What Now? AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Upton
Has your engine run since the AdBlue went in? This single question decides almost everything else from here. Anywhere the car stands — Dallington, Upton — never start an engine that has not run yet. Usually this is draining and thoroughly flushing it on the spot around Upton — so keep the key and engine off and call 0333 366 0103. Stop the moment you safely can and switch off, if it has been run. The job is bigger, yet the first step is the same.
Anywhere in Northamptonshire it happened, one of the situations below matches yours.
AdBlue in a diesel on a Upton forecourt
Imagine it: standing by the pump, gripping the bottle, you realise the filler you took off wasn't the right one. It could be the BP, or the Sainsbury's, or a different forecourt around Upton.
The upshot: of every spot to find out, this is the best. Just your tank has AdBlue; no component beyond it has drawn it in.
Your move: stay out of the car, however much the queue needs freeing. Have the attendants to help pushing it to a space, save the bottle, then ring us right there. The equipment is explosion-proof and fine on a busy forecourt, so a car that can't be pushed clear gets drained right at the pump.
AdBlue in your diesel tank at home around Upton
The warning light had been on for days. Only at the recycling bin, the empty bottle in your hand, did you glance back at the cap you had used on the drive. Houses just off Ashby Wood Drive get caught out as often as everywhere else.
What it means: if you have not driven since, this is nearly as good as the forecourt. Diesel and AdBlue keep apart: the AdBlue settles to the base of your tank and stays there, no matter how long the night.
What to do: leave the keys inside the house so no one moves the vehicle in the morning. Then ring. Out in Duston or right here in Upton, the draining happens at your driveway. Our equipment runs quiet enough not to disturb the neighbours at night.
Upton: drove off with AdBlue in a diesel?
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later the motor began to run unevenly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. Maybe driving for Milton Keynes, under 25 miles away, or simply along Mill Street.
Meaning? The fuel pump has sucked the AdBlue in. The high-pressure pump and every injector see it too on a longer run, after your filter and lines have had it. It travels deeper with every extra mile covered and each restart.
What to do: pull over where it's safe to do so and switch off. Exit at the first junction — not the services beyond — if you're on the M1, under 3 miles from Upton. Starting it again to check gets nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear itself. About how far did it go? Say so when you call.
AdBlue in the wrong tank: hire, lease and company cars
You have only driven the vehicle for days. On your own vehicle, AdBlue is absent or somewhere else. On this one, its inlet is just by your diesel cap — news to you. It can happen to anyone, anywhere in Northamptonshire.
Put simply: an extra step on top of the situations above, and those depend on if it's run. The owner often has to sign off the work, under many rental and company contracts.
Next: phone the rental company or your fleet manager first, and then us — settling it before we arrive is faster. Stranded by St Michael’s or outside Northampton till the firm replies, your car remains switched off throughout.
Unsure about AdBlue in your diesel tank in Upton?
Now and then, "I think so" is the most anyone can truthfully say. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia round your filler, and you cannot remember which cap you took off. A hurried top-up by the gates of Upton Meadows Primary School, or a visit to a friend in Briar Hill: either fit.
Meaning? Spills around the filler don't reach your motor at all. AdBlue inside your diesel tank does. Any AdBlue in the tank would be pulled in by firing up the vehicle, and the start wouldn't settle which it is in any case.
Take it that it got in, and don't turn the engine. Call us and explain what you saw; we would rather check a tank that turns out free of AdBlue than drain one that has already been run.
The common ground in each Upton AdBlue drain
Whichever situation you are in, this job starts the same way. Three questions are asked once our technicians arrive — at a filling station, a drive, a road by Elgar Centre or the car park at The Sixfields: the fluid, the quantity, and if it has been started. Your price is given over the phone, before a van leaves, and those answers shape the job.
A thorough flush comes after the drain. With petrol it's standard; with AdBlue it's crucial, because crystals build up and certain metals are attacked, and none of that washes away unaided. Fresh diesel is put in once the fuel filter is flushed or changed, and the car is finally tested. If your motor has not run, the majority of jobs take about half an hour once we are there.
Starting the car comes at the end. Our check that it runs smoothly on new diesel comes before our technicians go. Permanent damage is very uncommon when it is noticed early, and the entire job is done where the vehicle is. For your insurer: the engineer's report and the VAT invoice. For you: payment that day, nothing in advance. Check your insurance while we're en route: cover for misfuelling is included in many policies.
About Upton itself
Upton is a suburban area in Northamptonshire, situated on the riverside at an elevation of 77 metres. Upton lies near the towns of Duston and Swan Valley, and is approximately 15.5 miles from Milton Keynes. Upton has a population of around 4735 people, predominantly living in terraced housing. Upton is also within commuting distance of London, being around 61.1 miles away.
AdBlue drains around Upton, and across Northamptonshire too
Camp Hill and Swan Valley have the same teams as Upton, a residential suburb, plus other towns over NN postcodes. A postcode starting NN5 4 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
Whether the car is on a lay-by on the way to Ashby Wood or in a car park in the middle of Upton, it doesn't need to shift. Our engineers drain the car where it stands. If you're somewhere hard to explain, close to Odeon or close to a border, ring and ask rather than assuming.
Your situation, in one line
Not run yet: keep it off and call. Run by now: stop, switch down, ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel handles the rest, within Upton or anywhere across Northamptonshire.