Unfortunately, despite their benefits, DPF’s do fail and many diesel car owners do not realise they may be helping to contribute, by not doing enough kilometres and driving too frequently in city areas.

It is hard to predict when a DPF will fail, because some manufacturers have had to replace some in the first 3 years and some never.

There are two main types of failure, blocking and melting.

The most common reasons for DPF blockages are: Short journeys where the engine doesn’t reach optimum operating temperature; Clogged EGR Valve increasing diesel soot passed to the DPF; Faulty fuel injectors sending too much fuel to the air/fuel mixture; Incorrect engine oil upon servicing the car ; Turbocharger failure with oil dripping into the DPF; and also, a High mileage vehicle will find regeneration harder .

The most common reasons for DPF failures are:

Short journeys where the engine doesn’t reach optimum operating temperature

Blown, loose or split inter-cooler hoses or pipes

Clogged EGR Valve increasing diesel soot passed to the DPF

Leaky or blocked pressure differential hoses or pipes  or faulty pressure switch

Faulty fuel injectors sending too much fuel to the air/fuel mixture

Incorrect engine oil upon servicing the car – (Low Ash + Low Sulphur required for DPF Cars)

Turbocharger failure with oil dripping into the DPF

High mileage vehicle will find regeneration harder

Symptoms of a Blocked DPF Filter

As the majority of DPF’s are installed on newer cars, you will more than likely have a trip computer. Error codes such as the DPF light or EML (Engine Management Light) will be the first symptoms of a failing DPF….

Followed by some or all of these symptoms:

Loss of power

Reduced fuel economy

Poor throttle response

Harder or failure to start

Limp mode (most likely)

Bad smells

However, sometimes these warning lights can be false alarms and you should try clearing the fault:

1). Take the car for a drive on the freeway at the speed limit and drop down a gear or two to bring engine revs up to 2500. Hold for 20-30 minutes. This will assist the car to do a passive regeneration.

The main reason DPF’s get blocked is  short trips and city driving.

Drive Faster. If you are driving slowly everywhere in your large diesel, the DPF will become blocked. Increase your speed and plant your foot to floor to when accelerating to increase exhaust temperature and clear soot levels.

Increase Your RPM. If the DPF light is on, your best bet is to drive at high RPM’s for a prolonged period until the warning lights turn off. This will increase the gases going through the DPF, thus clearing it and increasing the temperature.

Avoid City Centres. If possible, you should avoid slow traffic where possible, especially if you are nearing your DPF limit or have the light currently on.

Use High Quality Fuel. Premium fuels or diesel fuel cleaners include fuel additives that help burn off harmful particles.If you are currently in limp mode, driving at high RPM (step 2) will be your best chance of getting out of limp mode. Once you have normal power, go for a long fast drive on high quality fuel. If the issue remains the next day, get your error codes read by a diagnostic tool.

2). Using a OBD2 diagnostic tool, with suitable DPF regen function, to initiate a forced regeneration. During this the car will sit there for maybe up to 45 minutes and hopefully burn any soot down to ash. If the warning light continue to display, you will notice the following

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The Diesel Particulate Filter traps the harmful diesel gases that gets cleaned regularly by a process called DPF regeneration. Emissions from diesel cars are a concern worldwide. The collected diesel soot particles are burnt off at high temperatures, which results in an “ash-like” after product. After the regenerating of the DPF, it can now restart the cycle of collecting harmful exhaust gases again.

There are 3 different types of DPF regeneration, which are active, passive and forced.

Active DPF Regeneration reads the back pressure of the exhaust or soot load of the filter to determine when to begin the regeneration. Once initiated, the timing of the fuel injection will alter that will result in the exhaust temperature increasing to burn the soot particles. During an active DPF regeneration, you may notice the following:

Higher idle RPM/Speed
Cooling fan working harder
Poor fuel economy
Smells from exhaust
Engine note change

Passive DPF Regeneration

Passive will take place once the exhaust reaches optimum temperatures where the regeneration will automatically begin. The exhaust will reach these temperatures will occur mostly on prolonged highway driving. Manufacturers that use a passive form of regeneration typically install a oxidizing catalytic converter near the engine to increase the temperature.

Forced DPF Regeneration

Forced is where the Active regeneration could not occur that has resulted in the soot levels reaching 70% and above. The diesel car will enter limp mode and will require a diagnostic tool to force the regeneration. It’s important that this is done as soon as possible because once the car reaches 85% soot level, the DPF will need to be removed and cleaned.

DPF Sales Australia’s management have nearly 35 years experience in the automotive industry and has been founded for the distribution of DPFs and associated products.

DPF Australia offer you a quality product and great service at a price which is significantly lower than OE DPFs, and a great range of stock right here in Australia. See https://www.dpfaustralia.com.au/product-category/choose-your-vehicle/ | CALL 1300 896 505 | email charlesa@dpfsales.com.au

With your common-rail diesel, you may experience Smoke; Power loss; Rough idle; Engine rattle; Dirty diesel engine oil; Oil use; EGR valve problems, and inlet system deposits.

Diesel fuel quality is important, so avoid the cheap stuff, and avoid using truck diesel in light common rail engines.

Operating conditions… If you do a lot of short runs, excessive idling, cool operating, light engine loadings, this will contribute to deposit problems in your combustion chamber, exhaust spaces, turbocharger, and diesel particulate filter.

Common rail injection systems are very high pressure and high temperature… sufficient to degrade the fuel, leaving deposits in your pumps and injectors, and lowering your fuel’s lubricating ability. Your fuel filter going black is a sign of this happening.

Sticking fuel injectors…

Your fuel injectors then stick and allow excess fuel which also results in engine rattles, carboning up of your EGR valves, turbochargers, DP filters, combustion chambers and more.

Piston ring deposits also form, which allows compression blow by pressure into your sump, and heavy soot contamination of your oil. This pressure is released via your crankcase ventilation system into your air intake system. This carries an oil mist which mixes with exhaust soot from your EGR valve, fouling your throttle body and choking up your intake manifold.

With thanks, Cost Effective Maintenance.

DPF Australia fills the demand for more realistically priced Diesel Particulate Filters and associated diesel products, and supports the Australian motor trade with technical support.

An Australian based company with extensive technical knowledge, DPF Australia offer you a quality product and great service at a price which is significantly lower than OE DPFs, and a great range of stock right here in Australia. See https://www.dpfaustralia.com.au/product-category/choose-your-vehicle/ | CALL 1300 896 505 | email charlesa@dpfsales.com.au