DPF woes

Grublet

Hi,

Last week the red engine light came on on my car so I took it to Halfords for a diagnostic check.

They said there were 6 historical errors which they cleared, and which didnt come back, so they said we should be ok. The next day the red engine light comes back on and the car barely makes it yuup a hill. We take it back to the garageand they say its the DPF filer which is causing the issue. they reccomend a cleaner being applied and for me to drive it at 70mph on the mototrway for at least 40 minutes to try and force a clean. The red engine light is still on at this point, and the acceleration is severly effected.

I do as they say and there is no improvement and the light is still on. I take it back to see a different person behind the desk, who seems confused and said that they would need to perform a regen on the DPF in order for the light to come off. They have said this hasnt worked but they are not going to charge me (makes me suspicious) but that I can try and drive on the motorway at 70mph for 40 minutes again to see if it clears itself, meanwhile they will get a quote for the dpf to be sent away for cleaning.

I am now concerned that I shouldnt have followed their advice in the first place and driven it at high speed with the engine warning light on. Does anyone have any experience with this, does it sound like I was given some really bad advice?

My car is a 2012 Nissan Qashqai Ntec+ diesel

Thanks in advance

foxy-stoat

You took it to Halfords - thats your first mistake. Take it to a main dealer or trusted garage.

If they scanned the fault codes on the second time and it was still showing as DPF then they could of said you need a new DPF @ £2000 but they didnt they said put this stuff in and it might cure your fault.

As it hasnt then you should look into fixing the fault properly - either remove it and have it cleaned or new one. But you should address the issue that it has got blocked in the first place - either not reaching the perimeters to regen or your driving style.

motorguy

foxy-stoat wrote: »

As it hasnt then you should look into fixing the fault properly - either remove it and have it cleaned or new one. But you should address the issue that it has got blocked in the first place - either not reaching the perimeters to regen or your driving style.

^^^^
This

If its got that bad its going to need either taken off and cleaned professionally or replaced with a new one.

A main dealer wont suggest taking it off and cleaning it, they'll just promote the fitting of a new one.

missile

Can't blame Halfords on this occasion. That was sound advice. Not really their fault your DPF is clogged or the Italian Tune up could not revive it.

6 historical errors for DPF would suggest it is well F.....D

It would help if you gave more details, i.e. what car, mileage and do you drive mainly short town journeys?

sevenhills

Grublet wrote: »

Last week the red engine light came on on my car so I took it to Halfords for a diagnostic check.

They said there were 6 historical errors which they cleared, and which didnt come back, so they said we should be ok.

Do you do short or long journies in your car?
You need to do around 8 miles to get the DPF up to operating temperature.
A trip up the motorway is suggested once a month for about 40 miles at around 50+ mph to help keep the DPF clear.

Noree

I seriously wouldn!!!8217;t have any vehicle with a DPF unless I were to be driving many motorway miles on a frequent basis.

Unfortunately, it!!!8217;s not common knowledge and problems arise.

I!!!8217;ll guess the OP of this thread is guilty of mistreatment of their vehicles!!!8217; DPF, albeit unknowingly.

debtdebt

Get it to a backstreet garage and get them to take it off and jet wash it.

daveyjp

Jet wash won't get rid of the solid baked on ash which blocks the DPF channels, they are only a couple of mm in diameter.

However the DPF is part of a complex system and it could be a fault with any of the components, in particular the sensors and not actually a DPF which is in need of replacement.

It needs a proper diagnosis.

motorguy

daveyjp wrote: »

Jet wash won't get rid of the solid baked on ash which blocks the DPF channels, they are only a couple of mm in diameter.

However the DPF is part of a complex system and it could be a fault with any of the components, in particular the sensors and not actually a DPF which is in need of replacement.

It needs a proper diagnosis.

Its almost a certainty that its the DPF itself. Any sensors around it will tend to error with different codes or symptoms. The fact even that its way down on power suggests its very blocked.

I agree though that "jet washing it out" wont wholly resolve the problem . Though it might improve it in the short term.

If i'd gone to the trouble of removing it, i'd have it professionally cleaned out. Theres some sort of bath they put it in which effectively eats the carbon build up.

alan_d

I've seen good feedback about this company, maybe worth a go:
http://www.thedpfcleaningco.co.uk/

Takedap

Maybe these guys can help?
https://www.cats2u.co.uk/