Adblue vs Blue Def

Diesel126

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Location
North West Nj
TDI
2013 Passat SEL TDI DSG / 2006 Jetta TDI DSG / 2011 Touareg TDI Executive
Is VW Adblue the same as blue def? The dealer is telling me that using anything but VW Adblue could damage the Adblue system causing engine light and or Adblue system failure. The blue def I am using has the same ISO standard that is listed on the VW Adblue tank. The car is in for repair for this reason and the dealer is telling me that someone put water in the tank or a low grade Adblue.
( blue def) The car runs fine just getting the count down to not restarting.
2011 Touareg TDI
 

40native

Active member
Joined
Jan 13, 2013
Location
Sioux Falls, SD
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SE
There's a lot of difference in the quaility of the DEF fluid out on the market but as long as you're buying a good quaility ISO certified DEF in a sealed container you should be fine. Contamination is the biggest issue with DEF. VW can only deny warranty strictly related to the part failed so if like your HHFP went out they can't use DEF as an excuse to deny warranty of a totally un-related part.
 

MichaelB

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Location
SE Wisconsin
TDI
2014 Passat SE DSG
There's a lot of difference in the quaility of the DEF fluid out on the market but as long as you're buying a good quaility ISO certified DEF in a sealed container you should be fine. Contamination is the biggest issue with DEF. VW can only deny warranty strictly related to the part failed so if like your HHFP went out they can't use DEF as an excuse to deny warranty of a totally un-related part.
Sez who?
 

kydsid

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 18, 2012
Location
Texas
TDI
2012 Passat
Option 1: Dealer Service Advisor is up selling for the Parts Counter. A slimy tactic at best and one that borders on fraud depending on what is said.

Your are correct about the ISO standard. Def is mostly water in the first place and degrades over time.

Option 2: they are telling the truth. But I'd ask them what proof they have. Ask them for their lab report that states the def is out of spec. ;)
 

Fixmy59bug

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Location
Las Vegas, NV
TDI
2015 Passat TDI SE
If the vehicle is still under warranty, ask if they opened a VTA with Techline?

It is a pretty common issue for the DEF to freeze if the temperatures are at or below 10*

If it freezes, this could cause the problem you are explaining. Then when they take the vehicle into the shop, the AdBlue thaws and they never take that into account for the diagnosis.
 

bonno

Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2011
Location
Sammamish, Wa
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SEL
Where can I buy good quality DEF that is not AdBlue? I am in Seattle area and looking for a major Consumer to sell it. My dealer only sells half gallon bottles (i think that is the size).
 

N41EF

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 22, 2005
Location
Aiken, SC
TDI
2011 Golf, 2009 ML 320, 2006 NB, 2001 NB
Walmart sells DEF in a 2.5 gallon "box". Same stuff at the LAPS.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
It's all the same stuff. You can use any DEF (diesel exhaust fluid) or AdBlue in your diesel with SCR. The cheapest place is on the pumps at truck stops... generally around $2.50/gallon or less.
 

n1das

TDIClub Enthusiast, Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 11, 2002
Location
Nashua, NH, USA
TDI
2014 BMW 535xd ///M-Sport, 2012 BMW X5 Xdrive35d, former 3x TDI owner
Peak Blue Def is ISO 22241 but generic walmart DEF is not
Sez who? :confused:

Adblue and DEF are one and the same. Brand doesn't matter. DEF is made to an ISO standard (ISO 22241) and is a commodity item and used worldwide. I buy my DEF at my local Walmart* store and have used enough over the last few years to cover over 120k miles of driving.

Bottom line is DEF is DEF is DEF is DEF... is DEF.

VeeDubTDI said:
It's all the same stuff. You can use any DEF (diesel exhaust fluid) or AdBlue in your diesel with SCR. The cheapest place is on the pumps at truck stops... generally around $2.50/gallon or less.
What VeeDubTDI said.

I recommend not using bulk DEF fill pumps at truck stops and only fill from an AdBlue bottle or fill from a 2.5 gallon jug with a funnel. What I like to do is fill once from a 1/2 gallon AdBlue bottle and then cut a hole in the bottom of the bottle and use it as a custom funnel to fill from a 2.5 gallon jug of DEF.

The issue with filling from a bulk fill pump at a truck stop is the DEF tank can get damaged from the "water hammer" effect upon the tank going full. DEF gets blown out through the air stone vents when the tank gets full and the vents can get clogged after the DEF crystallizes as it dries up. The tank then gets collapsed and cracked during the next DEF pump-out by the SCR system. Gravity filling with an AdBlue bottle or 2.5 gallon jug with a funnel is safe to do.

BMW dealers have been replacing cracked DEF tanks under warranty because of dealers using bulk fill pumps until BMW issued a Service Information Bulletin (SIB) warning not to do a DEF fill if the level in the tank is above a certain level. The bottom line is only gravity fill with an AdBlue bottle or 2.5 gallon jug with a funnel. I DIY all DEF fills in my BMWs.
 
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cruisin

Active member
Joined
Jul 1, 2007
Location
Fritch, Tx
TDI
2006 Jetta
At what point will the warning light stop flashing.? We just stopped by a Walmart and added a about a half gallon after having the light come on while going home from vacation.
 

scooperhsd

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2003
Location
Kansas City KS
TDI
NB, 2000, RED(5 Speed conversion) 2015 Golf SE
If the car was telling you that you had 1500 miles (or so) of DEF , you should fill it. When I did my own first fill, I bought the .5 gallon bottle and a 2.5 gallon at VW - after I emptied the bottle, I cut the bottom off and used it as a funnel for the 2.5 gallon. This time, I just bought the 2.5 gallon Peak at Walmart and filled it up with my funnel.
 

tomo366

TDI Lifer, Member #68
Joined
Jun 30, 1997
Location
Kensington, Maryland USA
TDI
2015 Jetta SEL TDI
At what point will the warning light stop flashing.? We just stopped by a Walmart and added a about a half gallon after having the light come on while going home from vacation.
When someone with a Vag com or VW Machine hooks up a machine and resets it
 

bizzle

Veteran Member
Joined
May 21, 2013
Location
Southern California
TDI
2015 GSW SEL (totaled), 2013 Touareg Executive
I tried filling from a 2.5g jug and it was more of a pain in the butt than I want to deal with. I used the adapter filler from idparts. If someone wants to buy it for like $15 bucks PM me because I'm just going to do 1/2 gallon at a time which is easier on my wrists.
 

cruisin

Active member
Joined
Jul 1, 2007
Location
Fritch, Tx
TDI
2006 Jetta
OK. made it home but never shut the engine off just in case. Once home I filled the additive tank completely full, then followed the procedure in the manual of turning key on and waiting 30 seconds before restarting. still have orange flashing wrench with dripping bottle above it.

When the warning first appeared today, I didn't look down in time to see the mileage it said until no restart. The second time I was ready for it; it said 500 miles to no restart, then 450 then 400-350-and finally 300. We are home and I will be calling dealer 45 miles away tomorrow. The car starts but still with the blinking warning lights.

just a point of reference; this is on a 2015 Passat TDI.
 

cruisin

Active member
Joined
Jul 1, 2007
Location
Fritch, Tx
TDI
2006 Jetta
Note to self... never buy a car with this crap system in it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
yep. Once this episode is cleared up I will be looking to get rid of the Passat. It totally pisses me off that manufacturers design in this kind of BS just so they can make more money on service and parts. The Can Am Spyder we bought earlier this year is the same way and may also get dumped off quickly along with the Passat.

I've owned a 2004 Pontiac Vibe since spring of 2009 and have yet to have problem with it other than replacing front wheel bearings. But at 195K miles something is going to wear out. I've also owned several BMW motorcycles since April of 2000. Now, with over 330K miles behind me on those, I have only had one major parts failure. The final drive on my R1200C began leaking at the seal. It seems the main bearing had begun to come apart and caused the seal failure. I parked it, bought parts for about $150 and rebuilt it myself in about 4 hours. That occurred at 112K, proof that quality manufacturing can be accomplished without all the BS some companies are pulling just to make more service dollars. This will be the last VW I ever buy and I will make sure as many as possible know of the problems that can come with them; hopefully before they waste their money on one.
 
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scooperhsd

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2003
Location
Kansas City KS
TDI
NB, 2000, RED(5 Speed conversion) 2015 Golf SE
Wait for a couple years and you'll need to do this on your gas cars as well....

It's called MAINTENANCE - I suppose you never read your owner's manual to see what was needed. Other modern diesel vehicles also have this need for DEF. If you want to blame anyone - blame CARB for emission standards that required the manufacturers to have to use this to meet the standards.
 

cruisin

Active member
Joined
Jul 1, 2007
Location
Fritch, Tx
TDI
2006 Jetta
Our service writer made a strong point when I took it in for the thirty day check up after purchasing it in early September. He said the system would tell us when there was 1500 miles to go and to get it taken care of as soon as possible after seeing that. The damn thing didn't sound off or light up until 550 miles to the no start notice. This happened on New Years Day and the only thing open was Wallyworld. Luckily, we were only about 250 miles from home and it would still restart after I filled the additive tank and followed the procedure in the manual. It still won't stop flashing the warning though. I'm thinking if they can't get a fluid sensor and warning system right, what else did they get wrong.
 

scooperhsd

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2003
Location
Kansas City KS
TDI
NB, 2000, RED(5 Speed conversion) 2015 Golf SE
I'd call it a one time problem. At least you did listen to your service advisor and put SOME DEF in when you did see a warning on it. It's possible that your DEF heater has malfunctioned as well and that could explain part of why it didn't register at 1500 miles. Regardless you are correct to get it to the dealer to find out what is wrong.

My 2015 Golf hasn't had an issue with adding DEF - if there was a systemic problem affecting lots of cars, you would see it on here. As I said - I think your car does have a problem, but it is not very widespread.
 

tdidieselbobny

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 4, 2005
Location
Stafford,NY (WNY)
TDI
'03 Galactic Blue Jetta TDI, '15 Silk Blue Golf Sportwagen TDI
A few weeks ago my dash dinged and it said add adblue-1500 miles till empty(or whatever it says). I added 3 gallons and all was well-no more reminders,etc..... till this morning. Started car up, it dinged again,but now it said 600 miles till no start:mad:. This was on my way to work,so after work I stopped by WalMart and bought a 2.5 gallon jug of the Peak DEF and a gallon of the Supertech DEF. I opened the 2.5 gallon jug in parking lot and put spout on and started to put it in. After maybe 30 seconds,it splashed out of the filler hole,I added maybe a quart total:confused::confused::confused::confused:. So I get in car and do what manual says,30 seconds after hitting button I start it and the yellow exclamation mark is still in dash,along w/ maintenance wrench that goes out. Drive home after a couple more stops and the yellow exclamation point goes out. I start car up tonight and no reminders or exclamation marks come on dash, so keeping fingers crossed.
 
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