Dreaded DPF - Help Please

[karenb33]

I know this is not a new story but I am now at a complete loss as to what to do.

We have had our 07 Seat Leon FR for about 3 years. Within 6 months of buying it we had to have the whole engine replaced (still under warranty, thank God) but since then the car has never been right.

We had the DPF warning light come on about 2 months ago together with the coil and engine warning lights. We did the usual regen procedure but nothing happened. We finally took it to the dealer who said we needed a replacement DPF and other bits (including the glow plugs) and quoted us £3500.

I nearly died....then started looking at alternatives. It seemed like removal or cleaning were the best and after loads of research and talking to loads of companies I decided to go for the cleaning.

This morning the guy came and did the clean. The DPF was VERY full but he left saying it was clean and that I needed to go and run the car for an hour at 40MPH and 2500 revs to force the regen.

As you probably expect I drove the car and we still have all the lights on and the car in limp home mode.

I am tempted to try and get a forced regen done but really don't know what is for the best now.

I actually just want to get rid of the bloody car! Any help on any of the above would be very gratefully received.

 

[AndyVTR]

Look at insurance costs then get rid of the DPF.

 

[Alzak]

what do You need to tell insurance company that car got exhaust modification ?? I do not want for example any power increase just peace of mind without DPF.
But to switch this off You need to program ECU so this is another modification ??

 

[Matt22]

i feel your pain, the dpf is an absolute joke!

even to the point of me ripping it out it was nothing but trouble.

with it removed however... bliss! seriously, get it removed! £400 for a milltek pipe from jbs is well worth it!

yer just tell the insurance its got an exhaust mod

you will be to get someone to map the dpf from the ecu aswell, but it doesnt matter if you dont, i ran mine for about 6k miles before the mapping. the engine light was on but it still runs fine

im beginning to wish i had never bought my leon, new cars are ****, im looking at needing new injectors at the moment..... enough said

 

[AndyVTR]

I think JBS will map with no extra power.... still paying for modified car though which isn't cheap.

On the insurance note, a little story. I once got hit whilst my car was in a car park. Never met the driver but they left details. Dealt with their insurance and never informed mine.

Whilst it was in the bodyshop their insurance sent a guy to check my tyre tread wear. Obviously trying to get out of paying for it...

Would you risk it?

 

[Alzak]

I think JBS will map with no extra power.... still paying for modified car though which isn't cheap.

On the insurance note, a little story. I once got hit whilst my car was in a car park. Never met the driver but they left details. Dealt with their insurance and never informed mine.

Whilst it was in the bodyshop their insurance sent a guy to check my tyre tread wear. Obviously trying to get out of paying for it...

Would you risk it?

their insurance company do not have information about Your modification and checking tyres is standard procedure I have two accidents (not my fault) and when I have my car checked for damage tyres are always first what they check not size but tread...

 

[karenb33]

i feel your pain, the dpf is an absolute joke!

even to the point of me ripping it out it was nothing but trouble.

with it removed however... bliss! seriously, get it removed! £400 for a milltek pipe from jbs is well worth it!

yer just tell the insurance its got an exhaust mod

you will be to get someone to map the dpf from the ecu aswell, but it doesnt matter if you dont, i ran mine for about 6k miles before the mapping. the engine light was on but it still runs fine

im beginning to wish i had never bought my leon, new cars are ****, im looking at needing new injectors at the moment..... enough said

So annoyed. I looked at getting it taken out but thought it would cause problems when I came to sell it (which is immediately after getting it back on the road with no warning lights!).

Can't bare to pay for it to be taken out now after shelling out £500 to get it cleaned.

There has never been a moment when I don't regret buying this car. Gorgeous when it is driving properly but that has been very, very rare in this car's case.

I guess I will have to suck up the cost of a removal....

 

[AndyVTR]

My point is insurance companies will do anything to get out of paying up.

If I put my car in a ditch and my insurance company fixed it they might notice a great big shiny pipe where the DPF was. Then I have no car which wasn't insured and then I'm sure the police might have something to say about that.

 

[AndyVTR]

I guess I will have to suck up the cost of a removal....

Can't you get your cleaning money back?

If you spent that on removal you wouldn't get rid.

 

[Alzak]

Can't bare to pay for it to be taken out now after shelling out £500 to get it cleaned.

Mate You pay way to much and if Your DPF do not work as it should get Your money back from person who do cleaning

 

[Matt22]

£500 for cleaning is ridiculous

its a shame its put you off so much as theyre lovely cars once that dpf is removed

people need to start buying parts from other places and not the dealers so that theres more demand, then people will start selling more parts
im shocked at how hard it is to find replacement parts for my leon and they just accept paying a fortune for the dealers to do it

(that wasnt about the dpf, that was an injector rant) but seriously.... i would get that dpf ripped out and binned! beeter still shove it up my seats arse because hes a twat for even thinking of putting it on a car

also.... i would recommend getting a remap if you do remove the dpf.... completely different car!

and, i rang JBS when i was trying to get mine mapped out, and they said they would only do a power increasing map and not just remove the dpf software.... ring and ask though

 

[karenb33]

Will a removal get rid of the myriad of lights on the dash? I know it's hard to tell but I am guessing the coil light and engine warning light (and limp home mode) are all connected to the dpf problem.

 

[AndyVTR]

Will a removal get rid of the myriad of lights on the dash? I know it's hard to tell but I am guessing the coil light and engine warning light (and limp home mode) are all connected to the dpf problem.

Oh yes, but please check modified insurance prices. I pay more than I would a 330d now.

 

[karenb33]

I'm sorry to bump this thread but I refuse to give up without a fight. Car has been in garage and they have changed the differential pressure sensor but to no effect. I have asked them to confirm the fault codes and will post those later to see if they mean anything to anyone.

Is the gas exhaust pressure sensor a different thing? Worth trying?

I am slowly losing the will to live....but on a more positive note I got £350 back from the cleaning company!

 

[AndyVTR]

Have you tried SEAT UK? They may be willing to stump up some of the cost for a new DPF? Something I wish I had at least considered.

 

[karenb33]

SEAT UK couldn't be less interested. They have said that unless we can prove there is something mechanically wrong with the dpf they consider it to be driver fault and they will not contribute. The car is a lemon!

 

[AndyVTR]

Driver fault is nonsense, not fit for use if you have to drive in a certain way.

 

[CandyWight]

Before I got my Ibiza, I looked into a diesel Corsa. The salesman told me that all new diesel Vxs come with a tag on the steering wheel stating that the DPF is not covered by the warranty! Thanks to my brother doing a shedload of research before buying his Ibiza TSI, I also avoided a diesel and the DSG which seem to be suffering from a lot of problems, and went for the TSI myself. I was also advised that diesel would not be a viable option for me as there is literally nowhere on the Isle of Wight that you can drive at the required speed and revs for long enough to clean the filter!

 

[karenb33]

SEAT aftercare is nonsense (actually non-existent) - the dpf issue is HUGE but they are denying there is a problem and will do so until someone decides to challenge them in the Courts about it.

In the meantime, I will try the dealers once more and see if it is a sensor issue. If not the car will have to be sold at a huge loss with the problems intact!

 

[betty_swollox]

SEAT aftercare is nonsense (actually non-existent) - the dpf issue is HUGE but they are denying there is a problem and will do so until someone decides to challenge them in the Courts about it.

In the meantime, I will try the dealers once more and see if it is a sensor issue. If not the car will have to be sold at a huge loss with the problems intact!

They're supposed to warn you about the dpf but they don't. Bunch of c**ts