Help please. DPF issue?

[matwest904q]

Hi all. 

Just wondering if someone can help me. I've recently bought a 2009 Superb 1.9d and a few days after buying it, the DPF light lit up, followed by the engine management light, and then followed by a flashing coil light. I looked at the manual it said to drive the car in 4th or 5th gear between 1800 and 2500 rpm for at least 15 minutes to clear it. I must have done double that but the lights are still on and there is a reduction in power. It also judders a little in 1st gear when setting off. I noticed when I was trying to clear the lights that the cruise control had stopped working and the right hand side electric windows work intermittently.

 

I was just wondering if these are all connected? Would I be better off getting the DPF removed?

 

And does anyone know if there is anyone in the Beverley/Hull area that can do it?

 

I'm really sorry for all the questions but I'm just at a loss as to what to do and where to start. Any help would be massively appreciated.

 

Thanks for looking,

Matt.

[trundlenut]

Could be a dodgy differentia pressure sensor on the DPF. A fault code scan will tell you.

[matwest904q]

Is it much of a job to sort out if it is that? 

[trundlenut]

Is it much of a job to sort out if it is that? 

 

No, but the sensor MUST be calibrated with either the dealer computer system or VCDS BEFORE the engine is started.

 

I did mine (on an Octavia) in the car park at work during lunch.

[keen88]

try couple bottles cataclean first about £15 a bottle before spending fortune at a garage

[matthewg]

I had a similar problem without the DPF light being on. Turned out to be the turbo. Get the codes read as it could be any number of issues

[matwest904q]

try couple bottles cataclean first about £15 a bottle before spending fortune at a garage

 

Thanks, I'll give that a go first.

 

No, but the sensor MUST be calibrated with either the dealer computer system or VCDS BEFORE the engine is started.

 

I did mine (on an Octavia) in the car park at work during lunch.

 

Thanks for that, I'll try the cataclean first, then have the codes read.

 

I had a similar problem without the DPF light being on. Turned out to be the turbo. Get the codes read as it could be any number of issues

 

Thanks. The turbo was replaced not all that long ago, according to the previous owner.

[trundlenut]

Thanks, I'll give that a go first.

Thanks for that, I'll try the cataclean first, then have the codes read.

Thanks. The turbo was replaced not all that long ago, according to the previous owner.

Look at the list of people on here who have VCDS, no need to go anywhere near a dealer.

If it is the sensor it can knacker the dpf as the car can't work out if the dpf is full or not. So get it scanned for faults first is the best option.

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[silver1011]

Once the car drops into limp-home mode (flashing glowplug light) you won't be able to perform a regeneration yourself (by following the instructions in the manual).

 

The only option now is for a garage to perform a forced regeneration.

 

What mileage has the car got? DPF's don't have an infinite life so high mileage might mean the DPF is dead, likewise low mileage on a 6 year old car could also signal a dead DPF.

 

Did you buy from a main dealer, independant garage or private? It sounds to me the car was sent to auction / sold with a known issue, for it to come on after only two days suggests the car was got rid of by its previous owner.

 

As mentioned above there are numerous sensors around the DPF that tell it when it needs to run a regen. If one of these sensors fails completely or fails intermitently then the DPF won't regenerate which eventually clogs it up.

 

How many miles did you do between the DPF light coming on and the flashing glowplug (limp home). If it was less than a few hundred miles then my money would be on a failing DPF.

 

When the DPF regenerates it gets super hot to burn off the soot it has caught. A by-product of a regen is ash which is stored in the DPF for life. Once the ash levels get too high the DPF becomes less efficient, it tries to regen more often then eventually gives up.

 

The DPF can be removed for around £450 (including mapping out the sensors).

 

As above the priority now needs to be to get the car scanned with VCDS. This will give you a fault code (definitely stored now you are in limp-home mode). You can then cross-reference it here...

 

http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Fault_Codes

 

This is the list of members with VCDS...

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/224376-vcds-owners-map/

 

Mike Holroyd is in Whitby and he is as helpful as they get.

[matwest904q]

Once the car drops into limp-home mode (flashing glowplug light) you won't be able to perform a regeneration yourself (by following the instructions in the manual).

 

The only option now is for a garage to perform a forced regeneration.

 

What mileage has the car got? DPF's don't have an infinite life so high mileage might mean the DPF is dead, likewise low mileage on a 6 year old car could also signal a dead DPF.

 

Did you buy from a main dealer, independant garage or private? It sounds to me the car was sent to auction / sold with a known issue, for it to come on after only two days suggests the car was got rid of by its previous owner.

 

As mentioned above there are numerous sensors around the DPF that tell it when it needs to run a regen. If one of these sensors fails completely or fails intermitently then the DPF won't regenerate which eventually clogs it up.

 

How many miles did you do between the DPF light coming on and the flashing glowplug (limp home). If it was less than a few hundred miles then my money would be on a failing DPF.

 

When the DPF regenerates it gets super hot to burn off the soot it has caught. A by-product of a regen is ash which is stored in the DPF for life. Once the ash levels get too high the DPF becomes less efficient, it tries to regen more often then eventually gives up.

 

The DPF can be removed for around £450 (including mapping out the sensors).

 

As above the priority now needs to be to get the car scanned with VCDS. This will give you a fault code (definitely stored now you are in limp-home mode). You can then cross-reference it here...

 

http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Fault_Codes

 

This is the list of members with VCDS...

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/224376-vcds-owners-map/

 

Mike Holroyd is in Whitby and he is as helpful as they get.

 

The mileage is around 134,000.

 

I bought it from my brother in laws work. It was bought from new and used as a company car, then I bought it. Apparently, it's recently had a few thousand spent on it including a new turbo. My brother in law has told me that all the fleet cars are serviced no matter what the cost and if anything goes wrong, it gets sorted straight away. I have service records but I'm working away at the moment so I can't be more specific on what's been done until I get home on Friday. 

 

BIt of a daft question maybe but, if the DPF is removed, will the soot build up anywhere else?

 

Is the removal of the DPF a sound option, and will there be any side effects if I get it done? Do you know if there's anywhere local to Beverley/Hull that does it? Or even York, that's not a million miles away. 

 

And thanls for in depth reply, it makes a lot of sense.

[peterposh]

The soot will build up on the roads ;-)

[silver1011]

Removing the DPF means that the soot is simply emitted out of the tail pipe i.e. your clean diesel can turn into a smoker.

 

To be fair very few diesels smoke. Old and tired engines may smoke more than others but as a general rule you should be OK.

 

The single biggest issue with DPF removal is the legality. Your car was type approved with the DPF, removing it means the car is no longer compliant. There could also be issues come MOT time. Simply removing the DPF will be obious to the MOT tester and it will fail. Remove the DPF, open it up, gut the insides, weld it back up and then refitting it means the tester cannot prove it is missing. As the MOT test is only visual it cannot be failed. It is rumoured that the test will be changed in the future to make it harder to remove DPF's. Mine and yours cars will be long dead by then though.

 

Aftermarket DPF's will soon be readily available, so in the event you need to refit one it won't cost the earth.

 

In the mean time cut the bloody thing out and enjoy a freer breathing engine, improved MPG and lack of warning lights.

[peterposh]

Check for fault codes ,otherwise you may be changing parts for no reason

[bigjohn]

 

To be fair very few diesels smoke. Old and tired engines may smoke more than others but as a general rule you should be OK.

 

My old 1990 Passat 1.6td (6-10 years old when owned) used to smoke more than an old steam train - goodness knows how always passed it's MOT

[Raptor]

Just a little point but removing the DPF is illegal and will result in a fine if it is discovered. All part of emissions controls set by the government 

 

Have a read of this:

In October 2013 Robert Goodwill, roads minister, announced that garages and testing stations will be required check for a DPF as part of the MoT test from February 2014. The vehicle will automatically fail test if the filter had been fitted as standard but is no longer present.

​  

[trundlenut]

Just a little point but removing the DPF is illegal and will result in a fine if it is discovered. All part of emissions controls set by the government

Have a read of this:

In October 2013 Robert Goodwill, roads minister, announced that garages and testing stations will be required check for a DPF as part of the MoT test from February 2014. The vehicle will automatically fail test if the filter had been fitted as standard but is no longer present.

​

There is nothing illegal in removing a dpf. It is illegal to drive it on the public highway.

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[bigjohn]

Just a little point but removing the DPF is illegal and will result in a fine if it is discovered. All part of emissions controls set by the government 

 

Have a read of this:

In October 2013 Robert Goodwill, roads minister, announced that garages and testing stations will be required check for a DPF as part of the MoT test from February 2014. The vehicle will automatically fail test if the filter had been fitted as standard but is no longer present.

​  

 

 

Yes a car will fail an MOT if a DPF is not fitted but was present when new - this is hard to spot though as usually the DPF deletes usually involves the cutting the DPF case open, removing the innards , re-welding DPF case and mapping out

 

 

It's driving a car without a DPF where one should be present that's illegal - the act of ( edit - permanately ) removing isn't against the law YET

Edited 7 November, 2015 by bigjohn

[trundlenut]

Just removing the dpf is unlikely to be made illegal, otherwise how would you replace one?

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[Raptor]

DPF removal: the facts - Telegraph

 

I think you will find the above link of interest

 

Also the view published by Honest John

 

Read Honest John's views on DPF removal

 

Just trying to be helpful 

[silver1011]

Yes, using a car on the road without it's DPF may be illegal, but so long as main dealers continue to charge £1,000 plus to change them then what do people expect?

 

Have the DPF professionally gutted, this means opening it up, removing the internals, welding it back up and mapping out the sensors.

 

It will still pass the MOT.

[Turkeythighs]

My DPF is going to come off in the new year most likely

 

Along with stage 1 map to suit, EGR off and DSG map

 

DPF's are just a pain, sooner or later they always start playing up

Edited 9 November, 2015 by Turkeythighs

[bigjohn]

My DPF is going to come off in the new year most likely

 

Along with stage 1 map to suit, EGR off and DSG map

 

DPF's are just a pain, sooner or later they always start playing up

 

Indeed,

 

I am afraid that is one of the main reasons I've moved back to petrol...