AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Wigston, and What to Do Next
What to do about AdBlue in a diesel tank comes down to one thing more than any other: whether the motor has run since it got in. Not run so far? Then leave the car like that, whether the car sits — Wigston or South Wigston. Usually this means draining and properly rinsing it on the spot in Wigston — and so leave your ignition and engine off and ring 0333 366 0103. If it's run, stop as soon as it is safe and switch off. It's a larger job, though step one doesn't change.
Below: the situations our technicians meet, anywhere around Leicestershire. Pick yours.
On a Wigston forecourt with AdBlue in a diesel
The cap you unscrewed was the wrong one — and you only notice it while you are standing at the petrol pump, bottle or nozzle in hand. Anywhere around Wigston, then — Esso, JET, or somewhere else close by.
Meaning? Finding out on the forecourt is the best it gets. Nothing has drawn it in, and so the AdBlue stays only in your tank.
Do this: keep out of the car, even if the queue needs freeing. Have the attendants to lend a hand rolling it into a bay, save the bottle, then phone us from there. Stuck beside the petrol pump? Explosion-proof kit keeps a busy forecourt safe, and so it can be drained in place.
AdBlue in the diesel tank at home in Wigston
Several days had passed with the dash light on. A bottle bought at the garage, tipped in at the drive — and it was only at the recycling that the cap got a second look. Just off Bell Street is no different from anywhere.
In short: if your car has not been driven since, it is nearly equal to spotting it at the forecourt. Diesel and AdBlue stay separate: the AdBlue drops to the base of your tank and remains there, no matter how long the night.
Next: keys in the house, and so nobody drives your car off first thing. After that, ring. Wigston Magna or Wigston: wherever your driveway is, that's where it gets emptied. Even at night, the pumps are quiet enough for a residential street.
Wigston: drove off with AdBlue in a diesel?
Filled up, drove away, and soon your engine was turning roughly, blowing smoke, down on power, or flashing up your dash. Long Street, perhaps, or the route to Leicester — a trip of under 5 miles.
Meaning? The fuel pump has taken the AdBlue up. Through the filter, through the pipework, and — the further the mileage — deeper into the injection pump and every injector. Every restart, like every mile, carries it deeper.
Next: find a safe spot, pull in, then turn the engine off. Exit by the next junction — not the services further along — if you're on the M1, under 5 miles from Wigston. It won't have cleared, and so there's no sense starting it again to check. Roughly what distance had it go? Tell us when you call.
A hire or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank?
A week ago, the car was unknown to you. Your own motor either does without AdBlue or puts it somewhere different, and so no one warned you the AdBlue inlet sits just beside your diesel. Any driver, anywhere in Leicestershire, might make it.
What it means: the same as the situations above, depending on whether it's run, with one more step. Any work on your car often needs the owner's go-ahead under hire or company agreements.
Do this: hire firm or your fleet manager first, us next, because sorting it early saves time. If you are stuck in the car park at South Wigston, or by Sure Start Children's Centre, whilst you wait for an answer, leave your car off.
Not sure it was AdBlue in your diesel tank, Wigston?
Honestly, the only answer might be that you think so. The bottle is lighter than it should be, there is a faint smell of ammonia about the filler, and you can't remember which cap you took off. A hurried stop by the gates of All Saints Church of England Primary School, or a call to a friend in West Knighton: both fits.
What it means: a little spilled around the filler does no damage to your engine. Inside the diesel tank, however, AdBlue harms it. Any AdBlue in that tank will be pulled in by firing up your car, and the start would not settle which it is in any case.
What to do: treat it as if it got in. Don't start the vehicle. Phone with what you saw: we would rather confirm a tank free of AdBlue than drain one after your engine has run.
Wigston: what every AdBlue drain has in common
Whatever the situation, a single opening is used. Anywhere the vehicle stands — Two Steeples's car park, a street by Life Church, a drive, a forecourt — our van gets there and asks for the fluid, the quantity, plus if your engine has turned over. Those answers settle this work, and you hear the price on the phone, before anybody heads out.
AdBlue forms crystals and is corrosive to some metals used in fuel systems, so it does not wash out on its own; that is why a full flush, after the drain, matters far more here than with petrol. Fresh diesel goes in after the fuel filter has been cleaned or changed, and the car is then tested. Not started? In that case roughly half an hour once we are there covers most jobs.
Our engineers fire it up at the end. Our check that it runs smoothly on new diesel comes before our technicians go. When it's spotted early, the car very rarely has lasting damage, and the entire job happens where it is. Nothing is taken upfront, payment is made on the day, and you get what your insurer asks for: an engineer report and a VAT invoice. Plenty of insurance policies include misfuelling cover, and so it is worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Wigston
Wigston is a locality in Leicestershire, situated inland at an elevation of around 95 metres, approximately 3.5 miles south of Leicester. Wigston forms part of the wider Leicester urban area, with nearby places including Wigston Magna and Wigston Harcourt. Wigston has a population of around 3072 people, predominantly residing in flat-type housing. Wigston is located in the East Midlands region, about 85 miles north of London.
AdBlue drains across Leicestershire, Wigston included
Throughout LE postcodes, the teams covering Wigston — a small village — work surrounding places too, Wigston Harcourt and Kilby Bridge among them. Giving us a LE18 2 postcode pins you fastest of all.
Stopped en route to Peace Memorial Park, or bang in the heart of Wigston, the car stays put — there's no need to move it anywhere. Wherever it sits, that is where it gets drained. Ring and check rather than guess when you're close to Wigston United Reformed Church, near a boundary, or somewhere awkward to explain.
In one line: your scenario
Where it has not run, phone then leave it off. Started by now? Stop, turn off, ring. Petrol in Diesel handles the remainder whichever it is, across Wigston and Leicestershire, on 0333 366 0103.