Possible Dpf Problems

[miknik2008]

hi, im a bit new to this. i wonder if anyone can help. i have a 2006 focus 1.6 tdci, only owned it a couple of months and having problems already. had the oil changed a few days after buying it and since then the car has been "juddering" occationally when driving, it feels like its starved of fuel when it judders and happens intermitently ve done all the usual thing like injector cleaner etc but the problem is still there.ive had it put on the diagnostics and it came back with dpf fault but i have no warning lights on whatso ever, the car is under powered slightly but not overly noticable. ive since found out bout this additive which is meant to go in o help maintain the dpf but £150 for3 litres seems bit pricey to me. ive also been told i can power wash the dpf to "clear it out" a bit. can some shed some light on the situation. oh ps the car has done 63k

[artscot79]

hi, im a bit new to this. i wonder if anyone can help. i have a 2006 focus 1.6 tdci, only owned it a couple of months and having problems already. had the oil changed a few days after buying it and since then the car has been "juddering" occationally when driving, it feels like its starved of fuel when it judders and happens intermitently ve done all the usual thing like injector cleaner etc but the problem is still there.ive had it put on the diagnostics and it came back with dpf fault but i have no warning lights on whatso ever, the car is under powered slightly but not overly noticable. ive since found out bout this additive which is meant to go in o help maintain the dpf but £150 for3 litres seems bit pricey to me. ive also been told i can power wash the dpf to "clear it out" a bit. can some shed some light on the situation. oh ps the car has done 63k

another caught in the trap sorry mate but we say to so many dont buy a diesel unless you know what youre buying into 150 quid for the fluid is about average and guess what yep you need it so it has to be filled you cant powerwash the dpf thats just a myth some companies can clean them with high pressure water but i dont believe its summat you can do at home but if the fluid hasnt been filled than its likely the dpf is knackered you dont get lights the car just goes into limp mode and you wont get anywhere till the dpf is replaced ide get it checked to see if it needs replaced or not usually the fluid filled and then take it down the motorway and give it a good blast to see if the dpf regenerates or not

[catch]

welcome to the forum miknik2008, see my sig for more info on the DPF

[hawker]

Do you hear a rasping noise on harder acceleration? If so, it could well be a split intercooler pipe. The original design had a rubber concertina connector and the hose clip would eventually cut through this under engine vibration. The new design is a solid pipe.

A word of warning tho, if it is this and its been like it for a while, then fitting a new one may well put your car into limp home mode and detect a dpf fault, as the correct amount of air would be flowing through for the first time in a while. It may not happen, but this is what happened when i changed my intercooler pipe.

[Leemaxd]

I had this problem and had it checked at ford and they said there is nothing wrong, but I do believe it's the egr valve clogging up.

I had the standard exhaust on mine and changed it for a more direct twin exit exhaust and it improved it no end I can still feel it shudder now and again but hardly noticable.

If it gets bad again I will just get a friend to change the egr valve and be done with it, ford won't change it under the warrenty they just keep cleaning it ,waste of time keep taking it there.

[miknik2008]

hi thanks all for the replys. ill look into the sugestions youve posted.

artscot79:- how would i know if it has regenerated after a blast down the motorway.

leemaxd:- ive had the egr mentioned before so ill get that one checked out.

hawker:- yes i do have a rasping noise in higher revs but i put that down to it being a diesel. ill have a look at the pipes and get back to you.

thank you all again for your messages and ill keep it posted on here

[Leemaxd]

hi thanks all for the replys. ill look into the sugestions youve posted.

artscot79:- how would i know if it has regenerated after a blast down the motorway.

leemaxd:- ive had the egr mentioned before so ill get that one checked out.

hawker:- yes i do have a rasping noise in higher revs but i put that down to it being a diesel. ill have a look at the pipes and get back to you.

thank you all again for your messages and ill keep it posted on here

yea do keep us informed mate.

[optimist]

Similar problem for me since new (55 Reg 1.6 TDCi 109PS Focus with DPF). Engine 'juddering', slight loss of power, tendency to stall when pulling away from standstill, erratic idling occasionally. Usually no fault codes or warning light.

After about a year of poor running and excuses from the dealer along the lines of 'it's your driving style', 'you're in the wrong gear', 'the engine is underpowered for the size of car', 'air-con operation will cause the engine to judder', finally a fault code appeared that a manual DPF regeneration was required. This transformed the car, economy shot up by 10mpg, performance improved dramatically, no juddering. Lasted a few weeks, then playing up again. The manual regeneration process holds the revs at approx 4000rpm for around 10mins and I believe fuel is injected into the dpf to burn off the carbon deposits. I lost count of the number of times a manual regeneration was needed (at my insistence as no fault codes were appearing). There was also a recall to update the engine management software to alter the DPF regeneration cycle, this was carried out along with another manual regeneration, again the car was great for a few weeks then gradually the performance degraded.

I've had conflicting advice from Ford, on one hand they say you need to drive the car at motorway speeds in a lower gear than normal to assist the regeneration, but they also say you don't need to drive in any special way and the regeneration will still occur. Other manufacturers provide good advice to customers about DPF regeneration, the process is carefully monitored by the engine management system and DPF warning lights are triggered to indicate when you need to help regenerate the DPF, but Ford don't appear to use any warning lights.

Ford eventually replaced the DPF under warranty, and all was fine for a couple of weeks, then the juddering began again, no fault codes appearing and when forced to carry out a manual regeneration this made little difference with the new DPF. The DPF was only replaced after I insisted on some diagnostics being carried out when I drove the car, the diagnostics showed there was massive back pressure at the engine manifold, and after a manual regeneration was carried out the pressure was normal, that was my proof that the DPF was faulty.

No fault codes at last service 8 months ago, but car was getting so bad to drive that I took it to a new dealer this week. A couple of fault codes appeared: P2458 DPF regeneration duration, which may be caused by over charged filter - solution is to manually regenerate the DPF. P0490 EGR valve control performance or range fault, may be caused by stuck or sticking EGR actuator. P042F EGR Control stuck closed. The dealer replaced the EGR valve and manually regenerated the DPF and the car is great to drive again, no judder and a big performance improvement. I suspect that the EGR valve has been sticking since new and this has been affecting the DPF regeneration, although the DPF may be faulty too.

I'll report back over the next few months, fingers crossed it was just the EGR valve at fault. I'm annoyed that in nearly 5 years I still don't know for certain that the fault has been resolved, even with Ford Customer service and Head Office involved, but they keep on telling me there's no fault with the car!

[DONFRAMAC]

Similar problem for me since new (55 Reg 1.6 TDCi 109PS Focus with DPF). Engine 'juddering', slight loss of power, tendency to stall when pulling away from standstill, erratic idling occasionally. Usually no fault codes or warning light.

After about a year of poor running and excuses from the dealer along the lines of 'it's your driving style', 'you're in the wrong gear', 'the engine is underpowered for the size of car', 'air-con operation will cause the engine to judder', finally a fault code appeared that a manual DPF regeneration was required. This transformed the car, economy shot up by 10mpg, performance improved dramatically, no juddering. Lasted a few weeks, then playing up again. The manual regeneration process holds the revs at approx 4000rpm for around 10mins and I believe fuel is injected into the dpf to burn off the carbon deposits. I lost count of the number of times a manual regeneration was needed (at my insistence as no fault codes were appearing). There was also a recall to update the engine management software to alter the DPF regeneration cycle, this was carried out along with another manual regeneration, again the car was great for a few weeks then gradually the performance degraded.

I've had conflicting advice from Ford, on one hand they say you need to drive the car at motorway speeds in a lower gear than normal to assist the regeneration, but they also say you don't need to drive in any special way and the regeneration will still occur. Other manufacturers provide good advice to customers about DPF regeneration, the process is carefully monitored by the engine management system and DPF warning lights are triggered to indicate when you need to help regenerate the DPF, but Ford don't appear to use any warning lights.

Ford eventually replaced the DPF under warranty, and all was fine for a couple of weeks, then the juddering began again, no fault codes appearing and when forced to carry out a manual regeneration this made little difference with the new DPF. The DPF was only replaced after I insisted on some diagnostics being carried out when I drove the car, the diagnostics showed there was massive back pressure at the engine manifold, and after a manual regeneration was carried out the pressure was normal, that was my proof that the DPF was faulty.

No fault codes at last service 8 months ago, but car was getting so bad to drive that I took it to a new dealer this week. A couple of fault codes appeared: P2458 DPF regeneration duration, which may be caused by over charged filter - solution is to manually regenerate the DPF. P0490 EGR valve control performance or range fault, may be caused by stuck or sticking EGR actuator. P042F EGR Control stuck closed. The dealer replaced the EGR valve and manually regenerated the DPF and the car is great to drive again, no judder and a big performance improvement. I suspect that the EGR valve has been sticking since new and this has been affecting the DPF regeneration, although the DPF may be faulty too.

I'll report back over the next few months, fingers crossed it was just the EGR valve at fault. I'm annoyed that in nearly 5 years I still don't know for certain that the fault has been resolved, even with Ford Customer Service and Head Office involved, but they keep on telling me there's no fault with the car!

I have read reports that the french versions of this 1.6 TDCI engine, and other Ford Diesels, have reliable metal internal parts in their EGR valves, but that Ford use plastic parts that are very difficult to de-coke. There is a very good trade product for adding to fuel as a cleanser, made by "FORTE", at a cost of £8.50p + VaT, for 100 ml, enough to treat 100 litres of fuel. I used it for 8 years, prior to EGR valves, and my Rover 25TD, and Yaris D-4D, responded instantly.

I am now using the petrol version in my 1.25 Fiesta Zetec Climate Mk 6.5.

My Ford dealer is my source of "FORTE" products.

[optimist]

I have read reports that the french versions of this 1.6 TDCI engine, and other Ford Diesels, have reliable metal internal parts in their EGR valves, but that Ford use plastic parts that are very difficult to de-coke. There is a very good trade product for adding to fuel as a cleanser, made by "FORTE", at a cost of £8.50p + VaT, for 100 ml, enough to treat 100 litres of fuel. I used it for 8 years, prior to EGR valves, and my Rover 25TD, and Yaris D-4D, responded instantly.

I am now using the petrol version in my 1.25 Fiesta Zetec Climate Mk 6.5.

My Ford dealer is my source of "FORTE" products.

Unfortunately the new EGR valve hasn't made a difference in the long run. Must have been the DPF regeneration that did the temporary fix, problems returned after 3 weeks.

Bottom line: Ford Technical line have confirmed that the type of driving I do will clog the DPF and it'll get to a state where the regeneration won't happen automatically, so the only way to resolve this is to take the car to a dealer to force a manual regeneration. But here's the catch, there won't be a warning light or any fault codes (great bit of engineering there Ford!), the only way to determine that the regeneration is needed is the poor performance, engine 'juddering' and poor economy. But of course the dealer plugs in the laptop and says there are no faults, and won't believe there's a problem. I've relayed all this information to Ford Customer Services, but they won't do anything, they keep on referring me back to the dealer.

So that's that, I'll never buy a Ford car again due to the customer service. However, I still think they make some great cars, if only they could have beeen bothered to add a DPF warning light, capture fault codes properly, and ensure dealers have some basic info on DPFs.

[tsj]

Why don't you have it removed? Thats what I'm having done

[Nightshot72]

Gonna get mine removed too, 85k on a 09 plate, few problems like limp mode, stalling etc, so I think this will be the best option. £450 for dpf removal, egr blanked and ecu remap. Does this sound about the right price?

[jeebowhite]

sounds about the top end of the price market, do a bit of research and see if there is anywhere cheaper, as you can often get it for under £400.

[Nightshot72]

Thanks for the reply, gonna have to do some digging or contact them to see if they will do it any cheaper, I forget the name of the place now, think it was Durham diesels or something like that.

[jeebowhite]

Keep shopping around and try play one off against the other, worst case scenario they hang up on you with expletives, best case scenario, they give you a like for like or cheaper quote.

[forddave]

hi miknik,

the additive goes in a small plastic tank in the back centre behind the fuel tank. it's not cheap to buy but lasts about 30 to 40,000 miles. if the tanks dry you need to have it topped up by a suitable garage and the car's computer reset.

the juddering and poor response may be due to the dpf filter being partially blocked. have you noticed if your engine management light comes on when you turn the key and should go off after a few seconds. also the mass airflow sensor which is connected to the air filter housing can fail. it can give you the symptons you describe. quick check...unplug the connector to the sensor ...start the car and let it warm up for several minutes.......start slowly increasing the accelerator it should be smooth and steady all theway up to 4000rpm......let it tick over for several seconds......switch off and replace the sensor connector..... start the car and increase the revs....when you get to 3000rpm steadily increase it towards 4000rpm.....you may notice it will not go above 3200rpm and fluctuates back to 3000 and up and back. their may be smoke from the exhaust and the cooling fan could kick in even though the cars not at full working temperature. if this is the case you can remove the sensor and buy a spray type maf cleaner and give it a good sprayon the metal parts in the sensor 2 or 3 times then let it completely dry naturally.....refit it and try the test again...if it's fine problem fixed,... if not you need a new sensor around £110.00 at fords. don't buy the cheapo's on eBay. it's ok to run it with the sensor disconnected till you get new one and also you may notice more power and earlier turbo kick in. P.S. problem could be egr valve stuck open letting dirty exhaust fumes into the intake. GOOD LUCK.

[simcor]

Holy thread revival barman the last post was from 2013 lol good advice though.

[Jord1982]

My girlfriends just had a massive DPF issue on her BMW and I've fully researched it and know loads about it, but I'm concerned for my 2.5 facelift Focus and wondered if this model has a warning light on the dash if and when the issue arises? I know it's illegal to remove and is an instant MOT failure now but so many garages offer to remove it. It's really put me of buying another diesel even though mines only done 49,000

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