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I've got a diesel vrs my commute is 7 miles there 7 back on open roads 5 days per week, at weekends it gets longer drives sometimes. Over the past year regens were fairly frequent when new but tapered off and now it regens every 200-250 miles.

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Yes and no.

 

How old is your car?

 

A DPF will take abuse for a few years whilst it is nice and new.

 

The issues creep in as the age increases.

 

Year after year of low mileage, not achieving operating temperatures and short journey's will shorten the life of a DPF.

 

Its unlikely you'll notice any issues in the first 3 years, so if you always buy new and change your car frequently then it's unlikely you'll have any issues.

 

This doesn't mean the DPF is happy though. After 3 or 4 years is when you are likely to see issues.

 

I bought a 4 year old MkII vRS that had done 33,000 miles, very low annual mileage. 2 years later with an annual mileage of 30,000 miles the DPF began giving trouble.

 

So yes, DPF's are much better then they used to be, but then in some circumstances they have the ability to still be a ticking time bomb.

A dpf doesn't just begin to give trouble.... it's just a soot collection device. It's more likely a sub system started to fail, a sensor/sticky egr causing the dpf to block as a result of it not being emptied properly.

Going from low mileage to high mileage may even of given rise to some oil burning and increase the ash level which would give dpf trouble.

Point is it's just a bucket

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I've got a diesel vrs my commute is 7 miles there 7 back on open roads 5 days per week, at weekends it gets longer drives sometimes. Over the past year regens were fairly frequent when new but tapered off and now it regens every 200-250 miles.

That's encouraging that it got better rather than worse.

200-250 miles would at least be into acceptable territory for me,  appreciate some might even count that as good.

However my Euro 6 was already up at 8000 miles, so don't think it was going to get any better, most experience appeared to suggest that it was worse that it would get.

Not sure if yours would be Euro 5 or Euro 6 which might have a bearing on different regen performance.

Edited by Octy0GG
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A dpf doesn't just begin to give trouble.... it's just a soot collection device. It's more likely a sub system started to fail, a sensor/sticky egr causing the dpf to block as a result of it not being emptied properly.

Going from low mileage to high mileage may even of given rise to some oil burning and increase the ash level which would give dpf trouble.

Point is it's just a bucket

 

DPF's have improved over the years but in my case it did begin to give trouble. 

 

By that I mean more and more active regens, followed by the DPF light coming on. Following the instructions in the manual turned the light off but it would come back on after a few weeks.

 

This went on for several months until eventually I couldn't turn the light off myself. The DPF was dead. A forced regen got me another few months but when the light appeared again the DPF had no more to give.

 

So in my experience the issues did get progressively worse i.e it did begin to give trouble. The car was drivable but required action from me on an increasingly regular basis.

 

The DPF collects soot, the regeneration process burns off the soot leaving behind ash. The ash is forever stored in the DPF. As the ash levels increase it covers the surface of the filter meaning the filter has to work harder, and harder, and harder until eventually it's can't operate effectively and stops working.

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There is no other Octavia apart from the vRS.

The rest (non-vrs trim) look like old man's cars, unfortunately. No soul to them at all.

Haha.

The petrol vRS is a real vRS, but the diesel? You seem to be very disparaging of others but you should look closer to home!

The diesel isn't a vRS really. A quickish diesel as in the GTD, but not the GTI.

One real exhaust & one fake one!

Come on!

.

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DPF's have improved over the years but in my case it did begin to give trouble. 

 

By that I mean more and more active regens, followed by the DPF light coming on. Following the instructions in the manual turned the light off but it would come back on after a few weeks.

 

This went on for several months until eventually I couldn't turn the light off myself. The DPF was dead. A forced regen got me another few months but when the light appeared again the DPF had no more to give.

 

So in my experience the issues did get progressively worse i.e it did begin to give trouble. The car was drivable but required action from me on an increasingly regular basis.

 

The DPF collects soot, the regeneration process burns off the soot leaving behind ash. The ash is forever stored in the DPF. As the ash levels increase it covers the surface of the filter meaning the filter has to work harder, and harder, and harder until eventually it's can't operate effectively and stops working.

Just reading your other post again....it sounds when it started to fail it had about 93k miles? You right about the ash, the general service life of a dpf is about 100k so infact yours did pretty well!
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That's encouraging that it got better rather than worse.

200-250 miles would at least be into acceptable territory for me,  appreciate some might even count that as good.

However my Euro 6 was already up at 8000 miles, so don't think it was going to get any better, most experience appeared to suggest that it was worse that it would get.

Not sure if yours would be Euro 5 or Euro 6 which might have a bearing on different regen performance.

Mine is Euro 6, November 2015.
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The OP bought a petrol car? Why the heated discussion about DPF...

If you wish to enjoy your drive take the 'advice' given with a pinch of salt.

Enjoy your car. As a means of transport they are good enough as cutting edge and powerful (vrs) they are not. Cheap Hatchbacks were making 200bhp + 15 years ago so 220/230 bhp is hardly a 'leap' forward.

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I'm coming to the end of my pcp, have been test driving various petrol engine estates in recent weeks as I feel I don't do the mileage to warrant the diesel and associated dpf issues.

None of them excited me at all and one of them was a Cupra 290. I must be a total diesel convert because I have a feeling I'm going to end up with another.

I rarely stick with the same brand but after three weeks of looking I can't find anything to beat my current Skoda. Intact it's a relief to get back into the thing after each disappointing test drive!

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Is there a thread somewhere here on Briskoda with members complaining about their knackered MK3 Octavias due to DPF problems?

 

The oldest MkIII Octavia's are only just 4 years old so if there are any weaknesses they'll start creeping in this year.

 

Take a wander over to the MkII forum, plenty of bedtime reading over there.

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Yes and no.

How old is your car?

A DPF will take abuse for a few years whilst it is nice and new.

The issues creep in as the age increases.

Year after year of low mileage, not achieving operating temperatures and short journey's will shorten the life of a DPF.

Its unlikely you'll notice any issues in the first 3 years, so if you always buy new and change your car frequently then it's unlikely you'll have any issues.

This doesn't mean the DPF is happy though. After 3 or 4 years is when you are likely to see issues.

I bought a 4 year old MkII vRS that had done 33,000 miles, very low annual mileage. 2 years later with an annual mileage of 30,000 miles the DPF began giving trouble.

So yes, DPF's are much better then they used to be, but then in some circumstances they have the ability to still be a ticking time bomb.

Year after year of not achieving running temperatures?

I never said that. If people are constantly not letting it reach running temperatures, then they are driving their car constantly for journeys they should be walking. It's only a 30 to 45 min walk we are talking about.

Also, the DPF will always carry out necessary regens. Unless of course you do just run up and down the road in it, which I've already said you shouldn't.

So if it does start to give trouble, it is likely it is just full of soot, which will happen to all of them eventually.

My car is virtually 3yrs and 1 month old. It has never even shown a warning light once.

As has been mentioned by someone else, a normal 7 mile commute is not a problem. That is about the length of my normal shortest journey. Every now and again it gets some decent exercise.

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The oldest MkIII Octavia's are only just 4 years old so if there are any weaknesses they'll start creeping in this year.

Take a wander over to the MkII forum, plenty of bedtime reading over there.

But what has caused the problems. Remember they could well be just full of soot.

I will clarify. When I say soot, I mean ash. The by product of burning the particulates. This is completely normal for a DPF.

In the case of one failing at 93,000 miles, it is difficult to tell what caused it. If it was ash, then this isn't down to the driving.

Edited by JungleJames
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Mine is Euro 6, November 2015.

Euro 5 and 6 is unlikely to make a difference anyway. If I remember correctly, Euro 6 just decreased the nitrogen oxide limits over Euro 5. Hence why some Euro 6s have SCRs.

It does make me laugh though. What will people do when petrols are forced to have particulate traps on them? After all, they are now worse than modern diesels in that respect.

Edited by JungleJames
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Two words:

Highly exaggerated.

I get in my diesel and drive wherever and whenever I like. Simple. Yes sometimes I interrupt regens, but all this stuff about ticking time bombs is daft. It will just carry on with the regeneration at the next suitable time, if it so desires.

So unless you only ever do the school run, and never touch a motorway or any other high speed stretch, there is nothing to worry about. This is the mk 3 octy we are talking about. Not the Mk 1 XF.

I have had DPF diesels since 2010 and my mixed journey plan has never changed. Sometimes driving to work 14 miles each way and sometimes using the train with only a short drive to station. Regular days out and holiday away around the country or into nearby Europe. And never any DPF problems.

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There is no other Octavia apart from the vRS.

The rest (non-vrs trim) look like old man's cars, unfortunately. No soul to them at all.

 

Not sure this is 100% true though.

 

What about the L&K ( on looks its least as good / better on materials as vRS).

e.g. alcantara instead of part basic cloth ( on those without full leather).

You do realise that is the proper "top of the range" skoda despite not being so obvious

 

( only they didn't use the quickest engine notably as the "old" vRS engine its probably a bit better economy than the vRS, quicker than the 1.4).

Its certainly the more mature choice however, going for actual overall spec over "sport trim" it would seem

 

I do get what you mean though, and personally would really be always going for the sportier vRS.

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But what has caused the problems. Remember they could well be just full of soot.

I will clarify. When I say soot, I mean ash. The by product of burning the particulates. This is completely normal for a DPF.

In the case of one failing at 93,000 miles, it is difficult to tell what caused it. If it was ash, then this isn't down to the driving.

 

The ash content is linked to the driving, some driving styles create more soot and therefore more ash then others.

 

Let's not forget DPF's are improving all of the time, however if your driving style mainly consists of short or low speed journey times then this will shorten the life of a DPF.

 

On the PD170 issues were often seen well within the warranty period, I'm sure on the MkIII the DPF is much more resilient.

 

My point is that those people who only do short journey's yet claim their DPF's are just fine are generally people who change their cars relatively frequently and therefore no longer own the car when the ill effects become apparent. This time frame is getting longer and longer with the improvements in DPF's, however the technology remains unchanged and so I stand by the fact that if used for short journey's it will eventually catch up with you.

 

As is often the case the best thing is to pretend its not there and drive the car as normal. Deal with it only when (and if) it becomes a problem.

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Not sure this is 100% true though.

What about the L&K ( on looks its least as good / better on materials as vRS).

e.g. alcantara instead of part basic cloth ( on those without full leather).

You do realise that is the proper "top of the range" skoda despite not being so obvious

( only they didn't use the quickest engine notably as the "old" vRS engine its probably a bit better economy than the vRS, quicker than the 1.4).

Its certainly the more mature choice however, going for actual overall spec over "sport trim" it would seem

I do get what you mean though, and personally would really be always going for the sportier vRS.

True.

When i took delivery of the elegance in 2014 it was better specced than the vrs models the dealer was selling. No Nav no cruise etc, the vrs looked pretty basic. That changed and the vrs began to get more toys as standard and has as result probably sold in good numbers.

The L & K appears a rarity but yes it's the top of the range. Some drivers prefer toys, comfort and luxury over body styling and 'sporty' pretentions.

I was offered a vrs (ex stock) as a replacement for my car when i endured a shed load of grief with it. I declined it as aside from the engine i viewed it as lower spec.

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Not sure this is 100% true though.

 

What about the L&K ( on looks its least as good / better on materials as vRS).

e.g. alcantara instead of part basic cloth ( on those without full leather).

You do realise that is the proper "top of the range" skoda despite not being so obvious

 

 

 

L&K is a very nice and an understated alternative - outside my price range without going older than I wanted to though.

I am now old enough not to be offended by all the brownness, in fact I think they have under done it, still a lot of dark grey/black in the interior. Would of course have required a lot more unique L&K parts to go for an all brown interior. 

One respect in which they misjudged it, to my thinking, is if that you go for the diesel (and not even going near whether that would be a good idea) you still just get the torsion beam rear which, when combined with 18" wheels and 40% profiles, I would expect to be fairly harsh. No direct experience of this combination but at least one Octavia 3 thread with someone looking to swap their  L&K 18" wheels for 16" + quite a few folk preferring 16" wheels over 17" for reasons of ride comfort.

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On 21/01/2017 at 10:39, octavianestate said:

The OP bought a petrol car? Why the heated discussion about DPF...

If you wish to enjoy your drive take the 'advice' given with a pinch of salt.

Enjoy your car. As a means of transport they are good enough as cutting edge and powerful (vrs) they are not. Cheap Hatchbacks were making 200bhp + 15 years ago so 220/230 bhp is hardly a 'leap' forward.

Agreed

All good crack though and some useful insights, even if they don't concur, everyone's personal experience is valid as precisely that - their personal experience.

Only a very, very tiny minority want to get heated but nobody rising to the bait so can't really amount to much.

Hadn't realised quite what an emotive topic the relative merits and demerits of two alternative engines could be. In retrospect possibly safer discussing the relative merits of two well known Glasgow football teams. Not that I'll be trying that as I'm sure it would be against a forum rule.

Thread now meandered in other directions which is fine as it was only really started by some 'thinking out loud'.

Cheers all

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 22/01/2017 at 12:34, JungleJames said:

Also, the DPF will always carry out necessary regens. Unless of course you do just run up and down the road in it, which I've already said you shouldn't.

 

To repeat what I said earlier: why shouldn't a car owner be able to get into his/her car and drive it wherever and wherever he/she chooses without having to worry about driving it "in the right way"?

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On ‎21‎/‎01‎/‎2017 at 12:54, jonnybgood said:

I'm coming to the end of my pcp, have been test driving various petrol engine estates in recent weeks as I feel I don't do the mileage to warrant the diesel and associated dpf issues.

None of them excited me at all and one of them was a Cupra 290. I must be a total diesel convert because I have a feeling I'm going to end up with another.

I rarely stick with the same brand but after three weeks of looking I can't find anything to beat my current Skoda. Intact it's a relief to get back into the thing after each disappointing test drive!

Seat Leon ST FR diesel (184) not an alternative?

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2 hours ago, philbes said:

Seat Leon ST FR diesel (184) not an alternative?

It would be now I'm wavering towards a diesel, but I wasn't over enamoured with the dealership or the Seat Leon.

 

Next test drive is the Astra K sports tourer. A toss up between the 1.6 biturbo diesel, which has similar performance to the Octavia VRS diesel, and the 1.6T petrol. After that I'm giving up and going back into Skoda to look at another Octavia!

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On 27/11/2016 at 22:56, sniperpenguin said:

There is no other Octavia apart from the vRS.

The rest (non-vrs trim) look like old man's cars, unfortunately. No soul to them at all.

I don't agree, I much prefer the understated Octavia's.

 

My 2.0 tdi looks like it couldn't overtake a push bike, but its almost on a par with the VRS equivalent when you look at the specs.

 

Give me a car that looks slow but isn't against a car that looks quick but isn't.

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