AdBlue in the Diesel Tank in Wildmoor: What Now?
One fact matters most when AdBlue is in a diesel tank, and that is whether your engine has run since. Over in Caldecott or right around Wildmoor, an unstarted engine should stay that way. Call 0333 366 0103 with the key and engine both off. Across Wildmoor, that is typically drained and flushed on the spot. If it has run, stop as soon as it is safe then switch off. It's a bigger job, yet step one doesn't change.
Match your case to one of the list below, wherever across Oxfordshire you are.
At the pump in Wildmoor: AdBlue in a diesel
You are at the petrol pump, the nozzle or the bottle still in your hand, and you have just noticed the cap you opened was the wrong one. Perhaps you're at the BP, possibly at the Marcham Road Service Station, perhaps somewhere else in Wildmoor.
In short: no better spot to be to discover it. Still in the tank, and no fuel pulled through: that is where the AdBlue sits.
Do this: keep out of the driver's seat, however much the queue needs clearing. Have the staff to help rolling it into a space, hold on to the receipt, then ring us from there. Draining it right at the pump is fine if it cannot be moved, because the equipment is explosion-proof.
Wildmoor, at home: AdBlue in the diesel tank
On your dash, a warning had been lit all week. A bottle bought at the garage, emptied in at the drive — and it was only at the recycling that the cap got your eye. Houses just off Wootton Road are hit as much as everywhere else.
The upshot: no driving since leaves it nearly as good to spotting it at the pump. Being unable to blend, AdBlue settles low inside the tank and waits. A night standing changes nothing.
Your move: the keys in the house, so no one drives the vehicle off at breakfast. After that, ring. Your drive is where it is drained, whether around Wildmoor or Northcourt. The pumping kit runs quiet enough not to disturb the street at night.
Drove off with AdBlue in a diesel in Wildmoor?
You filled up, set off, and a mile or two later the engine began to run unevenly, smoke, lose power or light up the dashboard. It might have been driving for Oxford, under 10 miles away, or just along Beverley Close.
What it means: the fuel system has drawn the AdBlue in. Mileage decides how deep it goes: filter and lines to begin with, then the injection pump and each injector. It travels further with each extra mile covered and every restart.
What to do: pull over where it is safe to do so then switch off. On the Wheatley Spur, under 10 miles from Wildmoor, that means the next exit, not the services further on. Do not restart the vehicle to see if it has cleared; it will not have. About how far had it go? Say so as you phone.
Hire, lease or company car with AdBlue in the wrong tank
You've had the vehicle barely a week. Unknown to you, the AdBlue and diesel fillers sit next to each other here — unlike your own car, which has none or keeps it in another spot. Wherever you happen to be around Oxfordshire, every motorist can slip up.
In short: an extra step on top of the situations above, which depend on whether it has run. Any work on the car often requires the owner's approval under rental or fleet agreements.
What to do: ring the hire firm or your fleet manager first, then us. That is quicker settled before our engineers arrive than after. Stuck by Northcourt Centre or outside Radley till the firm answers, your car remains turned off the whole time.
AdBlue in your diesel tank? Not sure, in Wildmoor
Honestly, the only answer might be that you think it did. A slight ammonia-like smell hangs near your filler, the bottle feels too light, and which cap came off is hard to recall. Maybe on a friend's driveway in Lodge Hill, or rushing outside Dunmore Primary School at the school run.
Meaning? Spills outside the filler never touch your motor at all. AdBlue inside the diesel tank does. Turning on your car cannot tell you which, and if there is AdBlue in that tank it will draw it in.
Take it that it went in, and don't start the key. Phone and give the details: we would rather confirm a tank free of AdBlue than drain one once the engine has run.
The common ground in each Wildmoor AdBlue drain
No matter the case, a single start applies. We come to your car, whether it's at a forecourt, a drive, the car park at The Spread Eagle or a side street close to Sports Centre, and ask three things: what went in, about how much, and whether the engine has been run. Those replies settle the work, and you hear the price on the phone, before anyone sets off.
Draining that tank comes first, then a careful flush — more vital after urea than after petrol, because crystals and corrosion will not go on their own, no matter how long it sits. Clean diesel goes in after your filter has been cleaned or changed, and your car is finally checked. Most unstarted vehicles are a half-hour job from the moment our technicians arrive.
The last step is firing it up. Before our engineers go, it's checked to make sure it runs correctly on fresh diesel. The whole job is done where the car is, and when it's spotted quickly, long-term damage is very uncommon. Payment comes on the day, never in advance. For the insurer, there is a VAT invoice plus a report from the engineer. Many insurance policies include misfuelling cover, so it's worth checking yours while we're on the way.
About Wildmoor and where it is
Wildmoor is a suburban area situated near the River Thames in Oxfordshire, with a mix of semi-detached housing and local amenities. Wildmoor lies approximately 5 miles south of Oxford city centre, within commuting distance of the city's universities and workplaces. Wildmoor occupies a relatively low-lying area at around 63 metres above sea level, close to the nearby settlements of Northcourt and Shippon. Wildmoor is also near the historic town of Abingdon-on-Thames, with its own distinct character and community.
Wildmoor and Oxfordshire: AdBlue drains across the area
Being a residential suburb, Wildmoor has the same vans as the nearby places — Abingdon-on-Thames, Shippon — all the way across OX postcodes. Quickest of all: a OX14 1 postcode to show your location.
Whether your car is on a lay-by on the way to Tilsley Park or in a car park in the middle of Wildmoor, it doesn't need to move. The van empties it where it stands. Ring and ask instead of guessing if you are close to Fitzharry's Castle Mound, on a border, or somewhere tricky to pin down.
Your situation, in one line
Unstarted? Leave the vehicle off then phone. Whatever case applies, Petrol in Diesel handles from there on 0333 366 0103, throughout Oxfordshire and within Wildmoor — once you stop, switch off then ring, if it has run.