EGR and DPF
Posted: Thu Jun 03, 2021 11:08 am
I've started getting an intermittent flashing glow plug sign, along with a loss of power. OBDEleven says it's an EGR problem (=Exhaust Gas Recirculation, for the benefit of the site search).
It looks like my options are:
(1) Get a local mechanic to replace the EGR valve and cooler with an aftermarket version
(2) Recode it to leave the valve shut at all times (not sure if the OBD11 can do this)
(3) Remove and blank off the EGR valve and cooler
(4) Take it to a dealer and pay about a grand for them to replace the cooler & valve with a newer version. Which sounds like a more expensive version of (1) to me.
IANAL but from what I've read it's not illegal to drive a diesel with the EGR blanked off as long as it passes the emissions tests (which they do). But the big problem with (2) and (3) is that, supposedly, a diesel with its EGR disabled will not do any DPF regeneration. I don't know if that's true, but a single dodgy wheel-speed sensor disabled my steering wheel lock
, so I can believe it. Can anyone shed light on this? Better still, has anyone here deleted the EGR valve and kept the DPF?
A bit of background: I was going to clean the valve myself with help from a mechanically adept friend, but it's well hidden behind the engine and turbo so we decided against trying to remove it at the roadside. We did take off the inlet valve and cleaned half an inch of soot from nearby hoses, so I'm pretty confident it's soot that's causing the problem. I've also read that the cooler is fragile and difficult to clean. I tried a Terraclean garage that does a specific EGR cleaning service, but (without looking at it) they said it probably wouldn't help this model, and recommended option 4.
So far I'm leaning towards option 1 unless I can be sure 2 is safe. Is there a recommended source for a new valve and cooler, to make sure I get the newer version?
It looks like my options are:
(1) Get a local mechanic to replace the EGR valve and cooler with an aftermarket version
(2) Recode it to leave the valve shut at all times (not sure if the OBD11 can do this)
(3) Remove and blank off the EGR valve and cooler
(4) Take it to a dealer and pay about a grand for them to replace the cooler & valve with a newer version. Which sounds like a more expensive version of (1) to me.
IANAL but from what I've read it's not illegal to drive a diesel with the EGR blanked off as long as it passes the emissions tests (which they do). But the big problem with (2) and (3) is that, supposedly, a diesel with its EGR disabled will not do any DPF regeneration. I don't know if that's true, but a single dodgy wheel-speed sensor disabled my steering wheel lock
, so I can believe it. Can anyone shed light on this? Better still, has anyone here deleted the EGR valve and kept the DPF?A bit of background: I was going to clean the valve myself with help from a mechanically adept friend, but it's well hidden behind the engine and turbo so we decided against trying to remove it at the roadside. We did take off the inlet valve and cleaned half an inch of soot from nearby hoses, so I'm pretty confident it's soot that's causing the problem. I've also read that the cooler is fragile and difficult to clean. I tried a Terraclean garage that does a specific EGR cleaning service, but (without looking at it) they said it probably wouldn't help this model, and recommended option 4.
So far I'm leaning towards option 1 unless I can be sure 2 is safe. Is there a recommended source for a new valve and cooler, to make sure I get the newer version?