Hello,
I am new to the forum and I would like to ask if there are any news regarding the problem with DPF filter in Kugas.I was interested in this car but since my everyday mileage is low I have second thoughts for ordering one.
Thanks
Edited by Pugugly on 21/09/2008 at 19:28
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I have a new Mondeo with the 2.0TDCi, DPF-equipped motor, which I believe is the same as in the Kuga. I've had it since Feb this year and have done 6000 miles.
My daily commute is 3.5 miles, with occasional longer trips and the odd M-way blast.
I am careful once every 2 weeks to take a 10 / 15 mile drive during which I keep the revs around 3,000 (usually in 3rd gear) to keep the DPF clear.
The owner's manual is very vague on DPF hygiene, but says that 10 minutes or so at 3000 rpm should be enough to regenerate it.
From my own experience, the ECU also initiates a regeneration every 500 miles or so, presumably as a failsafe. When it happens, you'll notice a slight throttle hesitation (like driveline shunt) and then the engine note will become deeper. The radiator cooling fan will also come on, to disperse the under-bonnet heat from the regeneration (it never comes on for me in any other condition). This lasts for about 5 minutes. If it happens then I will continue to drive until the cooling fan cuts off.
I say that this is an ECU 'failsafe' as mine has done an automatic regeneration even a couple of days after long (300+ mile) motorway journeys, during which I've maintained 2500+ rpm for hours at a stretch -- which should be enough to thoroughly clean the DPF.
In conclusion, it's not been a problem for me. What I would recommend is keeping the revs above 2K if you can ... don't let the engine lug along at 1500rpm. This seems to have worked for me.
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I am looking at getting an S-Max 2.0 diesel. The car spends most of the week doing short local runs.
At the dealers yesterday I posed the DPF question - he called through to service who confirmed they'd never had any problems, only replaced one at 75k miles (scheduled service item).
I suppose if you've done 75k in only a few years, you wouldn't have a DPF problem!
However, given the above, it's not put me off. I wouldn;t buy a Nissan / Vauxhall / Renault with one though !
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If you do such a low mileage why would you want a diesel?
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An update on my earlier post above: now have 10,500 miles up and still no DPF problems.
As HJ reported in the long-term test of the Focus Econetic, DPF regenerations are increasingly seamless on mine (Mondeo 2.0 TDCI manual)
Most of my driving is urban commuting -- 3.5 miles to work each way, with dad's taxi work at weekends. Once every couple of weeks it gets a 200+ mile motorway trip for work.
If it's had only town work for more than two weeks, I will do a 10-mile drive to initiate a regeneration. I've found this happens easily if I drive at 40mph in 3rd gear (about 2,300rpm) with the engine warm.
Once the regen starts (it's easy to spot as the engine note changes, you get a momentary hesitation as if you've backed off slightly, and the throttle response goes mushy) I drive normally for another couple of miles and it's done.
I've averaged 42mpg from new, which I think is good given the size, weight and how it gets driven :)
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Craig,
I'm a bit concerned about buying a car with a DPF, but your routine doesn't too onerous.
Goes to show a little bit of mechanical empathy goes a long way.
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My DPF equipped A3 does between 15 and 50 predominantly urban miles per day during the week including a few miles of dual carriageway. At weekends it often sees a motorway and longer motorway trips for hoildays, trips ot family etc are common.
At 20,000 miles I've had no DPF issues. I can tell when it regenerates as the DSG gearbox alters the gearchange by holding gears for longer, idle tickover increases from 850ish to about 1,000 rpm. These changes occur for about 10 minutes then it reverts to normal running.
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Welcome to the forum, unpronounceable friend - I agree with T Lucas that you should have a look at a petrol Kuga which will be better value for your low mileage, with no worries about Dat Pesky Fing.
What happens, I wonder, when the DPF-equipped cars get older, and - surprise surprise - the regeneration mechanism stops working? I have a feeling that my excellent, non-DPF Golf 2.0 TDI estate may be my last diesel.
As I'm sure I've said before, I'm all for measures that protect the environment - but makers owe it to their customers not to expect them to do their R & D for them.
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"protect the environment" with a diesel at 3000rpm for 10 minutes!
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I agree with Avant that in some cases, manufacturers have introduced DPFs without fully testing them in all possible driving conditions.
But the whole DPF issue reminds me of the early 90s when catalytic converters were introduced on all petrol cars -- yes, there were problems, and those owners with problems had to fight recalcitrant dealers and manufacturers.
But despite the horror stories in the motoring press at the time, of catalyst matrices getting broken going over speed humps, killing cats with push / tow starts etc, the sheer cost of maintaining the complexities of lambda sensors etc .... the technology has proved significantly more reliable than was predicted at the time.
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