Adblue not resetting once filled

[Viktorgeorge]

I was musing whether there was an argument to drain the Adblue and refill with fresh perhaps after 3 or 5 years as it does stay the tank for long time and is only ever topped up. So I asked GROK:

Yes, drain and refill AdBlue in VW California MY23 | Shared Grok Conversation

Is it possible to drain the adblue in my VW California MY23, and then refill with fresh?

grok.com

 

[Angus9LN]

Hi
I’ve got the problem of the AdBlue warning not going away once filled. I’ve left it a bit to see if it sorts itself out but it doesn’t seem to be going away and it’s down to 650 miles now. I didn’t over fill it and also added a bottle of Wynns.
My usual mechanic has said it’s either a trip to the VW main dealer £££! or get someone round to code it out, which I’m not so sure about.
Any advice is appreciated
It’s a 2016 T6 200hp Ocean and I’m in Brighton FWIW.
Thanks

I’ve found that simply topping up the AdBlue won't clear the warning light—I find that it requires a full refill to reset properly. Because 5 litres often isn't enough, I always buy a 10-litre can and fill the tank to the brim. The 10-litre cans can be quite heavy to pour, though, so it helps to keep an empty 5-litre container handy for easier decanting.

 

[Viktorgeorge]

I’ve found that simply topping up the AdBlue won't clear the warning light—I find that it requires a full refill to reset properly. Because 5 litres often isn't enough, I always buy a 10-litre can and fill the tank to the brim. The 10-litre cans can be quite heavy to pour, though, so it helps to keep an empty 5-litre container handy for easier decanting.

Others have posted that leaving your ignition on when filling assists the Adblue level display to reset.

 

[Aubisque]

Sadly I was in the same boat this Summer on a trip to Europe. In the end I had to get the tank replaced.

As it was touch and go whether I had range to get home left it in Germany and flew back for a week and a half (luckily I was due back in Germany a week later anyway and the garage was owned by a friend so got it done more quickly than a main dealer here).

My T6 Ocean was low mileage and it sits about a bit … I’m if the Adblue is allowed to be at a “low” level for a long time the bigger air gap allows crystallisation - so from now on I’m not leaving so long to fill up and will add Wynns regularly. I’ll also try and find a Adblue pump as I’m told the Adblue in there is fresher.

I’d love to hear of any fixes avoiding a full tank replacement as even with a “friendly” repair it wasn’t cheap.

Hi Texwade, off topic but nice to meet you at Afan.

 

[Juzza]

I am reliably Informed VOSA are looking at introducing a check for Adblue during future MOT.
VOSA are acutely aware that many people are circumnavigating factory measure relating the Emissions control and it is becoming routine practice, with no consequences.

Code out / deleting the Add blue system could become the most costly In the long Run.
I.e.
It will be an initial cost to code it out,
then additional cost to code it back, (when / if the new Mot comes in )
then additional cost to replace the whole ad blue system.

Think carefully before committing to Deletion of Emission devices.

Edit: if you reach zero miles on the count down , it can be reset by most garages with a Code reader. So you get another 600 mile count down etc

It would appear there may be anecdotal evidence to suggest early T6 (2016- 2018) adblue systems fail around 60- 70k miles. This may or may not be by design!

Vw arbitrarily replace the whole tank, pump sensors (the whole system) but the components are available individually- currently looking into this and will report back.

Can you advise what mileage the van has done pls ?

Mmm… my 2017 ocean just failed to update its ad-blue on refill at 55k miles. So anecdote supported by my experience

 

[FivetonesCali]

The manual states waiting 30 seconds after you turn ignition on for it to register (yes a realise many leave ignition on while filling).

 

[Surfer]

Have had similar problem with VAG vehicle, £3k bill if using genuine parts. Crystallization can be a problem, pump being housed inside the Adblue tank can be another problem. Have been advised to be careful with forecourt bottles of Adblue as they may be lying about for some time, frost or UV damage. Pumped Adblue maybe better. If putting in the Adblue additive, can there be an issue with warranty?
Between fuel pump, injectors and adblue issues diesel is becoming a bit of a liability.

 

[Whitwellblue]

Hi
I’ve got the problem of the AdBlue warning not going away once filled. I’ve left it a bit to see if it sorts itself out but it doesn’t seem to be going away and it’s down to 650 miles now. I didn’t over fill it and also added a bottle of Wynns.
My usual mechanic has said it’s either a trip to the VW main dealer £££! or get someone round to code it out, which I’m not so sure about.
Any advice is appreciated
It’s a 2016 T6 200hp Ocean and I’m in Brighton FWIW.
Thanks

Yeah, we had this over the summer in the Outer Hebrides. It seemed we had a choice between having a local guy decouple the Adblue sensor, and risking the van not starting again when stopped the engine after the countdown got to zero.
We had to take the decouple option, as we weren’t sure if we’d be able to get the van towed off the islands, especially given the state of the ferries.

I’m told lots of VW vans (camper and trade) have decoupled the adblue sensor, and I’m not happy about being in that group. IMO we’re committing fraud if we go into a clean air zone without adblue. So we will try and get it sorted, but have been a bit busy since the holiday.

 

[Mansfieldman750]

From my VW Mastertech pal, the key is when filling leave the ignition on and it will register straight away, it gets confused when the sensor isn't active and then you fill. Has always worked for me.

That sort of worked for me but not straight away. On the drive, I left the ignition on and put 10 litres in which was about minimum needed. Nothing happened on the display.
So I took it a run, leaving the display on Ad Blue Range and after about 3 miles it jumped from 7500 miles to 16500, and min / max disappeared. Not in stages, one jump.
Will repeat with ignition off when it asks for a top up next year !

 

[Lost Boy]

That sort of worked for me but not straight away. On the drive, I left the ignition on and put 10 litres in which was about minimum needed. Nothing happened on the display.
So I took it a run, leaving the display on Ad Blue Range and after about 3 miles it jumped from 7500 miles to 16500, and min / max disappeared. Not in stages, one jump.
Will repeat with ignition off when it asks for a top up next year !

Weird, mine registered without even having to start the engine.

 

[Mansfieldman750]

Weird, mine registered without even having to start the engine.

Don’t know, some Triumph motorbikes are like that, fill them with petrol and the gauge never moves. Drive a few miles and you can watch the gauge gradually climb to full.

 

[Lost Boy]

Could be that mine was only on 1500 miles and I put 20 litres in and so more to recognise?

 

[Perfectos]

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