AdBlue in a Diesel Tank in West Kensington: How It Happens and How to Stop It
Leave your motor and ignition off and phone 0333 366 0103 now — the rest can wait if AdBlue is already in the diesel tank. Around West Kensington, finding it before your motor runs normally means a drain and a thorough flush on the spot. Not happened yet? Below, the rest of the page covers the why it takes place and the how to prevent it for good.
AdBlue in a diesel vehicle, and its separate tank
No single fluid but two: that is what plenty of modern diesels near West Kensington and Kensington run, with diesel feeding the engine. Stored in a tank of its own, AdBlue is fed into your exhaust stream and cleans it.
There's a filler on each tank. Some vehicles put the AdBlue filler in the boot or under the bonnet; plenty more have both together under one flap. At the pump, your diesel side gets filled all the time. Someone who has to stop and think where it goes normally tops up the AdBlue side, from a bottle, and far less often. Mistakes happen in that gap between them.
AdBlue in the diesel tank around West Kensington: how it takes place
It's seldom carelessness. Three things tend to line up.
On a drive off North End Crescent before work, or in the car park outside Famous 3 Kings heading home: that is where the rushed top-up takes place. Why the rush? As AdBlue runs low the car warns you, and once it's gone, limp mode kicks in.
New-to-you cars come second, as well. Rentals, new cars and company vehicles place their fillers differently, and the hand reaches for the cap used on the old one.
A spouted bottle finds no obstacle at a diesel filler no more than at an AdBlue one. So the tip, after begun, keeps on. It takes a few seconds, whether out in Earls Court or bang in the heart of West Kensington.
Telling the AdBlue filler from your diesel filler
Look at these first, at a forecourt around West Kensington or a driveway out in West Brompton. A few seconds, no more.
- Where it sits misleads; the cap does not. AdBlue ones are often blue or bear the name "AdBlue" — diesel ones normally do not.
- The size. On many motors the AdBlue filler neck is the smaller of the two.
- Open the filler flap and look for a label — many vehicles show which belongs in which inlet just there.
- In your boot or under the bonnet: that's where the filler sits if it is not by your diesel cap, and the handbook tells you which.
- The previous driver will know. Ask when you collect a rental or fleet car — at Kensington Olympia's car park, perhaps — not when the warning comes on.
Topping up AdBlue without it reaching your diesel tank
The day the light comes on, wherever across Greater London, follow this routine.
- Pull in on level, engine off, with time in hand — not rushing on the side of North End Road.
- Locate the AdBlue filler, read the cap, and speak the name "AdBlue" out loud while unscrewing it. It sounds silly. It works.
- If both sit under one flap, check your diesel cap is still closed before you lift the bottle — and leave the car on.
- Slowly is best, through the bottle's own spout, till it is full or the bottle runs out.
- Close the cap, and look once more — making sure your diesel filler stayed shut the whole time. Only then, start your car.
If at step two or three you find you have already poured into the diesel side, stop there. Leave out stage five altogether.
Put AdBlue in the diesel tank around West Kensington already?
The short order of things, beginning with no starting the motor. Keep your ignition off as well, since on many diesels switching it on by itself runs your pump. Thinning it with more diesel fails, since AdBlue settles to the bottom instead of mixing — and that is where your fuel is pulled from.
At a forecourt — Eco, BP or another — the attendants will usually help push the car clear, if you ask. Your own driveway around West Kensington is where it should stay.
When the motor has been run by now, stop safely and switch the vehicle off. The next exit is where to come off if you're on the M4, under 5 miles from West Kensington. Tell us roughly how far it went: a run towards Westminster, under 5 miles away, is a bigger job than a short hop across West Kensington.
When we arrive in West Kensington, what happens?
Anywhere the vehicle came to rest, whether outside Avonmore Primary School, beside Avonmore Library or at home, our van comes to it. Which liquid got in, the quantity, and whether it ran: our technicians ask since those replies decide the work and quote. The quote is given over the phone, ahead of any van leaving.
Emptying that tank comes next, followed by a thorough flush of your system. Not like petrol, AdBlue leaves crystals and eats at certain fuel-system metals, and neither washes out by itself. That is why it counts more. The filter flushed or, if needed, swapped; fresh diesel in; and then a check of your vehicle. The engine is fired up next and tested to make sure it runs smoothly, all before we go.
With pumps safe on a working forecourt and quiet enough for use outside a house at night, most jobs where your motor has not run need about half an hour once our technicians arrive. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. Many insurance policies include misfuelling cover, so it is worth checking yours while we are on the way.
About West Kensington itself
West Kensington is a suburban area in the inland part of Greater London, with a relatively low elevation of around 10 metres. West Kensington sits close to several notable neighbouring areas, including Earls Court, Brook Green, and Holland Park. West Kensington is predominantly composed of flat dwellings, which house its approximate population of 22257 residents. West Kensington is located near the city of Westminster, at a distance of around 3.5 miles.
AdBlue drains around West Kensington, and Greater London beyond
West Kensington is a residential suburb, and our vans that cover it also work the towns near it, Brook Green and Holland Park among them, across the W postcode area. Give a postcode beginning W14 8, and the van gets there fastest.
Your car does not need to move. Our engineers drain it where it is — a side street close to The Goossens family, a lay-by on the way to Gwendwr Gardens, a driveway. Assuming won't help at the back of Mongol Centre, close to a border, or somewhere hard to describe; phone and ask.
The short version for West Kensington people
Pour no AdBlue till you've read the cap. AdBlue in the diesel tank regardless? Keep it off then phone 0333 366 0103; Petrol in Diesel empties it where it stands, throughout Greater London.