I have a failure with the egr cooler 24 hours ago. Electronic control module. Intermittent I think. Even without engine light or the coiled spring, fault codes are stored because I can see it in my obd scanner. P0403

 

It needs a clean or replacement, but that's not going to be done until next week. 

 

Now I've been reading a little bit about what the egr system actually does and it appears that the air is like really hot. It would probably not be good if the cooler failed catastrophically. Though so far I haven't seem any spikes in oil temperature or the red sections on the coolant gauge. And I haven't noticed any decrease in the volume of coolant on the big plastic ball in engine bay. 

 

As a temporary measure, could you simply unplug the egr unit somehow? Electronically, as removing it is a 5 hour labour job I'm told. Would that trigger limp mode? 

Edited 9 December, 20214 yr by newskodadriver

Yes, or a MIL light at the very least, the MAF sensor would be showing a greater flow than it should when the EGR was commanded if the EGR was disconnected or jammed.

 

The long term solution which will prevent any future clagging or EGR failure is to fit an EGR emulator/simulator.

Edited 9 December, 20214 yr by J.R.

21 minutes ago, J.R. said:

Yes, or a MIL light at the very least, the MAF sensor would be showing a greater flow than it should when the EGR was commanded if the EGR was disconnected or jammed.

 

The long term solution which will prevent any future clagging or EGR failure is to fit an EGR emulator/simulator.

I'm looking into that...

 

In the mean time, how would I know if anything was amiss coolant or leaks wise with the egr unit? I think even if the egr valve was simulated, coolant would still flow through the cooler physically. Coolant leaks typically happen at the hoses / interconnect points rather than the metallic honeycomb / tunnels inside right? I'm making the assumption that coolant is not corrosive to metal. And that the cooler itself is a "dumb" component that doesn't respond to digital signals with coolant pumping through no matter what. 

 

It's been a right crash course in engine mechanics since this morning 😞

 

Luckily I don't think my valve is stuck on open. My car still makes that 3x ticking noise when I swith off ignition, a mechanic told me one that's from the egr trying to clean itself or something. I read that if that were to happen, there would be accompanying physical symptoms aside from CEL such as "rough idling" or something? As I read that egr valves are not supposed to be open during idle and only when throttle valve is open (acceleration / low pressure inlet or something???) 

 

Edited 9 December, 20214 yr by newskodadriver

I don't know the answer to any of your questions as my only involvement has been preventative fitment of an emulator, there does not seem to be anything to suggest that you have a leak in the cooler.

8 hours ago, J.R. said:

I don't know the answer to any of your questions as my only involvement has been preventative fitment of an emulator, there does not seem to be anything to suggest that you have a leak in the cooler.

I think you made the right choice. Every single engine light I've had on this car has been related to the EGR. 

 

The throttle valve seized up then electronics fried a while back. Cause was misaligned EGR duct directing a stream of exhaust right at the throttle valve. I had to pay for a new valve but Skoda did a an EGR "fix" because it had a factory warning sent to all the dealerships. 

 

After searching around here for EGR failures on the superb mk2, I found a few threads which indicates high number of EGRs fail not necessarily due to carbon but either because of "water ingress" ie small leak frying the electronics or because of a loose pin. 

 

From speaking to the two garages I normally use, as well as from the other thread where someone says their new aftermarket egr broke after 9k miles, apparently after market EGRs don't work well on this model, they break even faster than an original part. 

 

Tamfet ordered... I'm just amazed my own EGR lasted as long as it did. 

Has your Superb had the EA189 NOx recall carried out within the last 2 years? If so was it performed at a mileage of 160,000 miles or less?

 

If you're able to provide evidence that your Superb has been serviced in accordance with the manufacturers guidelines then you may be eligible for a new EGR fitted for free at a Skoda main dealer under their Trust Building Measure...

 

 https://www.skoda.co.uk/owners/ea198-trust-building-measure

If you disconnect the EGR it will throw up an error code and a dash warning light at the very least. If you're not loosing engine coolant why are you so concerned about the EGR cooler leaking? Though I would have thought you could Just disconnect the EGR cooler hoses and join them with a suitable elbow. Okay so the EGR will get hotter but until I bought my Skoda none of my other cars had an EGR that was cooled.