1.6 tdi Problem

[Vampy11]

Hi,
I own a 1.6 tdi Sport A3. It's a 2011 plate and only done 45000 miles. Over the last month or so I've been having some issues with the engine that seem like they point towards a problem with the DPF but so far I've had no warning light for both that or the engine. Here is the problem:
I drive about half the time on dual carriageways and country roads, and the other half around town, so I wouldn't have thought that the car would need to be doing a DPF regeneration that frequently. However, nearly every single time I drive now, I have a noticeable loss of power, the engine feels rougher and 'lumpy' at low speeds/pulling off, and when idle, the revs sit at approximately 1000 rpm. It's definitely worse around town, not helped by stop-start traffic which I have to sit in every day. By the time I get home the revs are back to normal when I stop, but that's probably due to the country road driving at the end of my journey. Is it the DPF regenerating? And if it is, why is it doing it every time I drive despite giving it a good run? Also, a few times now I've noticed that after first starting the car, I have a rough idle where it can't seem to settle, it goes away after driving though. Does anyone have any idea what is causing these problems? It's becoming very frustrating now and stopping me from enjoying driving :/

 

[phil miller]

you need to have it scanned with VCDS, ive had this issue before and it was a faulty CTS, that was confirmed by looking at live data

 

[Vampy11]

you need to have it scanned with VCDS, ive had this issue before and it was a faulty CTS, that was confirmed by looking at live data

Thanks for your reply. Okay, I can get it scanned. Could it be this even without any irregular temperature readings from the gauge on the dash? What would I be seeing on VCDS to determine what exactly is wrong?

 

[Alan Gunn]

The CTS sends out 2 signals 1 to the temp display and the other to the ecu so it is possible to still see 90 on the display.

 

[Vampy11]

The CTS sends out 2 signals 1 to the temp display and the other to the ecu so it is possible to still see 90 on the display.

Right okay, I shall investigate and update with my findings. Thanks for your help!

 

[Rog_B]

Sorry to disappoint you mate. I had a 1.6TDi Golf on a 2 year lease. From day 1 the DPF light was coming on and it was always regenning. Limp mode as well a couple of times. I had VW Assist out a number of times and it went back to VW too. In the end I just got used to it and gave up as it wasn't my car. I never found out the cause either. AFAIK it always came up OK on the dealer scans. "They're all like this you shouldn't drive a diesel in town" was the official answer.

My 2.0 tdi A3 has been MUCH better! Just been out this morning for a spirited 40 miler through the lanes.
No comparison to 1.6 I'm afraid bud, sorry to say. I have never had a DPF light on, but have had 1 regen as the fans stayed on after stopping (I assume it was that).

 

[Vampy11]

Sorry to disappoint you mate. I had a 1.6TDi Golf on a 2 year lease. From day 1 the DPF light was coming on and it was always regenning. Limp mode as well a couple of times. I had VW Assist out a number of times and it went back to VW too. In the end I just got used to it and gave up as it wasn't my car. I never found out the cause either. AFAIK it always came up OK on the dealer scans. "They're all like this you shouldn't drive a diesel in town" was the official answer.

My 2.0 tdi A3 has been MUCH better! Just been out this morning for a spirited 40 miler through the lanes.
No comparison to 1.6 I'm afraid bud, sorry to say. I have never had a DPF light on, but have had 1 regen as the fans stayed on after stopping (I assume it was that).

Thanks buddy, it's funny you should say about the 2.0 tdi, I drove one this morning and it's world's away from the 1.6. It feels like a petrol and seems so effortless compared to mine. I'll see if on this occasion it's just a fault somewhere, but if not, I'll just have to deal with it for now I guess until I find an alternative.
Cheers.

 

[Paul @ Unit 9 Remaps]

nothing a map and dpf removal cant sort to transform the car, but if you dont want to go that route etc, yes the 2.0TDI (CR) is a lovely engine, its come along way from the the older PD stuff, if you local we always can help, we can clean replace or remove DPF's for great prices i thats the issue, or even liven the car up for a bit more poke

 

[Vampy11]

nothing a map and dpf removal cant sort to transform the car, but if you dont want to go that route etc, yes the 2.0TDI (CR) is a lovely engine, its come along way from the the older PD stuff, if you local we always can help, we can clean replace or remove DPF's for great prices i thats the issue, or even liven the car up for a bit more poke

I'm located in Northamptonshire. I've looked briefly into potentially having the engine remapped, or having a tuning box fitted but never been able to find enough info about it. Are you able to provide me with some more details on it please? For example: power increase, reliability, price etc. It would be greatly appreciated if you could!

 

[Paul @ Unit 9 Remaps]

Everyone's prices are different I'm afraid, like I'm in a lucky position with no over heads on the unit etc so can offer competitive prices,

These are tricore protected so ecu has to be removed to do anything, so slightly more expensive than if it was done through the OBD port, For example I could do a remap for £200, I could do a remap with DPF delete and the labour and EGR if you wish for £340, doesn't matter what bhp model you have on these as they are just de tuned etc, all run nicely etc at 145bhp

 

[Vampy11]

Everyone's prices are different I'm afraid, like I'm in a lucky position with no over heads on the unit etc so can offer competitive prices,

These are tricore protected so ecu has to be removed to do anything, so slightly more expensive than if it was done through the OBD port, For example I could do a remap for £200, I could do a remap with DPF delete and the labour and EGR if you wish for £340, doesn't matter what bhp model you have on these as they are just de tuned etc, all run nicely etc at 145bhp

Sounds great to me! I'll give it some more thought then. Where abouts are you based?

 

[Paul @ Unit 9 Remaps]

Unfortunately we are north east based' Co'Durham

 

[Vampy11]

Unfortunately we are north east based' Co'Durham

Ah, a bit far for me I'm afraid. Thank you anyway though for the advice, it's given me something to think about Cheers!