General DPF problems? hmmmm......

[Bill_56]

Originally Posted by wimorrison

I have also looked into the DPF regeneration issues and it appears that the regeneration only happens when the filter is not cleared by normal driving, that is the car will inject additional fuel if the DPF is indicating that it needs cleaning. If it is getting hot enough to burn off the soot and contaminants the additional fuel is not injected to clean the DPF.

I can't agree. Mine seems to work exactly as documented in the owner's manual (repeated below). Further, mine gets a 50 mile thrash at least six times a week, and an oil analysis carried out less than 4k miles after oil changed showed it to already be out of grade.

The particles in the exhaust gasses are collected in the filter during normal driving. So called "regeneration" is started in order to burn away the particles and empty the filter. This requires the engine to have reached normal operating temperature.

Regeneration of the filter takes place automatically at an interval 300-900km depending on driving conditions. Regeneration normally takes between 10 and 20 minutes. During this time fuel consumption may increase

[rublehousen]

it seems to me that this dpf is a silly design. obviously its easier and cheaper to programme the ecu to inject diesel post ignition rather than fit a additional fuel injector to inject diesel into the exhaust manifold/ just before the dpf. i suppose its going to bite em in the bum if all this diesel diluting the oil and washing the bores will lead to premature engine wear/engines feeding themselves untill they die. diesel is excellent as a cleaning product, the motor will be spotless inside when the mechanic rebuild them! i predict they wont be many of these dpf equipped engines running around in 5 years,and if there is i reckon they will be smokey old buses. live and learn.

[wimorrison]

Originally Posted by Bill_56

I can't agree. Mine seems to work exactly as documented in the owner's manual (repeated below). Further, mine gets a 50 mile thrash at least six times a week, and an oil analysis carried out less than 4k miles after oil changed showed it to already be out of grade.

The particles in the exhaust gasses are collected in the filter during normal driving. So called "regeneration" is started in order to burn away the particles and empty the filter. This requires the engine to have reached normal operating temperature.

Regeneration of the filter takes place automatically at an interval 300-900km depending on driving conditions. Regeneration normally takes between 10 and 20 minutes. During this time fuel consumption may increase

How do you know it is injecting additional fuel to regenerate? There is no indication that it is happening, or has happened and given the indicated range that it can happen within you cannot use fuel consumption as an indicator either.

[Bill_56]

Originally Posted by wimorrison

How do you know it is injecting additional fuel to regenerate? There is no indication that it is happening, or has happened and given the indicated range that it can happen within you cannot use fuel consumption as an indicator either.

The strongest tell-tale is the computer's Distance-to-empty readout, which bases it's prediction on mpg over the last few miles. During regeneration, as the car starts squirting neat diesel into the exhaust, anything up to about 100 miles disappears from the computer's DTE, whilst only having covered a distance of maybe 10 miles, and without any change in driving conditions. Following regeneration, the DTE recovers most of that as the MPG recovers, but it never gets back to the equivalent (allowing for actual distance travelled) of where it started because, of course, some fuel has been permanently spent.

If you are on a PERFECTLY level road with light traffic, put the car on cruise control, you may also be able to get a stable readout on instantaneous MPG, which will also plummet. That's only really reliable it's a stretch of road with which you are familiar, and can compare the reading with what it normally shows. Be VERY careful not to focus too much on the instantaneous mpg, as it's a long way off your windscreen view and can distract from driving.

[hazphi]

Having done a lot of research recently due to finding out that my S40 1.6D was one of the first Euro IVs with DPF (original order had been for a Euro III).

An (expensive) additive is added to the fuel tank every time you fill up. This reduces the ignition temperature of the soot. When the dpf diiferential pressure sensor detects that there is a soot buildup the ECU intitiates a dpf regeneration. Amongst other things it changes the ignition timing and injects diesel into the exhaust stroke which then burns in the dpf filter turning the soot into ash. Every 37.5k miles the dpf filter needs to be changed (expensive!) as the ash starts to block the ceramic filter.

I've had my car nearly 5 years and done 93k miles. In that time I've had periods of long journeys and short commutes. I've never had an issue with the dpf (as I didn't realise I had one!) until I got it serviced by a third party who didn't refill the additive tank (which is why they quoted £60 cheaper!). Eventually the car went into limp home mode. This was fixed by adding some Wynns (with cerium oxide) to the tank and then taking it for a blast on the A1 - the engine hesitated when it regenned (presumably because of the soot build up).

As far as I'm concerned, provided you run the car once for at least 20 minutes continuously every tank of fuel you probably won't have a problem

[catch22]

Originally Posted by hazphi

Having done a lot of research recently due to finding out that my S40 1.6D was one of the first Euro IVs with DPF .................

Every 37.5k miles the dpf filter needs to be changed (expensive!) as the ash starts to block the ceramic filter.

I take it you meant to say every 37.5K the Eloy's additive reservoir needs refilling. As the DPF is scheduled for replacement every 75k. Of course I know of original DPF's doing cica 100k

Below quote is copied from the Ford Service Schedule for the 1.6 Duratorg-TDCi engined Focus

Diesel particulate filter Every 75 000 miles - Renew - Duratorq-TDCi with Stage IV Emission only, if applicable (LTS 25 280 1)

[Nick44]

Originally Posted by wimorrison

How do you know it is injecting additional fuel to regenerate? There is no indication that it is happening, or has happened and given the indicated range that it can happen within you cannot use fuel consumption as an indicator either.

Hi Wimorrison.
I use my V70 D5 Gen3 for almost exclusive motorway use. I have had the rising oil level and subsequent sump oil pollution problem.

Now I know what I'm looking for a regen can be spotted very easily, and since I have had the software patch loaded from the recall, my MPG has improved by almost 10 per gallon.

Bill is right.

[wimorrison]

Originally Posted by Nick44

Hi Wimorrison.
I use my V70 D5 Gen3 for almost exclusive motorway use. I have had the rising oil level and subsequent sump oil pollution problem.

Now I know what I'm looking for a regen can be spotted very easily, and since I have had the software patch loaded from the recall, my MPG has improved by almost 10 per gallon.

Bill is right.

Which software patch is this and what is the age of your car please? I have not been offered a software patch recall and my mileage has not changed since i got the car 9 months ago - still sitting at 33.5mpg +/-1 depending on roads

[Bill_56]

Originally Posted by wimorrison

Which software patch is this and what is the age of your car please? I have not been offered a software patch recall and my mileage has not changed since i got the car 9 months ago - still sitting at 33.5mpg +/-1 depending on roads

I think I already mentioned earlier in the thread that most Euro 4 D5s had been recalled. I also posted the recall lists.

If your car was in the lists I posted and you haven't had the recall letter, you could give them a ring to check it's not just got lost...

[Bill_56]

Originally Posted by Bill_56

I think I already mentioned earlier in the thread that most Euro 4 D5s had been recalled. I also posted the recall lists.

If your car was in the lists I posted and you haven't had the recall letter, you could give them a ring to check it's not just got lost...

Correction, I posted that in the related thread "comparing Volvo diesel engines".