I need to refill the DPF fluid in my car and have two questions,

1. Do I need to fill the tank up fully? and

2. Where is the tank?

My car is a 07 plate 20TDi Superb with 84,000 miles on the clock.

I need to refill the DPF fluid in my car and have two questions,

1. Do I need to fill the tank up fully? and

2. Where is the tank?

My car is a 07 plate 20TDi Superb with 84,000 miles on the clock.

This is a very hazardous chemical, it will need to be handled by dealer/specialist agent, not a DIY item I'm afraid. See previous posts on the subject. People say £400 or so to get done.

I did not think Diesel Particulate Filters (DPF) had additives to inject. I have heard of "AdBlue" which is basically Urea, and is injected into the exhaust, but I did not think many manufactures did it. I wonder if you can use your own Urea (pee) to fill the tank!

Is this what this thread is all about, or have I got it totally wrong?

Edited 26 April, 201016 yr by Jim H

I need to refill the DPF fluid in my car and have two questions,

1. Do I need to fill the tank up fully? and

2. Where is the tank?

My car is a 07 plate 20TDi Superb with 84,000 miles on the clock.

its not a case of just filling up the tank unfortunately. the ecu has to be reset aswell.

its not a case of just filling up the tank unfortunately. the ecu has to be reset aswell.

I know that and have VCDS which I think can reset the ecu. I was just trying to save some money as it seems an easy task :- fill tank and reset ecu.

I know that and have VCDS which I think can reset the ecu. I was just trying to save some money as it seems an easy task :- fill tank and reset ecu.

I can't see it being that nasty a chemical as it's stored in the car, so it would be interesting to find out what it actually is.

If it's £400 I'd have the DPF remove and remap done if it's possible.

I wonder what the insurance company reaction will be when you tell them that you've removed the dpf and remapped the ECU?

I can't see it being that nasty a chemical as it's stored in the car, so it would be interesting to find out what it actually is.

If it's £400 I'd have the DPF remove and remap done if it's possible.

The product itself is poisonous, however, a bigger risk is that you may release any ammonia vapour that was in the tank. The tank is pressurised.

Goggles, gloves and fume extraction should be used when extracting the remaining DEF and refilling.

You need 4l to fill the tank which displaces any gases.

Another problem is that you won't have the connectors to fit the tank, so won't be able to maintain a sealed system.

Having said all that, I know one person who managed to obtain the DEF (had Febi on the empty cans) who managed to do it DIY. Not something I would recommend.

The product itself is poisonous, however, a bigger risk is that you may release any ammonia vapour that was in the tank. The tank is pressurised.

Goggles, gloves and fume extraction should be used when extracting the remaining DEF and refilling.

You need 4l to fill the tank which displaces any gases.

Another problem is that you won't have the connectors to fit the tank, so won't be able to maintain a sealed system.

Having said all that, I know one person who managed to obtain the DEF (had Febi on the empty cans) who managed to do it DIY. Not something I would recommend.

At £400, I'd get rid of the system and pay the extra insurance just to not have to worry about it.

At £400, I'd get rid of the system and pay the extra insurance just to not have to worry about it.

just had mine done by skoda. cost £307 and took about an hour. £300 every 80,000 miles is bearable i think. aswell as resetting the ecu you have to regenerate the filter.

Snag is, when the filter will not regenerate, probably looking at best part of grand to replace? By that time, the whole car won't be worth more than 3 or 4 times that kind of money. A dpf really is putting me off buying a new diesel to be honest.

Snag is, when the filter will not regenerate, probably looking at best part of grand to replace? By that time, the whole car won't be worth more than 3 or 4 times that kind of money. A dpf really is putting me off buying a new diesel to be honest.

i doubt the average owner would do enough miles to need the fluid replenished let alone worry about replacing the filter. i've not heard of any dpf wearing out have you any idea of their life expectancy? would be nice to know.

I don't think they wear out so much as get plugged such they can't be regenerated. If the car spends its life on the motorway it may never need a new dpf. It would be interesting to hear from the taxi fleets regarding their experience with dpf's in more normal commuting service. I saw a leaflet in a Skoda dealership about buying a dpf equipped car and it basically said that if you use the car regularly for short journeys then don't buy one with a dpf fitted. Snag is, nearly all new diesels have them.

The diesel engine gives its best performance at light/part load. So, if you drive gently or do a lot of town running, a basic diesel engine can save you a lot of money.

The DPF system as used on the Mk1 Superb is a bodge and will cost a lot of money to keep it serviceable. So much, in fact, that it often cancels all the advantages of having a diesel in the first place. The fluid is an expensive consumable and the DPF filter has a finite life - and is also expensive to change. This all happens at a time when the base vehicle has depreciated considerably and so will effectively write these cars off prematurely.

Later Non-PD cars (does not apply to the Mk1 Superb) burn off their DPFs by injecting additional fuel via the normal nozzles when the exhaust valves are open, thus starting a fire in the DPF. This is easy to arrange on a CR engine, but of course degrades the economy. A PD engine can't provide fuel at this point in the engine cycle - hence the fluid bodge on the older cars.

Thanks to our politicians and some really half-baked engineering from the likes of VAG and Mazda - amongst others - some later diesel engines (Euro IV >) have been costly to operate and in many cases give no advantage over a petrol engine. As usual, VAG have not been honest with the later PD-fitted Superbs and have simply bodged a DPF system onto them to make them legally saleable. Owners beware...

rotodiesel.

I don't think they wear out so much as get plugged such they can't be regenerated. If the car spends its life on the motorway it may never need a new dpf. It would be interesting to hear from the taxi fleets regarding their experience with dpf's in more normal commuting service. I saw a leaflet in a Skoda dealership about buying a dpf equipped car and it basically said that if you use the car regularly for short journeys then don't buy one with a dpf fitted. Snag is, nearly all new diesels have them.

I am by no means an expert on DPF's but the one fitted to the Mk1 superb WILL need to be replaced eventually no matter what style of driving you do. How long is dependant on the driving types. This filter uses the fluid to help burn the particles but still leaves ash. This ash is what builds up and is unburnt and when it gets to 150mgs then its a new filter FACT. I am led to believe the new DPF are getting better and the problems should be overcome in the years ahead. The DPF was never designed for the car and was added as standard on the 2.0 TDi only. I am led to believe that this may be the only B5 car with one fitted.

The DPF fitted to the octavia, new superb, yeti are all latest generation ones and have been designed with the car.

With the fluid cost and possible replacement you are looking at over £1000 if you owned the car for 5-6 years

Edited 28 April, 201016 yr by berr0010

The PD170 Octavia with DPF does not need fluid to regenerate.

I believe (but could be wrong) that it's just that the DPF on the superb is too far back to get up to temperature for a burn off all that way back there.

My 2.0PD140 MK2 Superb has the same DPF setup as the Octavia, no fluid is needed to regenerate it and its done by injectinging fuel as per the Octavia.

My 2.0PD140 MK2 Superb has the same DPF setup as the Octavia, no fluid is needed to regenerate it and its done by injectinging fuel as per the Octavia.

Mk 2 Superb totally different beast. The Mk 1 DPF was a botched job hence the fluid needed.

just had mine done by skoda. cost £307 and took about an hour. £300 every 80,000 miles is bearable i think. aswell as resetting the ecu you have to regenerate the filter.

Had mine done today £226.75 took half an hour and 4 litres of fluid at £40 a litre + vat!!!

Edited 29 April, 201016 yr by Sinclair

Having a diesel with a DPF will give you more probs than it is worth. Having had 2 407's with DPF problems either with needing fluid or sensor problems etc. No matter how you drive i.e motorway or town these filters will give problems at around 80-100,000 miles or so. The filters need to have a certian tremperature and length of time to regen if this is not achieved, say town driving, then they just clog up. I've heard that you can jet wash them but who wants the hassle.