AdBlue

[Opensauce]

Booking car in for first service at Cit garage next month I learned that AdBlue topup is not part of the service nor should it be. I assumed that AdBlue topup can be done at any time but apparently not so. According to Cit garage & confirmed with phone call to Cit UK topup must not be done until warning light comes on & then tank must be completely filled. Easy enough for owner to do & AdBlue is about £12 for 10litre container so 2 required for 17litre tank fill.

Berlingo tank is supposed to last around 12.5k miles average so I assumed that as I do around 10k pa miles that AdBlue tank could be filled every service saving me the trouble but no doubt much cheaper for diy fill. After warning light comes on there is about 1.5k miles left so no rush to refill.

[Johny555]

Think theres another warning at 300 miles,,if it goes empty car will not start,! Can't understand why it can't be toped up,when near,1,500 miles,?

[Gravity]

Strange, that.
The Mercedes (and no doubt other makes also) allows you to top up anytime. It was originally a dealer exclusive, but has since become an owner top up. I wonder if a lot of Adblue info is just hype?

Gravity

[Opensauce]

Yes. I was wondering that. I had a long chat with my local Cit garage service bloke & he was insistent that tank should not be topped up with a few litres every few mnths or so. He said that might “mess up the computer”. It is fair to say that offcial service directive default always has to be that the user is an idiot. For example you hear stories of drivers putting AdBlue in the diesel tank!

So it’s always “go to hearest Cit garage”. Phone call to Cit UK was plain silly. Person obvs had no knowledge themselves & was reading off a screen. They confirmed tank should only be topped up when light came on then said “most drivers have this done as part of annual service”. When I pointed out the advice was contradictory they seemed to simply not get it so I gave up.

So it would be good to know whether topup should really be only done when light comes on. That might mean I might have to faff about doing it on holiday in France & not in the comfort of my own drive.

[polar]

Just google citroen dealers and ring 3 or 4 with the same question that way you should have a good idea if the service receptionist knows what they are talking about.

[Gravity]

Just google citroen dealers and ring 3 or 4 with the same question that way you should have a good idea if the service receptionist knows what they are talking about.

Reckon that'd be a shortcut to madness!
Whoever heard of a Main Dealer receptionist who really knows what he's talking about?

Now, if you were to go to a good Indie ...

Gravity

[Lighty]

We top up the adblue tanks at service time , even if the light is not on, saying differentnis rediculous to be honest. 
What if you only have 2 litres avaliable ?
Citroen don't half talk some rubbish sometimes. 
The tank,often doesn't last until the 1st service, its no different to,topping up your washer fluid.

[Opensauce]

Cheers Lighty. That makes sense. I think my Cit service bloke was just repeating official Cit directive which is to only top up tank once light is on. I suppose they have to do that or they don’t get paid for warranty work if they deviate from official Cit instructions.

[Opensauce]

I did phone up another Cit garage & they did indeed confirm that AdBlue can be topped up anytime. They said they can top it up at extra cost at service time or save money & diy. Topup with a few litres every 6mnths or so was the advice.

[Johny555]

Theres a use by date on adblue,maybe better running it a bit low,so you put fresh stuff in,