AdBlue in a Diesel Tank in Wimpson: Why It Occurs and How to Stop It
AdBlue already in the diesel tank? Then set this page down a moment, keep the ignition and engine off, then call 0333 366 0103. A drain plus a thorough flush, carried out right where the car stands in Wimpson, is normally what it takes when found before your motor runs. The remainder of this page covers why it occurs and how to make sure it doesn't — handy if you're reading before it has happened.
AdBlue in a diesel vehicle, and its separate tank
Diesel feeds your motor — but many newer diesels seen about Wimpson and Old Shirley carry a second liquid as well. AdBlue's own tank keeps it, and from there it is sent to your exhaust, where a spray treats the fumes.
There's a filler for each tank. On a lot of cars the two sit side by side under the same flap; on others the AdBlue filler is in your boot or under the bonnet. At the pump, the diesel side gets filled constantly. A driver who has to stop and work out where it goes normally fills the AdBlue side, from a bottle, and much less commonly. The slip lives in that gap.
How does AdBlue in the diesel tank occur around Wimpson?
It's seldom carelessness. Three things tend to line up.
To start with, the warning. Low AdBlue triggers a message from the car, and letting it run dry leads to limp mode — hence a rushed top-up, maybe before work off Tindale Road, or at Bricklayers Arms on the way home that evening.
Then the vehicle is unfamiliar. A hire car, a new vehicle or a company car puts the fillers where your last one didn't, and your hand hits for the cap it would have used on the old one.
Third, the bottle fits: diesel filler or AdBlue one, it slides in just as readily, and after the tip begins, no part halts it. Maybush or the heart of Wimpson: it takes the same few seconds in both.
Telling the AdBlue filler from the diesel filler
Look at these before pouring, on a forecourt in Wimpson or a drive out in Shirley Park. Seconds, that's all.
- Where it sits misleads; the cap doesn't. AdBlue ones tend to be blue or bear the word "AdBlue" — diesel caps normally do not.
- On many cars, the size tells: AdBlue has the smaller filler neck.
- Check inside the fuel flap: plenty of cars carry a label there saying which fuel goes where.
- The handbook says which it is if your filler isn't next to your diesel cap: your boot, or under the bonnet.
- Check with the person who drove it last — before you leave, not when the light comes on — when you collect a hire or company car from somewhere like the car park outside Redbridge.
AdBlue top-ups that never reach the diesel tank
When the light goes on, wherever in Hampshire, use this routine.
- Not in a rush on the side of Haweswater Close, not on a slope, not with the motor running: park and 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.
- Leave your diesel cap on. If both sit under one flap, check the diesel cap is still closed before you lift the bottle.
- Using the bottle's own spout, pour slowly — and stop when it's full or the bottle is empty.
- Only after that, start the car: close the cap, check a second time, and make sure the diesel cap was never opened.
If at stage two or three you find you have already poured into the diesel side, stop there. Don't go on to step five.
Wimpson: already put AdBlue in the diesel tank?
What follows is a short order of things, starting with not starting the engine. On many diesels your ignition alone runs the fuel pump, and so don't switch it on. Don't top up with diesel to thin it: AdBlue doesn't mix with diesel, it sinks to the bottom of your tank, where the fuel is sucked from.
Ask the attendants to help push the vehicle clear of the pump if you are on a forecourt — the Tesco, the Shell or anywhere else. At home around Wimpson? So your car remains where it is.
Already run? Stop when it is sensible, then turn off. Leave the Nursling Spur Motorway — under a mile out of Wimpson — at the next exit. About how far did it go? Crossing Wimpson is less a job than a run of under 3 miles to Southampton, so say.
What takes place when our engineers arrive around Wimpson
We come to the car wherever it has stopped, whether that is outside Newlands Primary School, near Holy Family Catholic Church or on your own driveway. Those answers decide the work and the quote, so our engineers ask what got in, about how much, and if it has run. The quote comes on the call, ahead of any van leaving.
The fuel system is then purged thoroughly, after the tank is drained. With AdBlue that matters more than with petrol: it crystallises and is corrosive to some of the metals in a fuel system, so it doesn't wash out on its own. The filter is flushed, or replaced where it needs to be; fresh diesel goes in; and the vehicle is tested. The engine is started next and checked to be sure it runs smoothly, all before we go.
Most jobs are finished in roughly half an hour after we get there, as long as your engine hasn't run — and the pumps we use are fine on a live forecourt and quiet at night beside a house. The insurer will ask for the engineer's report and your VAT invoice, and both are yours at the end. Payment comes on the day, with no deposit. Wrong-fuel cover is part of plenty of insurance policies — and so use the wait to check yours.
About Wimpson and where it is
Wimpson is a coastal locality in Hampshire, situated near the city of Southampton and close to the neighbouring areas of Maybush, Millbrook, and Coxford. Wimpson lies at a low elevation of around 18 metres, with its predominant housing stock consisting of flats. Wimpson is part of the larger Southampton urban area, yet remains a distinct community with its own character.
AdBlue drains around Wimpson, and Hampshire beyond
Millbrook and Coxford are among the places around Wimpson, a coastal area, that the same teams cover, throughout SO postcodes. Quickest of all: quote a SO16 9 postcode to our van.
Shifting the car is not necessary. A drive, a lay-by on the way to The Mound, a side street near St Peters Church: we drain the car where it stands. Awkward to explain, like the back of RISE Community Centre? Close to a county line? Checking is better than assuming, and so phone.
For Wimpson motorists, the short version
Before you pour, read the cap. AdBlue in the diesel tank regardless? Keep the vehicle switched off and call 0333 366 0103; Petrol in Diesel drains it on the spot, across Hampshire.