Do You Know What AdBlue Is?
Saturday, 29. September 2018
You should do if you are a driver of a fairly new diesel car. However, according to Fleet News, less than a fifth of drivers are aware of the existence of a tank of AdBlue in their cars and what it is there for? They were quoting research by Radius Payment Solutions (RPS).
RPS, a fuel card business, investigated driver knowledge of AdBlue which revealed, despite most new diesel vehicles having a tank, 90% had never used AdBlue.
The survey also found that despite associated environmental and health impacts, more than 25% had no idea about the benefits of the product.
As I’ve explained in the past, AdBlue is a fluid treatment that is injected into the exhaust gasses. It can filter out more than 90% of harmful NOx emissions converting into steam and nitrogen, resulting in less pollution.
They suggest that the AdBlue tanks need to be filled every six months, often during servicing, however, the rate at which cars use AdBlue varies depending on how economically they are driven, the engine size and total/average mileage.
This means that business drivers who tend to be on the road for longer will need to understand what AdBlue does and certainly where the filler cap is. The report says that average consumption of AdBlue is around one litre every 600 miles but could reach up to a litre every 350 miles depending on how the car is being driven.
The range between refills ranges from 3,000 and 12,000 miles, meaning some drivers will top-up their AdBlue reservoir at least once between normal servicing. My car is now 3 years old and I have never had to top my car up between services. Some manufacturers offer larger AdBlue tanks as an option.
Jonathan Haseler, Regional Director – UK at Radius Payment Solutions, said: “For something that should be a regular maintenance check like filling oil and screen wash, the findings are certainly surprising. Our cards help facilitate the purchase of AdBlue, making it easier for companies to adhere to emissions standards whilst offering consistently transparent pricing.”
Bit of a sales pitch there. What people also aren’t aware of are the constituant parts to AdBlue. It consists of urea, found in Urine, pigs urine to be more precise. I’m so glad I shared that. What the report doesn’t mention is that your car won’t run if you run out of AdBlue.
Whilst you should have plenty of warning you should know where the filler cap is, sometimes by the fuel cap sometimes in the boot. The car will warn you when it is out and as long as you don’t stop the engine it should continue on. But as soon as you stop the engine it will no longer start again till the AdBlue is topped up. By Graham Hill
