Skyliner123
Member
Not really. I ended up taking it into an independent specialist but had to wait a week during which it never occurred again. I scanned it on the morning I was taking it in and bugger me Carista no longer showed the errors? When they scanned it they said they were not showing as current faults but could still see the faults? He said he didn’t think the nox sensor was faulty so reset/recalibrated the Adblue sensors and put some additive into the Adblue to clear/ prevent crystallising? They charged £59 all in. So far it hasn’t reappeared but have only been driving it locally. Something tells me it won’t be the last time I’ve seen this error!
For information I had first tried speaking on the phone to 2 different VW commercial service centres about the fault and the potential software fix but failed to get past their reception people who both told me like robots that there were no outstanding recalls on my vehicle and therefore I needed to book it in where they could scan for the fault (for £99 plus vat) and then let me know. Oh and it was around a month before they could fit me in!!
For information I had first tried speaking on the phone to 2 different VW commercial service centres about the fault and the potential software fix but failed to get past their reception people who both told me like robots that there were no outstanding recalls on my vehicle and therefore I needed to book it in where they could scan for the fault (for £99 plus vat) and then let me know. Oh and it was around a month before they could fit me in!!
Yeah exactly what I have experienced with the main dealer. Don’t suppose you know what additive they used to stop crystallisation from happening?
I also have both those errors but been advised as they don’t cause the warning message to ignore them, apparently not connected to adblue..
the specialist I spoke to said they have a float system inside the tank which can get stuck, but main dealer said the don’t si not sure who’s telling porkies..
will empty half the tank today and head to Halfords to see if I can find any anti crystallisation additive.
Thanks for the reply
Best
Daniel
you had me at specialist and float system. ROFL
no it’s an ultrasonic system see the big thread on the subject.
www.t6forum.com
no it’s an ultrasonic system see the big thread on the subject.
AdBlue Discussion and Issues
The level sensor may not see the level dropping and throw a fault code. Secondly if it has been submerged it is possible that as the adblue is used and residue adblue will crystallise over the sensor which again may not be able to see the level dropping. Sure when I picked my caravelle up there...
I am using this @djgriff, which I had seen others on here use.
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The Adblue tank level sensor on the VW is an ultrasonic sender/receiver combo. They use this method because Adblue is quite corrosive, so would quickly degrade any float type sender unit that had a metal resistive sender in it like a petrol tank sender. It sends out an ultrasonic signal that reflects off the liquid/air boundary at the surface of the adblue inside the tank back to the receiver. If the level in the tank is too high, there is no liquid/air boundary layer to reflect off of, so it thinks the tank is empty rather than full (unfortunately) so reports low adblue level and thus gives you the 650 miles warning (I'm guessing the sensor is positioned in the tank at a point where there is say a litre left so when it senses no liquid left it knows to start the countdown at 650 miles til it runs dry, at which point the van won't start.)
The answer is to never put more adblue in the tank than the dash tells you to, in fact I'd err on the side of putting less in to avoid the situation you find yourself in.
If you can remove some adblue, then do so (bear in mind its corrosive qualities, don't get it on paintwork, and ensure there is an air gap between the surface of the adblue and the tank body for the sensor to reflect off.)
The answer is to never put more adblue in the tank than the dash tells you to, in fact I'd err on the side of putting less in to avoid the situation you find yourself in.
If you can remove some adblue, then do so (bear in mind its corrosive qualities, don't get it on paintwork, and ensure there is an air gap between the surface of the adblue and the tank body for the sensor to reflect off.)
All adblue is made to a set standard.
Normally the problem is over filling.
The level sensor is ultra sonic, it's placed the bottom of the tank facing upwards.
It's not a float like the fuel sensor.
What happens is if you over fill it, the filter neck fills with liquid, this could be 500 miles with of adblue. So as you driving the sensor doesn't see the level drop as it's metering out the the adblue. So assumed a fault and turns one the error light s.
Draining half the tank will enable the sensor to stay detecting the level again, and monitor the drop in level as it's being used..... With will make the system happy again.
........
Appart from that comon issues are rodent damage to wire looms under the van.
Or
Damaged tank electronics in lowered vans.
Or
Pump and heater fault.
.
Normally the problem is over filling.
The level sensor is ultra sonic, it's placed the bottom of the tank facing upwards.
It's not a float like the fuel sensor.
What happens is if you over fill it, the filter neck fills with liquid, this could be 500 miles with of adblue. So as you driving the sensor doesn't see the level drop as it's metering out the the adblue. So assumed a fault and turns one the error light s.
Draining half the tank will enable the sensor to stay detecting the level again, and monitor the drop in level as it's being used..... With will make the system happy again.
........
Appart from that comon issues are rodent damage to wire looms under the van.
Or
Damaged tank electronics in lowered vans.
Or
Pump and heater fault.
.
As to the brand being the issue, I have heard anecdotal reports that VW say only use their own fluid to avoid this issue but I don't think it is that, same as petrol and diesel, adblue has a spec that all fluids must meet, I doubt any are better than any other. The largest contributing factor is that the older the fluid is, the more likely it is to start crystallising as the fluid water component evaporates with time, these crystals can clog up the feed tubes and cause other reports of poor catalyst efficiencies and sensor malfunctions. again, I think putting smaller amounts of fresh fluid in at more frequent intervals will help to ensure this crystallisation is kept to a minimum, and there are now additives that claim to help stop these crystals forming (probably just a bottle of whatever they water the urea down with to replace any evaporated stuff and thus maintain the balance of urea to dilutant which will bring it back this side of the crystallisation point)
I would start by checking the actual level the AdBlue sensor is seeing and also the remaining AdBlue range in the ECU.
These can be extracted from the ECU by using e.g. VCDS, OBDeleven, perhaps even Carista nowadays has included those in live data.
Also would be more than useful to verify engine's software is up to date - please post "Detailed ECU info"-report (under Carista Service menu).
These can be extracted from the ECU by using e.g. VCDS, OBDeleven, perhaps even Carista nowadays has included those in live data.
Also would be more than useful to verify engine's software is up to date - please post "Detailed ECU info"-report (under Carista Service menu).
Skyliner123
Member
I think it was the forte stuff as mentioned by noddy996 but the brand isn’t on the receipt so not 100% sure but they all probably do the same thing. Crazy that they recommend having to add an additive to the Adblue additive . Is your warning still on the screen djgriff or has it gone now? I have read lots of stories about this message but haven’t found anyone that’s actually broken down or engine got to the point of not restarting as a result so hoping if it reappears then it will only be temporary.
There seems to be lots of people saying there is a software update that should prevent it from reoccurring but as above I struggled to speak to anyone of knowledge at the VW service centres to be able to confirm. Also as I have a pendle remap on mine I was informed that the new software would wipe it so that puts me off as well.
There seems to be lots of people saying there is a software update that should prevent it from reoccurring but as above I struggled to speak to anyone of knowledge at the VW service centres to be able to confirm. Also as I have a pendle remap on mine I was informed that the new software would wipe it so that puts me off as well.
Skyliner123
Member
Btw I filled my Adblue at Christmas from a pump at a local garage so had done maybe 500 - 700 miles before the message appeared. I feel like the vw t6 vans are made of putty what with the warnings about gearboxes and clutches on my 5 speed 102bhp (especially with the remap) and the electronic gremlins, I am really finding it hard to enjoy the experience at the moment, hopefully a bit of warming weather will help me fall in love with it again!
They are made to a set standard so unlikely to be the issue. I use it and not had any issues (yet!).
No. As others have indicated, your issues are related to the mechanics of measuring Adblue volume in the tank, not the effectiveness of the chemical reaction occurring within the exhaust system (which is what would be compromised if the Adblue was mis-formulated or had exceeded its shelf life).
Also, the mis-formulation of Adblue is incredibly unlikely - it's simply a 2:1 mix of deionised water and urea.
AA / VW assist and main dealers suggest keeping the Add blue tank topped up (assume near full) , for the reason that as the level drops the Add blue crystallises in / on the tank walls which can cause issues.
My van went into the dealers for a major service recently, ad blue range was showing 1500 miles, the tech advised on the service video to “top the tank up to prevent further problems“ !
My van went into the dealers for a major service recently, ad blue range was showing 1500 miles, the tech advised on the service video to “top the tank up to prevent further problems“ !
1500 miles is the first warning level. You should be thinking about topping up at this point anyway.
Thanks for the info , appreciated
Yeah been driving locally and still showing the warning light. Have order 3 bottles of the additional additive to make sure I don’t run out going forward. Seems really stupid to have such a fragile system. Anyway learning the hard way it seems. I managed to remove 1/2 a litre this morning so there is nothin gin the filler pipe. Finger crossed the additive will work its magic tomorrow. Thanks for all the help guys , appreciate immensely and learn a ton
Best
Daniel
