West End: How Does AdBlue End Up in a Diesel Tank, and How Do You Prevent It?
If AdBlue is already in your diesel tank, stop reading for a moment: leave your engine and the ignition off and phone 0333 366 0103. Normally, if the motor hasn't turned, it is emptied and thoroughly rinsed where the car is in West End. Reading before the event? Then what follows covers how it happens and what to prevent it happening at all.
Why does AdBlue in a diesel motor need its own filler?
No single fluid but two: that's how many newer diesels around West End and Dicks Hill run, with diesel for your engine. Its own tank keeps it, and from there it goes to your exhaust, where spraying cleans the fumes.
Different tanks, separate fillers. Under one flap, next to each other: that's the layout on many vehicles. Elsewhere, AdBlue's filler sits beneath the bonnet or in the boot instead. The diesel side is fuelled at the petrol pump all the time. A driver who has to stop and work out where it goes usually fills the AdBlue side, from a bottle, and much less commonly. That gap is where the slip lives.
How does AdBlue in your diesel tank take place in West End?
Three things tend to line up, and carelessness is seldom one of them.
To start with, the warning. Low AdBlue brings a message from the vehicle, and running out means limp mode — so a hurried top-up, perhaps before work off West end Terrace, or outside Commercial Inn on the way home that evening.
The old car's filler is where your hand goes — yet a hire car, a new car or a company car puts the fillers somewhere else. That's a second thing: an unfamiliar vehicle.
And the bottle fits. A bottle with a spout goes into a diesel filler as easily as an AdBlue one, so nothing stops the pour after it has started. It takes a few seconds, whether out in Sheuchan Parks or right in the heart of West End.
Which filler is for AdBlue, and which for diesel?
Before you pour anything, whether on a drive in Ochtrelure or a forecourt around West End, check these. They take a couple of seconds.
- Position can mislead; the cap does not. AdBlue caps tend to be blue or carry the name "AdBlue" — diesel caps usually don't.
- Many cars fit AdBlue the smaller neck of the two.
- Look inside your fuel flap: many motors have a label there saying which fuel goes where.
- Can't find it beside your diesel inlet? In that case check below the bonnet or in your boot — the handbook says which.
- The person who drove it last. On a hire or company car picked up from somewhere like the car park outside Stranraer, ask before you leave, not when the light comes on.
How to top up without AdBlue in the diesel tank
On the day the warning comes on — wherever you are in Dumfries and Galloway — a routine to follow.
- Not in a rush on the side of Arran Court, not on a slope, not with the engine running: park then switch off first.
- Find the AdBlue filler and read the cap. Say "AdBlue" out loud as you unscrew it. It sounds daft and it does the trick.
- The two under a single flap? So make sure the cap on your diesel filler stays closed ahead of raising the bottle.
- Pour slowly, using the bottle's own spout. Stop when it's full or when the bottle is empty.
- Before starting the car, shut the cap and check again that the diesel cap was never opened off.
Spot at stage two or three that it has already gone into the diesel side? Then stop just there. Never go on to step five.
West End: already put AdBlue in the diesel tank?
Brief order, then. First: your motor remains off. The fuel pump runs on plenty of diesels the moment the ignition goes on — so keep it off. AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel — it sinks to the bottom of your tank, where your fuel is pulled from — so don't top up with diesel to dilute it.
The attendants at Solo, Morrisons or any forecourt will normally help pushing your car clear if asked. Leave it where it is if you are on your own driveway around West End.
When the motor has run by now, pull over somewhere safe then switch the vehicle off. On the M77, over 50 miles from West End, that means the next exit. Tell us roughly how far it went: a run towards Belfast, under 50 miles away, is a bigger job than a short hop across West End.
What takes place when our technicians get there in West End
Wherever your car came to rest, be it by the local primary school, near Princess Victoria Memorial or on your own drive, our van travels to it. The replies decide the work and our price, and so we ask what was put in, roughly how much, and whether it's run. Nobody heads out until you have had our quote over the phone.
Your system is then rinsed thoroughly, after that tank is cleared. Much more than with petrol, it counts here: the crystals form, some metals corrode, and none of that washes out on its own, no matter how long it is left. The filter is cleaned, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the car is tested. Before we go, we start the car and make sure that it's running correctly.
Unstarted vehicles usually mean a half-hour visit after arrival. The equipment is safe on a busy filling station, and quiet enough for a residential street after dark. Payment is on the day, not upfront, and you are given the documents an insurer wants: an engineer's report and a VAT invoice. Before we get there, take a look at your insurance documents; plenty carry cover for misfuelling.
About West End and where it is
West End is a coastal suburban area in Dumfries and Galloway, situated near the town of Stranraer. West End sits at a low elevation of around 11 metres, looking out to the sea. West End is characterised by its predominantly detached housing stock, with nearby amenities in Stranraer Town and Sheuchan Parks.
AdBlue drains about West End, and Dumfries and Galloway beyond
Throughout DG postcodes, our teams covering West End — a residential suburb — work the nearby spots too, Stranraer and Stranraer Town among them. Quickest of all: quote a DG9 0 postcode for our van.
There's no need to move the car. A drive, a lay-by on the way to Agnew Park, a side street near Stranraer Parish Church: our engineers drain the car where it stands. If you're near a boundary, or somewhere hard to explain like the back of Blin' Johnny's Awa', ring and ask rather than guessing.
For West End people, the short version
Before you tip, read the cap. If AdBlue has gone in your diesel tank all the same, leave it off then ring 0333 366 0103. Petrol in Diesel empties it where it waits, anywhere in Dumfries and Galloway.