recently bought a new 2.0 tdi [caddy] . I've now done 1000 miles of mainly town driving and have been monitoring the dpf regens with the dpf app.

the van seems to do regens every 200 miles or so and this is what I have found

 

regens seem to start at 24g of soot and 100 % full and you cant make it do a regen by taking it onto a motorway etc 

when a regen starts, I have purposely kept the revs low ie normal town driving with no low gear high revs like you would normally do

this is obviously the opposite of what you would normally do with dpf diesel engines   

I have even stopped and just let the engine tick over just to see how it would go, and the soot levels still keep coming down during the regen.

 

so has the game changed with the latest DPF , have manufacturers finally got there act together, so no need to take the car for a long motorway run, keeping the engine above 2000 revs etc

 

Looking forward to handing back at 3 years my 66 plate Seat Alhambra 2.0TDI SCR / DSG.

42,000 miles now, does great MPG on runs, and if used for a few days of short runs, say 3-4 miles for less than a week it is not only regening it is showing the DPF light and a 8 mile run no longer clears it, it takes 15 miles.

 

I would not have one out of Manufacturers Warranty.

6 minutes ago, Skoffski said:

Looking forward to handing back at 3 years my 66 plate Seat Alhambra 2.0TDI SCR / DSG.

42,000 miles now, does great MPG on runs, and if used for a few days of short runs, say 3-4 miles for less than a week it is not only regening it is showing the DPF light and a 8 mile run no longer clears it, it takes 15 miles.

 

I would not have one out of Manufacturers Warranty.

that's a car which is nearly 3 years old though

maybe the game has changed now  

Maybe it has,

Maybe VW Group sorted things out to get them WLTP Approval / Certifications.

 

Maybe Pigs can fly!

Edited 4 April, 20197 yr by Skoffski

3 minutes ago, Skoffski said:

Maybe it has,

Maybe VW Group sorted things out to get them WLTP Approval / Certifications.

 

Maybe Pigs can fly!

I've heard a few stories from people in the know

the latest dpf are fitted right at the manifold so get to a higher temperature quicker and stay warmer

makes sense, but don't know if there's any truth in it.

 

just posting my findings, interesting to here what others have found

I often monitor the VAG DPF app during regens, level comes down even on idle (2014 VRS). Obviously not as fast as on a motorway blast but still comes down fine. Never found the need to be at certain revs, speed or lower gear personally.

On 04/04/2019 at 18:44, Skoffski said:

 

Maybe Pigs can fly!

 

I used to drive a flying pig - well that's what they called the MKIV Ford Zephyr way back when

 

Now that thing drank fuel!

Edited 7 April, 20197 yr by bigjohn

3 hours ago, MeteorOcty said:

I often monitor the VAG DPF app during regens, level comes down even on idle (2014 VRS). Obviously not as fast as on a motorway blast but still comes down fine. Never found the need to be at certain revs, speed or lower gear personally.

that's exactly what I've found too, soot levels coming down even on idle, although its early days, as only done 1000 miles.

if it continues like this, then diesel engines are know longer a problem  for town driving/ short journeys   

all the people who jumped ship and changed to petrol because of dpf problems, will all be changing back to diesel shortly      

3 hours ago, 310golfr said:

that's exactly what I've found too, soot levels coming down even on idle, although its early days, as only done 1000 miles.

if it continues like this, then diesel engines are know longer a problem  for town driving/ short journeys   

all the people who jumped ship and changed to petrol because of dpf problems, will all be changing back to diesel shortly      

I have the EA288 enginge (2.0 TDI 184bhp) from 2015, and monitor it with the VAGDPF app on android. I just wanted to chime in with the interesting (and obvious) things I've learned about it. 

 

* The DPF collects soot and burns it to ash in a process called regeneration.

 

* The amount of ash is purely a calculated function, as it's spread evenly inside the beehive-like insides of the DPF there is no container for it that fills up. Thus the DPF can appear fine until it suddenly fails.

* When the DPF is new it starts a regen at 24g soot, but as it fills up with ash the maximum soot capacity lowers. Mine has now done 137k miles (I've had it since 118) and is about 68% full (54g of 80g ash capacity) It will now start a regen at 22.66g which the ECU consider to be the maximum soot capacity.

* The ECU considers both a calculated soot value based on engine running and a measured soot value coming from DPF back pressure. Sometimes the back pressure will trigger a regen regardles of the calculated amount of soot. I find this happens in periods of much short town driving, or after an aborted regen (by shutting down the engine while doing a regen) 

Having also used the VAGDPF app on my 2014 2.0tdi CR, I would have to agree with the observation with DPF regens.

 

My daily commute is a 35 miles round trip on a mixture of roads but rarely get above 50mph for any sustained length of time.  Regens normally happen every 300 miles or so.

 

I've seen regens start literally as I get to work but even idling for a few mins the soot levels drop off (albeit slowly) but under normal circumstances just driving normally is enough to get through a regen without issue.

 

I certainly don't think DPF regens have the big scary thing they're made out to be but I'm aware there can be added complications which can happen any time.

How do you guys monitor the DPF?  Do you have an OBD11 dongle plugged in all the time and have you phone out or is there a more elegant solution?

I ahve OBDeleven but not used it for dpf management yet so not sure on the functionality.  Is there anything on Android Auto that can do the job?

I’ve always said dpf’s are a Heath Robinson bodge. You’ve got a tin can which collects soot, extra sensors to monitor it. Every so often fuel is injected into it and burnt to get some of the soot out of the tin can and into the atmosphere as even finer soot.

 

Edited 9 April, 20197 yr by classic

If only other car manufacturers could copy VAG if VAG have solved the DPF conundrum! 

 

https://www.jaguarlandrover.com/2019/should-i-buy-diesel-car

 

“New diesel is not ideal on short journeys because it might not be fully fuel efficient. The diesel particulate filter (DPF) doesn't get hot enough, which means it can't clean the particles it's collected. This means the filter can clog up and reduce the car's power.”

 

 

1 hour ago, briskoda1 said:

If only other car manufacturers could copy VAG if VAG have solved the DPF conundrum! 

 

https://www.jaguarlandrover.com/2019/should-i-buy-diesel-car

 

“New diesel is not ideal on short journeys because it might not be fully fuel efficient. The diesel particulate filter (DPF) doesn't get hot enough, which means it can't clean the particles it's collected. This means the filter can clog up and reduce the car's power.”

 

 

A friend of mine was looking to buy a Zafira at a local well known and reputable used car dealership.  They told them they needed an efficient runabout for the school run, shopping and only did around 5K miles per year.  The salesman steered them towards the diesel Zafira over the petrol version they also had available for a very similar price.

 

Within a few weeks they had problems with it, the seller made a half hearted attempt of "fixing" it knowing damn well the DPF was the problem.  Well this went on for ages, they said that a diesel with DPF wasn't the right car for their needs, acknowledged that they were wrongly advised by the salesman but there was no actual proof of this so basically "tough luck".  The net result was her and her husband being banned from their showroom!!!!  

 

I think they may have gone to the small claims court over it but I don't know the outcome.

12 hours ago, Russ77 said:

A friend of mine was looking to buy a Zafira at a local well known and reputable used car dealership.  They told them they needed an efficient runabout for the school run, shopping and only did around 5K miles per year.  The salesman steered them towards the diesel Zafira over the petrol version they also had available for a very similar price.

 

Within a few weeks they had problems with it, the seller made a half hearted attempt of "fixing" it knowing damn well the DPF was the problem.  Well this went on for ages, they said that a diesel with DPF wasn't the right car for their needs, acknowledged that they were wrongly advised by the salesman but there was no actual proof of this so basically "tough luck".  The net result was her and her husband being banned from their showroom!!!!  

 

I think they may have gone to the small claims court over it but I don't know the outcome.

never trust a salesperson, always do your own homework beforehand

lawyers will be jumping on the bandwagon shortly, ppi against garages, miss-sold a diesel car  

14 hours ago, briskoda1 said:

If only other car manufacturers could copy VAG if VAG have solved the DPF conundrum! 

 

https://www.jaguarlandrover.com/2019/should-i-buy-diesel-car

 

“New diesel is not ideal on short journeys because it might not be fully fuel efficient. The diesel particulate filter (DPF) doesn't get hot enough, which means it can't clean the particles it's collected. This means the filter can clog up and reduce the car's power.”

 

 

well I've been monitoring the soot levels with the app and once full it always empties, even with short journeys

its hard to see, how you can run into problems