My plea for help : AdBlue sensor issues

[Chris85]

Good afternoon your wonderful bunch

 

As the title suggests, I find myself in a pretty urgent situation where essentially my 2018 JL is now off the road pending further "Investigation" by the Jeep Dealer in Nuneaton with regards to an issue with the AdBlue sensor.

 

To cut a long story short, the sensor in the AdBlue tank doesnt seem to be working and recognizing that it has been refilled which has resulted in the "Miles till the car will not restart" counting down and now hovering at 120 miles. This effectively means I am unable to use the jeep for the next few weeks.

 

Having taken it in to the dealer this morning and had their Chief Engineer do some trouble shooting, they are no further forward than when I took it in to them. They had a bulletin issued by Jeep on the topic which advised them to remove 2-3 gallons of ad-blue then run the vehicle for 15 minutes. Having not been able to remove the adblue through a pump they had to remove the entire tank, disconnect the pipes and remove it the old fashioned way. Alas, this did not fix the problem and now the soonest they can get me booked in is at the very end of August.

 

Having done some research of Google I can only find a handful of American forum posts where people seem to have had a similar issue. The "fix" varies from "it just sorted itself out" to people having to buy a whole new tank at the cost of thousands of dollars.

 

My question is this. Has anyone else had this problem or knows how to fix it? I was hoping that it was a simple software issue and by using their elaborate OBD software they would have been able to manually reset the clock but apparently this cannot be done...... If anyone knows otherwise I would be very interested.

 

So, I find myself without a vehicle for what is going to be weeks and an unknown bill at the end of it. If anyone is able to assist on this matter it would be appreciated more than you will know. To say this issue is causing me anxiety and sleepless nights is an understatement so your input is greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks in advance,

Chris

[Mike WK2]

It’s not something I know much about at all, but have you tried talking to Unity Jeep Oxford or Buzz, I have found both helpful with mine, and they maybe able to steer you in the right direction. 

[BLUE STAR]

Not having much luck with your 2018 JL

I've seen some get the AdBlue requirement function overridden via a software hack, but when they took them into dealership for software updates it completely screwed the ECU leaving them with a no start vehicle. I was near the service desk at the dealers at the time, with an irate customer with a now dead Grand Cherokee who hadn't informed them they'd had this performed on their JEEP.

Next day they had a warning notice up. 

Did you ever get that check engine light 'after the rain storm' sorted out ?

With all the emission / electrical crap on vehicles now I wonder what all these Hybrids & EV's etc will be like as they age.

[Caroline12]

Ok, it is probably a level sensor error, this happens, and can sort themselves out. Normally turning the sensor up and down - go on a bumpy drive off road

it all depends on what type of sensor it is (how it works) easiest is a float, some are resistance. Could be like a fuel tank level indicator but I don’t know. 

 

firstly check the signal is being sent from the sensor, check cables, if no signal or just bottom reading. We know it’s high as you filled the tank. But now empty as tank removed. does it show zero Adblue when empty ? If not - sensor failed. - change sensor. 

 

sensor connections, tarnished electrics, earth issues, water in plug
 

since the tank is out, if you turn it up and down (float sensor) does the float bang up and down or no noise.

 

can you see the sensor ? Does it look ok ? Is there a float ? 
 

 You need to find out what type of sensor it is and if it can be replaced. A sensor is a lot cheaper than a whole tank and sensor. 
 

personally leave the ECU alone, don’t mess with it. I suspect it is either wiring or float issues. 
 

very a few suggestions of the top off my head, with sensors and tanks. 
 

[V]

As so much of the WK2 inherits from Mercedes Benz I had a look to see if any of them have a similar problem. It appears they do. The Adblue crystallizes in the tank and ruins the sensor. A new tank with integral sensor is required. Cost £1500+. Problem is caused by not driving the vehicle enough and not driving it frequently. If the adblue goes stale it forms crystals. Only fix is to replace tank and sensor and keep using the adblue replacing it with fresh before it crystallizes. Low mileage cars with 36,000 miles or less in 4 or 5 years seem to be the most affected.

[V]

I found this to dissolve crystals

https://www.forteuk.co.uk/news/prevent-crystals-in-adblue-systems/

Worth trying tomorrow.

 

Edited August 9 by V

[V]

Serious eye damage is a risk so wear liquid splash protecting safety goggles when pouring the product into your adblue tank.

Chemical gloves too.

https://www.roughtrax4x4.com/pub/media/wysiwyg/PDF/FORTE01_Data_Sheet_Exhaust_Crystal_Preventer_E01.00_EN_1_.pdf

[Caroline12]

12 hours ago, V said:

As so much of the WK2 inherits from Mercedes Benz I had a look to see if any of them have a similar problem. It appears they do. The Adblue crystallizes in the tank and ruins the sensor. A new tank with integral sensor is required. Cost £1500+. Problem is caused by not driving the vehicle enough and not driving it frequently. If the adblue goes stale it forms crystals. Only fix is to replace tank and sensor and keep using the adblue replacing it with fresh before it crystallizes. Low mileage cars with 36,000 miles or less in 4 or 5 years seem to be the most affected.

Every day is a school day  

[UKTJ]

I am confused by the points re WK2, is the system the same as the OPs JL?

[BLUE STAR]

Yeah some good detective work there V and more education.

I wonder if there's a warning in the JL's manual about managing Adblue ?

[digger]

General tip for any electrical probs. Pull apart all connections and clean both pieces with electric contact cleaner. You will be amazed how often the issue is just bad connections. Dealers make a packet from this simple fix that they don't tell you about!

[V]

6 hours ago, UKTJ said:

I am confused by the points re WK2, is the system the same as the OPs JL?

I thought that the WK2 would be the first Jeep to have adblue so more likely to find problem reports for that Jeep. I don't know for certain if the JL has the same Bosch system, or a Faurecia system or something else. I think they may all have the same problem.

[V]

I think the JL system is Bosch. I found Bosch parts listed but none for Faurecia.

[UKTJ]

52 minutes ago, V said:

I thought that the WK2 would be the first Jeep to have adblue so more likely to find problem reports for that Jeep. I don't know for certain if the JL has the same Bosch system, or a Faurecia system or something else. I think they may all have the same problem.

My wife had a WK2 which took AdBlue.  By the sound of it I think we dodged a bullet, we had it from 2 to 7 years old and it did about 5k miles a year.

[V]

If the Forte product works dissolving the crystals before the mileage countdown expires, this would be a cheap fix.