--- title: Upton: AdBlue in a Diesel Tank, What Next canonical: https://www.petrolinadieselcar.co.uk/adblue-in-diesel/upton-devon/ location: Upton county: Devon latitude: 50.474080 longitude: -3.534110 service: AdBlue in a Diesel Tank updated: 2026-10-27 --- # AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Upton: What Now? All of that turns on a single detail: if the engine has started since the AdBlue went in — far more than anything else. Over in Ellacombe or here around Upton, an unstarted engine must remain that way. Leave your motor and the ignition off then call 0333 366 0103; it's normally a drain and a thorough flush, done where the car is around Upton. Pull over the moment you safely can and turn off, if it has already run. It is a larger job, though step one does not change. Wherever in Devon it happened, one of the situations below matches yours. ## AdBlue in a diesel on a Upton forecourt The cap you opened was the wrong one — and you just notice it while you are standing at the pump, bottle or the nozzle in hand. Whether Harvest Energy, Esso or anywhere else in Upton, the case is identical. What it means: this is the best location to find out. The AdBlue is inside the tank and nowhere else. Nothing has drawn it in. What to do: don't get back in and crank it to clear the pump. A few jobs: a push into a bay with the attendants assisting, the bottle kept, and a call to us from the forecourt. If it can't be shifted, it can be emptied at the pump: the equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a working forecourt. ## At home around Upton with AdBlue in your diesel tank For days the dash had been nagging you. Only at the recycling bin, the empty container in your hand, did you look back at the cap you had opened on the driveway. Driveways near Upton Hill see it as much as anywhere. Put simply: if your vehicle has not moved since, it is nearly as good as spotting it at the pump. AdBlue does not mix with diesel; it sinks to the bottom of the tank and waits there. Overnight doesn't change that. What to do: leave the keys inside the house so no one moves the vehicle in the morning. Then call. Out in Plainmoor or right here around Upton, the drain is done at your driveway. Late-night clears outside a house are no problem: the pumps are quiet. ## Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel around Upton? You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later the engine began to run roughly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Forest Road, perhaps, or the way towards Exeter — a run of under 25 miles. Put simply: the AdBlue has been sucked through your fuel system. The high-pressure pump and each injector get it as well on a bigger run, after your filter and pipework have it. More driving, more starts: further it travels. Next: pick a safe place, pull in, then switch your motor off. Leave at the next junction — not the services beyond — if you are on the M5, under 15 miles from Upton. Starting it again to check achieves nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear on its own. Phone, saying how far the car was driven. ## Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank You have just driven this car for days. On your own car, AdBlue is absent or somewhere else. On this one, its inlet is just by the diesel inlet — a surprise to you. Wherever you are in Devon, every driver could slip up. What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more stage. Work on your vehicle often needs the owner's approval under rental or company terms. Next: ring the hire company or the fleet manager first, and then us — settling it before our arrival is quicker. Waiting for a reply in the car park outside Torre, or beside The Boulder Bunker? Leave the engine off meanwhile. ## Not sure it was AdBlue in your diesel tank, Upton? Occasionally the honest answer is "I think so". Too light, that bottle; a trace of ammonia near the filler; a hazy recollection of the cap. Sound familiar? The gates of Upton St James CofE Primary School in a hurry, perhaps, or a friend's driveway over in St Marychurch. The upshot: the motor isn't hurt by a little AdBlue splashed on the outside. If it is inside the diesel tank, though, it does. If there is AdBlue in the tank, firing up your car would draw it in, and it would not tell you which either. Next: assume it went in, and leave your engine off. Checking a tank that proves clean beats emptying one once it's been run — so ring then describe to us what you saw. ## The common ground in every Upton AdBlue drain Every case has the same opening to the work. Three things come when we arrive — at a forecourt, a drive, a road beside Upton Vale Baptist Church or the car park at The Jolly Judge: the fluid, the amount, and if it has been started. Over the phone, before anything else, you hear the quote, and those replies shape the job too. AdBlue crystallises and eats at some metals in fuel systems, and so it won't wash out unaided; that's why a full flush, after this drain, counts much more with AdBlue than with petrol. Finally are the filter, cleaned or renewed if necessary; fresh diesel; and a test of your vehicle. Not started? In that case about half an hour once we are there is most jobs. The last step is firing it up. We confirm it runs correctly on fresh diesel before leaving. Long-term damage is very rare if it's spotted early, and the entire job is done where the vehicle is. Paying comes on the day, never upfront. For the insurer, there is a VAT invoice and a report from the engineer. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling cover, so it is worth checking yours whilst we are on the way. ## About Upton Upton is a suburban area in Devon, situated on the coast near Torquay and Torre, with a mix of terraced housing and other residential properties. Upton sits at an elevation of around 40 metres, looking out over the sea, and is located approximately 17 miles from Exeter. Upton forms part of the larger Torquay area, which includes nearby Plainmoor and other neighbourhoods. ## AdBlue drains across Devon, Upton included Upton is a residential suburb, and the same vans that cover it work the places near it too, Torquay and Torre among them, across the TQ postcode area. A postcode starting TQ1 3 is the quickest way to tell us where you are. Whether the vehicle is on a lay-by on the way to Stantaway Hill or in a car park in the middle of Upton, it doesn't need to move. Our van empties it in place. Assuming won't help near Torquay Central Library, close to a county line or somewhere hard to describe; phone and ask. ## The one-line version Not run yet: keep the car off and call. Whichever line applies, Petrol in Diesel handles the rest on 0333 366 0103, throughout Devon and within Upton — once you stop, switch off then ring, if it's run.