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DPF Problem and diesel in sump

4K views 25 replies 5 participants last post by  Mondaywoe 
#1 ·
A few months ago I had a new DPF fitted by a local exhaust centre - not a genuine Ford item but from a reputable motor factor. A few weeks after it was fitted the car started doing frequent regens (about every second run!) and that was followed by a 'Service Oil' warning and eventually an 'Engine Malfunction' warning. I took the car to a local garage and they said the oil quality was poor due to diesel in the sump. They flushed the engine, changed oil and filter, did a manual regen and cleared the codes. Now, within about 500 miles exactly the same thing has happened again!

It appears that the car is not carrying out the regen process properly and there is a connection between this and the diesel in the sump. The garage said they were aware of a problem with diesel pumps leaking into the sump but that wasn't the problem with my one. My feeling is that the extra diesel that's injected to instigate the regen cycle is not being 'fired' and so the regen doesn't complete, although I'm not clear how that diesel can land in the sump?

The garage is going to have another look next week but I was wondering if anyone has a clue what's happening. Vaporiser glow plug faulty perhaps? Should the DPF settings have been reset when the filter was changed? I'm assuming the garage checked the hoses and sensors. I do know the exhaust centre reused the sensors.

I've had the car from new (13 years!) and haven't had a moment's trouble until the DPF was replaced in January. Mileage is around 75,000.
 
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Discussion starter · #3 ·
Several DPF options depending on the year which you did not mention?

2009 ? What engine?
Oops sorry - 2.0 TDCI (PSA engine) I haven't looked underneath but I'm guessing it doesn't have the vaporiser
 
Discussion starter · #4 ·
Oops sorry - 2.0 TDCI (PSA engine) I haven't looked underneath but I'm guessing it doesn't have the vaporiser
Update = Car's been back to local garage. They haven't found any problem with the DPF system on diagnostics but they have reset all the DPF settings and changed the oil again. They say that if it does it again it's almost certainly the high pressure diesel pump leaking.

My Mondeo doesn't have the vaporiser so diesel for regen goes straight into the cylinders. My understanding of the 'oil quality' warning is that it computes mileage, time elapsed and number of regens and decides the oil has degraded but the garage thinks that there is a sensor that actually measures oil quality (??) If there is then it's understandable that a leaking pump would trigger this but if it's based on regens, etc then extra diesel from a bad pump wouldn't affect it. The oil has certainly degraded in less than 700 miles.

Can anyone advise if a bad pump would cause this fault before I shell out big money? Does the car really diagnose 'bad oil'?
 
Discussion starter · #7 ·
Ah but the problem with my one is that it's an early MK4 Mondeo which doesn't have the vapouriser system - just shots of diesel fed straight into the cylinders on the exhaust stroke. I don't think it's the pump - just 78,000 miles and never had supermarket fuel! I THINK the oil warning is triggered by counting regen cycles (as well as mileage etc) but NOT actual oil quality as such so if it was the pump the system wouldn't know?? Mind you, I'm getting a value in Forscan for 'Estimated volume of fuel in oil that's light grade' Is that an estimate of oil dilution??

Been into Ford dealer today - only thing they can think of is it's a non genuine Ford DPF and they reckon it's smaller than the original. Could that prevent proper regens?
 
Discussion starter · #9 ·
possible i suppose, its not unheard of. that said, i was under the impression all of the PSA powered 2.0s (ie ALL mk4s) had the same system with the vapouriser?
No the early MK4s didn't have it - seems to have been introduced in 2010 with the facelift. I've ordered a second hand 'Genuine Ford' DPF off Ebay just to see if it makes any difference.
 
Discussion starter · #11 ·
Only mk4 with euro 5 engines has the vapouriser. (2011->)
That's it. They realised that injecting diesel on the exhaust stroke was diluting the oil but even so 10,000 miles without excessive dilution was OK. I've had the car 13 years and never any issues with regens or dilution. It all started with the aftermarket DPF. The original DPF was an advisory in the last MOT but even then it was because it was cracked - not malfunctioning!
 
Discussion starter · #14 ·
Hi
Quick update! I sourced a secondhand genuine Ford DPF off Ebay and fitted it in place of the new aftermarket one. Codes were all reset, oil changed. So far I've only done 268 miles - BUT with the other DPF it would have been regenning by this time. I'm starting to get optimistic! The codes were reset at a Ford dealer this time but I doubt if there was anything magic about that. I'm checking myself with Forscan about once a week at the moment and everything's fine - no signs of regens or failed regens. Oil level hasn't moved and looks clean. I've been hoping to get off on a good long drive to run up some miles but I've now got a failed bearing at the top of the front N/S strut. It's getting replaced this week so will give her a good run after that's sorted. I'll keep you updated - I'd like to see 1000 miles passed. to be sure but it IS looking like the aftermarket DPF was the problem.
 
Discussion starter · #16 ·
Hope so! That's 312 miles as of today - still no regens and sweet as a nut! Will keep you all posted. Don't know what Ford put in their DPFs that aftermarkets don't because they seem outwardly identical (apart from a heatshield on the genuine one??) Unbelievable that it could have such a dramatic impact on the system. I'll report back once I've put some more miles on.
 
Discussion starter · #18 ·
i gather its the actual DPF capacity inside thats teh difference. they look similar externally but rumour has it theyre much larger internally in the genuine ones
That would make sense. I got the feeling that it was causing back pressure that the pressure sensor was mistaking for soot build up so trying to regen wasn't really going to alter that! It's almost as if it gets stuck in a permanent regen loop. It's maybe my imagination but the car also seems more lively with the genuine article. I'll keep everyone posted as the miles roll on.
 
Discussion starter · #20 ·
Just arrived home from a run and that's it regenning! 372 miles since codes cleared and 'genuine' DPF fitted. (Forscan data attached) I left it running in the garage till the fans stopped. Not sure what to make of Forscan data - it suggests there are no failed regens (NO FRE = 0) yet it says distance since last complete regen (DSLCR) is 315.8 miles Distance since last regen trial (DSLRT) = 0 so that would suggest it's just had a trial. I'm not getting that. I'm hoping this is just a 'normal' regen and it'll be fine again for another 300-400 miles. I find the Forscan data difficult to interpret - needs much more documentation. I'll keep everyone posted.
 

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Discussion starter · #22 ·
Update!

That's well over 1000 miles now since I replaced the aftermarket DPF with a second hand genuine Ford item and the car has been faultless. No 'Service Oil / Engine Malfunction' warnings, no apparent rise in sump level and according to Forscan regens are happening normally about 300 - 400 miles. I am now 99% certain that the aftermarket DPF was the cause of all the problems.
 
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Discussion starter · #24 ·
Hi, was just wondering if the DPF continues to work well?

Thanks
That's about 3000 miles now since the 'genuine' DPF was fitted and the car is 100% perfect! It's obviously regenning as it should and the oil level is staying the same - no trace of significant contamination - so I think I can say with full confidence that the non vaporiser version MUST have a genuine Ford DPF to work properly. Maybe an aftermarket one from a different supplier might have been OK but it's too big a gamble. The one I got was from a reputable local parts supplier who supplies all the local garages so it wasn't a dodgy online replacement! By the way, I took it back to the supplier and got a full refund! So best policy is to seek out a genuine second hand Ford DPF. If buying on Ebay get written confirmation that it was ' original equipment' as I did. Hope this helps others struggling with oil contamination and continual regenning. By the way, I have a friend who had similar problems with a Peugeot (same engine as the 2.0 TDCi Mondeo!) He fitted a non genuine DPF and landed up selling it in despair!
 
Discussion starter · #26 ·
That's a great result, glad it worked out well for you. I'm close to scrapping my 2007 2.0 TDCI with 140,000 miles with the amount of issues it has. The MOT is up today and needs £600+ of work to get it through the MOT. I thought the DPF was working ok until the weekend but same thing, constant regens, oil rising and warning etc. Such a pity because it runs great otherwise.
I've just spent a lot too mind you - timing belt, one front spring, top bearing, both drop links and the back bushes (!!) It is now running great though and I'll be holding onto it for the time being. I was £600 for the back bushes alone. Only got 81,000 on the clock though. The change of DPF was almost like magic - couldn't believe that something that looks identical could be so useless!
 
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