What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Upton Cross
Has your motor turned over since the AdBlue was put in? That one question settles nearly everything about what comes next. Over in Caradon Town or here in Upton Cross, an unstarted motor should stay that way. Leave the motor and your ignition off and call 0333 366 0103; it's normally a drain and a thorough flush, done where your car is in Upton Cross. Pull over the moment it is safe then turn off, if it has already run. A larger job, yes, yet the identical first step.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever around Cornwall it happened.
On a Upton Cross forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
Just at this point, bottle yet in your hand, you realise that the cap you took off was the wrong one, there at the petrol pump. Anywhere around Upton Cross, then — BP, another forecourt nearby, or anywhere else nearby.
What it means: this is the best spot to find out. The AdBlue is inside that tank and nowhere else. Nothing has sucked it in.
What to do: do not get back in and fire it up to clear the pump. A few jobs: a push into a space with the staff assisting, the receipt saved, and a ring to us from the forecourt. Emptying it right at the pump is fine if it can't be shifted, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
At home in Upton Cross with AdBlue in your diesel tank
Several days had passed with the dash light on. A bottle bought at the shop, tipped in on the driveway — and it was just by the recycling that the cap got a second look. Homes just off Christa Court get caught out as much as everywhere else.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is almost as good as the forecourt. Being unable to mix, AdBlue drops to the base inside that tank and waits. One night standing changes nothing.
Keep the keys in the house tonight — or someone might drive it off first thing — and phone us. Upton or Upton Cross: whichever your driveway sits, that is where it gets drained. Even at night, the pumps are quiet enough for a driveway.
On the road around Upton Cross with AdBlue in a diesel
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later the engine began to run unevenly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Maybe driving for Plymouth, under 25 miles away, or just along Carnedon.
Meaning? The fuel pump has sucked the AdBlue up. It has been through the filter and the lines and, the further you went, into the high-pressure fuel pump and your injectors. More driving, more starts: further it travels.
What to do: pull over where it is safe to do so then switch off. Leave at the next junction — not the services beyond — if you're on the M5, under 50 miles from Upton Cross. Don't restart it to see if it has cleared; it will not have. Phone us and say how far you went.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
A week ago, it was unknown to you. Unbeknown to you, the two fillers are side by side here — not like your own vehicle, which has none or stores it elsewhere. Across Cornwall, no one is immune.
Meaning? Whichever case above counts here — run or unrun — plus one extra stage. Plenty of rental and fleet agreements require the owner's approval before repairs.
Do this: rental firm or your fleet manager first, us next, since settling it beforehand cuts time. Stuck near Linkinhorn Parish Hall or outside Liskeard till the firm answers, the car stays switched off the whole time.
Not sure it was AdBlue in your diesel tank, Upton Cross?
At times, "I think so" is the most you can truthfully say. A faint ammonia-like whiff lingers around your filler, the bottle seems too light, and the cap you took off is a blur. The gates of Upton Cross Academy in a rush, perhaps, or someone's drive over in Downgate.
In short: spillage near the filler does your motor no harm. Once it's inside the diesel tank, though, it does. You can't tell which by turning the key, and doing so would suck in any AdBlue that is in your tank.
What to do: treat it as if it went in. Do not start the car. Describe what you noticed on the phone. A clean tank checked counts as a happier outcome than a run one emptied.
Upton Cross: what each AdBlue drain has in common
Every case has the same start to the job. Forecourt, driveway, Caradon Inn's car park or a road by Saint Paul's Church — our van comes to the vehicle, and three answers come next: which liquid, which amount, and if it ran. On the phone, ahead of anything else, you are told the quote, and those answers shape the work too.
Then the tank is drained and the fuel system cleaned thoroughly, which matters more with AdBlue than with petrol: AdBlue crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, and so it doesn't rinse out on its own. Next is the fuel filter — cleaned, or replaced when needed — then fresh diesel, and a test of the car. Never started? Then about half an hour once we are there covers most jobs.
Starting the car comes last. Our test that it runs correctly on fresh diesel comes before our technicians go. Long-term damage is very unusual if it is noticed quickly, and the whole job is done where the vehicle is. For your insurer: an engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment on the day, nothing upfront. Dig out your insurance while we arrive: misfuelling cover comes included in plenty of policies.
About Upton Cross itself
Upton Cross is a small village in Cornwall, situated inland at an elevation of 161 metres. Upton Cross lies near several other settlements, including Upton, Sutton, and Netherton, and is approximately 16 miles from Plymouth. Upton Cross has a population of around 696 people, predominantly living in detached houses. Upton Cross is located in the South West region of England, about 199 miles west of London.
AdBlue drains across Cornwall, Upton Cross included
Sutton and Netherton get the same teams as Upton Cross, a rural village, plus other places throughout PL postcodes. Telling us your PL14 5 postcode pins you fastest of all.
Central Upton Cross or a lay-by near Stara Wood: either way it is, your vehicle doesn't need to move at all for us. The drain happens on the spot. If you are somewhere hard to explain, near Sterts Theatre or close to a boundary, ring and ask instead of assuming.
Your situation, summed up
Where it has not started, phone and leave it that way. Whatever case fits, Petrol in Diesel handles from there on 0333 366 0103, throughout Cornwall and in Upton Cross — after you stop, turn off and phone, if it has run.