it's been run — so phone then describe to us what you saw.
The common ground in each Totteridge AdBlue drain
Each case has the same opening to the work. Three things come when we arrive — on a forecourt, a drive, a road beside Totteridge Tennis Club or the car park at Three Horseshoes: the fluid, the amount, and if the motor has run. Over the phone, ahead of dispatch, you hear our quote, and those replies decide the work too.
Draining your tank comes first, then a full flush — more vital after urea than with petrol, since crystals and corrosion won't go by themselves, no matter how long it sits. Your filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and your car is tested. The majority of unstarted vehicles are a half-hour job after the moment our technicians get there.
The last step is firing it up. Before our engineers head off, it is tested to confirm it runs smoothly on fresh diesel. Permanent damage is very rare when it's spotted quickly, and the entire job is done where the vehicle is. Payment is on the day, never in advance. For your insurer, you get a VAT invoice and a written report from the engineer. Many insurance policies cover misfuelling, so check yours while the van travels.
About Totteridge
Totteridge is a suburban area in Greater London, situated near several lakes and ponds, including the Totteridge Lakes. Totteridge sits at an elevation of 71 metres, approximately 8.7 miles from central London, and is surrounded by other suburban areas such as Whetstone, Woodside Park, and Oakleigh Park. Totteridge has a population of around 5219 people and is characterised by its predominantly semi-detached housing stock. Totteridge remains a popular residential area due to its proximity to London and its relatively rural feel.
AdBlue drains across Greater London, Totteridge included
As a residential suburb, Totteridge has the same vans as the nearby places — Oakleigh Park, Woodside Park — right through N postcodes. A postcode starting N20 8 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
No moving is required, be it parked centrally in Totteridge or in a layby heading to Whetstone Stray, so leave it put. The van drains it where it stands. Phone and check rather than guess if you're close to Lollypop Man Memorial, near a boundary, or anywhere awkward to pin down.
In one line: your scenario
Not run yet: keep it off then call. Already run: stop, switch off and ring. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there in Totteridge and anywhere across Greater London on 0333 366 0103.