Freetrack - Oh no, not a DPF Problem !!!

[twistandgo]

Well... its finally happened.

After 28,000 trouble free miles... the dpf light has come on.

Started with an intermittent emissions warning light which has been off for ages... the came on again the other day. So I booked car in for service. Then yesterday the DPF light came on. Tried the regen driving as per manufacturers instructions in manual.. but hasnt gone out. Wife driving to work this morning and said it went in to limp mode with the coil light now also flashing. Engine fault, go see dealer.

So... pulled over,....AA called and got the emissions light off. DPF and coil light still flashing. Towed to dealership.

Now.. after A LOT of research in the TDI section... I reckon... the intermittent fault of the emssions light has meant that a sensor was on its way out. It literally "went" yesterday and didnt clear as per the norm... this has resulted in no regen going on with the car and has capped out on DPF emissions...OR.... Both sensors have failed and has gone in to limp mode as a result thinking that it has a blocked filter.

The car is used regularly.. the wife has a fairly heavy right foot under acceleration but can drive economically when she wants to and it gets used on A and B roads with a good variation of driving. 28,000 miles with no issues until now so....

Thoughts on a postcard?... I reckon its a sensor or sensors that are to blame...

Anyone else any ideas? does it sound fair enough?

Car is a September 57 plate and so is still under warranty.

 

[THE_ORACLE]

Exact same thing happened to me got it towed in when they check it it was a sensor down something along the line of implusable signal if i remember right anyway they changed the sensor and said it was a common problem with that year as mine is a 07 and they have updated the sensor and software on the ecu whether it was bull i dont know bu not a proble since fingers crossed..

 

[twistandgo]

Well thats good to hear.

As you say, fingers crossed its that or a dodgy sensor... its booked in for its 30K service next week anyway.. but anything that is covered under warranty suits me down to the ground !!

Also... seem to be getting more of a spool up noise from the turbo the last few days.., dunno why, assuming the really cold weather.. has been runnning fine though and going well..

Right up until it conked out on warning lights and DPF issues of course !! LOL

 

[twistandgo]

Well thats it fixed then.

Call from SEAT this morning... Turns out it was a faulty Exhaust Gas Pressure Sensor.

Fingers crossed.... it will be trouble free for another 28K miles before we have to think about replacement !!

 

[THE_ORACLE]

glad all sorted out for you, only other problem ive had is with the engine cover. dont know if yours has one as they have stopped putting them on.. make sure if you have one that the rubber grommits holding it on are not split as the cover ends up bouncing around the engine bay.. oh yeah while i think about it look at your air con pipe at the top front of the bay as it gets a hole worn in it by the bonnet release cable. i just put a piece of hose pipe round and taped it on.

 

[twistandgo]

Hmm.. not heard problems about the engine cover but will have a look when the bonnets up when I wash it over the weekend,

As for the hose issues... will DEF check that it isnt rubbing on the release cable.

Out of interest... is yours chipped? or modified at all?..... was thinking of getting an aftermarket filter for it.

Thanks again for the info !!

 

[THE_ORACLE]

No not dont alot to it to be fair i have looked into it but with it being the pd 170 cant get a plug n play got to get a full on remap and cant justify the price for gain.. have trouble putting the power down now.. just coming out of warrenty end of this month so start doing bits and pieces, like lower 30-40mm it looks awesome slammed but getting a bit old for all this now, used to mod all the time, now its speed/comfort.. taking the filter off is an option but need the software to disable sensors i beleive..

 

[bungle]

Interesting you say you have trouble putting the power down. I've got an 09 Freetrack TDI and I've always thought it slower than it should be. I had a 1.9TDI before and that didn't feel much slower in normal driving conditions.
I find it very turbo laggy and unresponsive in the lower rev range and a bit unpleasant to drive when pulling away. I've read reports that some 170PD engines were mapped down on power to about 150ps to prevent DPF issues so maybe mine came pre-configured like that. In any case it's due it's first service soon so I'll mention the way it drives. I'm sure they will simply say the computer shows everything is fine.

Matt.

 

[THE_ORACLE]

Mines the 2.0 and it spools up about 1200-1500 revs roughly and is very responsive the wife drive it like its nicked.. think have to put stickier tyres on. handles good in the wet but can spin it right up to mid range of 4th.. going in for service next sat so lets see how it performs after.. to be fair i didnt run it in how you are told from new, i think its better anyway to drive it how you normally would and its only got 13,000 on it so still trying to run it in. dont think they have restricted mine, i had a 180 bhp A4 before and i think this would have pissed all over it.

 

[jontbone]

Interesting you say you have trouble putting the power down. I've got an 09 Freetrack TDI and I've always thought it slower than it should be. I had a 1.9TDI before and that didn't feel much slower in normal driving conditions.
I find it very turbo laggy and unresponsive in the lower rev range and a bit unpleasant to drive when pulling away. I've read reports that some 170PD engines were mapped down on power to about 150ps to prevent DPF issues so maybe mine came pre-configured like that. In any case it's due it's first service soon so I'll mention the way it drives. I'm sure they will simply say the computer shows everything is fine.

Matt.

Alright Matt, have you got anywhere with this? My freetrack is exactly the same, performance doesn't feel like I expected it to. The 1.9's feel far less laggy than the PD170, which seems to make them much more driveable & feel just as quick in real world driving.

I have a megane dci 130 aswell & its just as fast but far less lag, the power delivery is quite linear, and it pulls well in any gear, really flexible. The freetrack just crawls if you keep it in too higher gear, sometimes requires 1st gear even when the car is already moving (albeit very slowly). All a bit dissapointing really.

Am considering a remap to solve this, as the dealer had my car in to check a whistling turbo noise & their conclusion was everyting is fine with no loss of power evident.... so the predictable "computer says no" response.

Cheers
Jon

 

[iain1970]

Re the DPF sensor, we've had a dispute with a hire company about one of their Crafters that we regen'd in June. It didn't clear the lights and we were presented with a huge bill for the replacement of the DPF with reports off the vehicle to prove we didn't do the regen at all.

We took the vehicle into our local VW dealer and they told us the dealer in Scotlad that did the work on behalf of the hire company didn't even ask for the right reports or do the checks properly. Turns out it was the sensor failing.

Just goes to show, the art of the mechanic has been lost to many.

As for laggy performance form the 2.0TDI, I have a Sport 140, and I too find it guttless lower down and it sounds a bit hollow, like the exhaust has a hole in it (which it hasn't). Reading the above comments, it must just be how it is.

 

[CrispDust]

My remapped 140 goes like the proverbial off a stick. Get new exhaustsection, loose the dpf and remapp. Simples!

 

[jontbone]

My remapped 140 goes like the proverbial off a stick. Get new exhaustsection, loose the dpf and remapp. Simples!

I'm organising a remap for mine at the moment. I was going to go down the de-dpf route, but I'm worried about these new mot rules that are due 2011. As mine is 58 plate, these rules will affect my motor unfortunately.

Has been suggested to me by 3 known tuners that dpf problems are still rare after remap on pd170, so am considering having the remap with the dpf intact.

 

[pdh 14a]

My remapped 140 goes like the proverbial off a stick. Get new exhaustsection, loose the dpf and remapp. Simples!

Any more info on the new exaust section and dpf replacements? are they just swappable parts?

 

[jontbone]

Any more info on the new exaust section and dpf replacements? are they just swappable parts?

check out JBS website, they do a few packages involving dpf delete pipes, exhaust replacements & remaps, as yours is 2wd they should just be swappable parts.

I think a few on here have had it done.

 

[kinjamin]

check out JBS website, they do a few packages involving dpf delete pipes, exhaust replacements & remaps, as yours is 2wd they should just be swappable parts.

I think a few on here have had it done.

I don't think they do a freetrack one though maybe give them a ring? I have had an Altea XL PD170 done and it does make a huge difference!

 

[jontbone]

I don't think they do a freetrack one though maybe give them a ring? I have had an Altea XL PD170 done and it does make a huge difference!

Sounds good!

Did your xl have the full dpf delete treatment kinjamin? Bet it shifts.

I spoke to JBS a few months back and unfortunately there are no dpf-delete packages available for the freetrack or scout, bit of a shame, although i know someone thats happy to make me one.

However, think i will leave the dpf on & get a remap anyway, as i'm concerned about mot changes due in 2011 that have the potential to catch me out if i remove my dpf!

 

[pdh 14a]

Thanks Jon,i'll look into that!

 

[iain1970]

Well, my fears were unfounded really. Just been to the CLub Lupo rolling road day at Awesome GTI and my 140TDI is pushing out 159hp at the flywheel, 146hp at the wheels and 303ftlb in standard guise.

I suppose it's the bulk of the thing making it slow.

Decat and remap I think.

 

[kinjamin]

Sounds good!

Did your xl have the full dpf delete treatment kinjamin? Bet it shifts.

Only went for the DPF Delete and green cotton filter with remap as they could not offer the Cat back exhaust because they did not make one for the car then. On the Dyno 222.1 and 319 torques. I am looking for a new exhaust!

My mate had a Scooby STi 2001 dont think it was the 5.5 to 0-60 one but the 5.7 0-60 one. I think that he would have me on the 0-60 run but have not tested that. However through the gears second, third fourth and fifth on the first run he could NOT overtake or get any closer to me until fifth when I started to pull away from him. On the second run third through the gears the same outcome!

Lets say he was gutted!

kinjamin