AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Westbrook, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: whether your motor has run since it was put in. If it has not, keep it that way, whether the car is in Westbrook itself or out in Frith Hill. Ring 0333 366 0103 with your key and motor both off. In Westbrook, such a case is typically emptied and cleaned on the spot. Already run? Pull over when safe, then turn everything off. Step one remains unchanged, even though the work is bigger.
Find the situation below that matches yours, wherever around Surrey it happened.
Westbrook forecourt: AdBlue in a diesel at the pump
You are at the pump, the nozzle or the bottle still in your hand, and you have just noticed the cap you opened was the wrong one. It could be the JET, or perhaps the Sainsbury's, or another station in Westbrook.
What it means: this is the best location to find out. Still inside the tank, and no fuel pulled through: that is where the AdBlue sits.
What to do: don't get back in and fire it up to clear the petrol pump. A few jobs: a push into a bay with the attendants helping, the receipt saved, and a ring to us from the forecourt. Stuck by the petrol pump? Explosion-proof equipment keeps a live forecourt safe, and so we can drain the vehicle where it is.
At home in Westbrook with AdBlue in your diesel tank
On your dash, a reminder had been lit all week. Only at the recycling bin, the empty container in hand, did you look back at the cap you had opened on the driveway. Drives close to Hornbeam Way get it as much as anywhere.
In short: if the vehicle hasn't 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.
Next: stop any early move by keeping the keys in the house, then ring us. Our technicians drain it on your drive, whether that's in Westbrook or out in Ockford Ridge. Even at night, the pumps stay quiet enough for a driveway.
AdBlue in a diesel and already driving around Westbrook?
A mile or two after filling up, your motor started playing up: rough running, smoke, less power, lights on your dash. It might have been driving to Chichester, under 50 miles away, or just along Bengal Close.
The upshot: the system has pulled AdBlue through by now. Distance decides how deep it gets: filter and lines to begin with, then the injection pump and each injector. It goes deeper with each mile covered and each restart.
Pull in somewhere safe — that's the first step — then switch it off. Service stations further along are too far: from the M3, under 15 miles out of Westbrook, use the next junction. Starting it again to test achieves nothing — AdBlue doesn't clear itself. About what distance had it go? Say so as you phone.
AdBlue in the wrong tank of a hire, lease or company car
Seven days back, the car was new to you. The AdBlue filler sits right alongside the diesel filler, which you didn't know, since your own vehicle either has no AdBlue or keeps it somewhere else. Any driver, anywhere across Surrey, might do it.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Many rental and fleet agreements need the owner's approval for repairs.
What to do: ring the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That's quicker settled before our engineers arrive than after. If you are stuck in the car park outside Godalming, or by Phillips Memorial Cloister, while you wait for an answer, leave your car off.
Westbrook: unsure whether it was AdBlue in the diesel tank?
At times the honest answer is "I think so". The bottle is lighter than it should be, there's a faint smell of ammonia around your filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. A rushed stop by the gates of Moss Lane School, or a visit to a friend in Holloway Hill: either fit.
The point: the motor is not hurt by a little AdBlue splashed on the outside. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. Firing up the vehicle won't tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in that tank it would draw it in.
What to do: treat it as if it got in. Don't fire it up. Describe what you saw on your phone. A clear tank checked is a better result than a run one drained.
Every AdBlue drain around Westbrook shares these stages
Whichever situation you are in, the job starts the same way. Filling station, drive, Rose and Crown's car park or a road by Godalming Meeting — our van reaches your vehicle, and three questions follow: which fluid, which amount, and whether it ran. On the phone, ahead of anything else, you are told the price, and those replies decide the job too.
A thorough flush follows the drain. With petrol it is standard; with AdBlue it is essential, since crystals build up and certain metals corrode, and neither washes out unaided. The filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; clean diesel goes in; and the car is tested. If your motor has not run, most jobs take about half an hour once we're there.
Firing it up comes at the end. Our test that it runs smoothly on fresh diesel comes before our engineers go. If it's caught quickly, the car very seldom has lasting damage, and the entire job happens where it is. You pay on the day, with nothing upfront, and get a VAT invoice and an engineer report for your insurer. It is worth remembering: lots of insurers offer misfuelling cover, so a quick look at your policy while you wait pays.
About Westbrook, briefly
Westbrook is a suburban area in Surrey, situated on the riverside at an elevation of around 80 metres. Westbrook lies near the towns of Godalming and Chichester, with nearby neighbourhoods including Ockford Ridge and Aarons Hill. Westbrook has a population of approximately 2093 residents, living in predominantly semi-detached housing. Westbrook is located about 30.7 miles from London, making it a commuter base for those working in the capital.
AdBlue drains in Westbrook, and across Surrey too
Aarons Hill and Godalming have the identical teams as Westbrook, a residential suburb, plus other places throughout GU postcodes. A postcode starting GU7 2 is the quickest way to tell us where you are.
Centre of Westbrook or a lay-by near Phillips Memorial Cloister: wherever it sits, your car doesn't need to move at all for us. Our technicians drain it where it stands. Tricky to explain? Close to The Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul or a county line? Checking beats assuming, so phone.
The one-line version
Unstarted? Keep it off then ring. Already run: stop, switch off then ring. Either way, Petrol in Diesel takes it from there around Westbrook and anywhere across Surrey on 0333 366 0103.