DPF Cleaning Off The Truck?

jus2shy wrote:

N-Trouble wrote:

The Mad Norsky wrote:

goducks10 wrote:

N-Trouble wrote:
I know when mine plugs rather than spending $1200+ to replace the DPF I will instead buy a tuner and delete the crap.

OP I would say everything in your post is pretty spot on and accurate.

x2. I can't wait till I'm past the 5 year mark. Then I know the junk emission stuff will fall off.

I understand that emissions testing will be coming, sooner or later, to all 50 states.

So go ahead and delete. But then the question arises what happens when you get tested???????

And gee folks, the OP asked nicely to not hijack this thread with talk of deletes and tuners. Lets be nice and honor that request.

Um... Pretty sure he added the tuner comment in later (see the edit time stamp...) so please lay off the policing comments.

Guys, I think this is the stuff the OP wanted to stay away from?

Back to the poster's point. It is a shame that LD diesel trucks don't have a serviceable DPF. But then I think that the light vehicle manufacturers are betting on these vehicles being traded by 200k miles or so. On our urban buses that average only 13 mph their whole service life, we service the DPF's ever 50k or 60k miles. That's down from the OTR trucks which is somewhere around 150k to 250k miles. If and when my DPF goes, I'm hoping that an industry will be built up in the US and I can get a serviceable unit for my truck. For RAM trucks specifically, the DPF is a separate module from the SCR system and they unbolt from each other. However, the canister for the DPF is still non-serviceable.

OK, now that we've gotten the obligatory delete/tuner comments out of the way, lets move along. :B

For the record, my request for no discussions about deletes and tuners was in the initial post. My edits were just to correct some spelling errors, and to make my first use of the term "DPF" a clickable link to the Wikipedia article describing them, since there was a question about what they are.

But, we're good. Sometimes I miss a few details myself, and honestly I'm as interested in deletes and tuners (and fast cars, motorcycles, guns, beer and women) as anyone. :W I just think a discussion about how to live with these systems for the guys like me that tend to hang on to a vehicle for a long time would be good.

jus2shy- Appreciate the comments. First-hand experience based comments is one of the things I'm after in this thread. My opinion is that what is being seen in the HD Diesel world will eventually be seen with the LD Diesels as well. To a degree it already is, but as the fleet of trucks with DPF's ages and more of them fall off warranty, the high cost of replacing the DPF's at the owners expense will drive innovation and changes in servicing them.

The strategy of "build them so that they last until warranty ends" is a plan that only benefits the manufacturer. What's supposed to happen with all of these trucks when they have 150K-200K miles on them? Send them to the scrapper? That's a terribly short-sighted and wasteful plan if you ask me.

I think the majority of the LD Diesel truck owners are going to have to learn to live with these systems for the long haul. The delete/tuner crowd is really just a small percentage of the market. It's becoming a more costly road to go down already, and it's only going to get worse.

But, I also wanted to make other LD Diesel owners aware that it appears there are already options for cleaning and/or replacing the DPF's with something other than a brand-new part out of the OEM's parts system. It is my understanding that there are service kits available for the DPF's used on Ford, GM, and Ram trucks which will make them off-vehicle cleanable.

There are also companies like Reflow Solutions that are selling what appear to be refurbished OEM DPF's that have the service kit installed already. They claim that their part is half the cost of the OEM unit. The DPF's available include one for the Cummins 6.7L Diesel. Note that there is a $300 core charge on the LD (modular) DPF's, unlike the units they are selling for the HD Diesels.

Here's a quote off their homepage:

DPF SERVICE KIT ASSEMBLIES
Turn your Existing DPF into a Serviceable Unit
Avoid the high cost of replacing your DPF due to a dirty, inaccessable core
Add the ability to maintain your DPF and take advantage of fuel savings and increased truck performance
Available for most Diesel Pick-ups, Sprinter Vans and 5-ton trucks
Dodge Cummins, Ford Powerstroke, Sprinter, GMC, International and more

I'd like to find some owners of these trucks who have gone this route and find out what their experience has been.

Comments and experiences from HD owners/operators, HD or LD Diesel techs, and any Engineer or professional connected with the industry would also be very helpful and interesting.

:):)