V50 General : 1.6 DrivE Injector replacement

[sunstriker]

A last update on the car. Besides the injectors I ended up installing a new aftermarket DPF. I went to the yearly technical inspection here in Belgium yesterday (like MOT) and I was so glad it passed the soot particle test with flying colors. It's only putting out 15k particles, the treshold is 250k but there's a grace period for everything under 1M particles. So it's waaaay under the limit now.
They did notice some swelling of the brake lines in the back though and I was really ashamed that I missed that, but it was no cause for failing the inspection.
So I'm really glad that I was able to get this car in shape again, it doesn't feel like a 13-year old car and I hope to get a few more good years out of it!

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by sunstriker

A last update on the car. Besides the injectors I ended up installing a new aftermarket DPF. I went to the yearly technical inspection here in Belgium yesterday (like MOT) and I was so glad it passed the soot particle test with flying colors. It's only putting out 15k particles, the treshold is 250k but there's a grace period for everything under 1M particles. So it's waaaay under the limit now.
They did notice some swelling of the brake lines in the back though and I was really ashamed that I missed that, but it was no cause for failing the inspection.
So I'm really glad that I was able to get this car in shape again, it doesn't feel like a 13-year old car and I hope to get a few more good years out of it!

Good luck with it. Hopefully many more km's to go!

[Craigtange]

Originally Posted by sunstriker

Hi guys,

I just registered to this forum as a fresh proud owner of a Volvo V50 D2 (D4162T) 1.6D with 120000 km on the clock. I already checked similar forums like Swedespeed and the dutch volvo-forum, as I am from Belgium. However I could not find an answer but I did end up here on an older archived article.

This car drives pretty well but it did fail emissions test this year with over 1 million particles (the limit is 250k). I thought it was a failed DPF at first. But after scanning the car 3 error codes popped up: Injector 1, 2 and 4 - offset learning at maximum limit. Injector 3 failed a few years ago and was replaced by the dealer 45000 km ago. The car idles with noticeable vibrations, at least this is what I think, I've never driven the vehicle when it was new. It also doesn't like to do slow speeds in 2nd gear where it seems to stall, then the rpm pops back up, so it 'shocks' a lot. However at higher speeds everything is just fine. Also fuel consumption didn't change (previous owner is my dad and he told me).

According to the dealer this is all connected and I tend to agree. At low RPM too much fuel is injected into the cilinders 1, 2 and 4 because the injectors are worn, making the engine run rich, producing soot and low power at low revs. As the new emissions test is done at idle this makes sense to me.

However, I'm looking for confirmation on this as I want to do this job myself (except for the coding of the injectors) and want to have a reasonable chance of fixing this issue by buying 3 new injectors. They cost about €240 (sorry, euro) from the cheapest brand I could find (VDO). Economically this car is pretty written off as diesel Euro 5 are not welcome anymore in large cities within 2 years, especially without the added expense of a stabilization bracket.

I did put in some Wynn's Injector cleaner and the car drove much better until the product was out of the fuel. Errors came back a week or so later... I also read that the fuel filter could be to blame but this was replaced by the dealer last year about 5000 km ago. The car always drove about 50 km of highway every workday until my dad retired. Then it only drove about 15 km every week, no highway.

I read everywhere that this engine (also used in Ford etc) has an injector weak spot but I don't find many issues like mine online, hope someone can help me.

it does seem plausible that the worn injectors could be contributing to the emissions test failure and the engine performance issues you're experiencing, especially considering the error codes related to injector offset learning.

Given the symptoms you've described, such as noticeable vibrations at idle and hesitation/stalling at low speeds in 2nd gear, it's possible that replacing the injectors could improve the engine's performance and emissions.

While it's always best to consult with a qualified mechanic or dealer for a professional diagnosis, if you're comfortable doing the job yourself and have the necessary tools and knowledge, replacing the injectors could be a reasonable next step.

Before proceeding, you may want to double-check other potential causes such as the fuel filter, as you mentioned it was replaced recently, and ensure no other underlying issues are contributing to the symptoms.

Overall, it seems like you've got a good grasp of the situation, and replacing the injectors could potentially resolve the issues you're facing