Mexican Diesel Fuel/Sulfur Effects Update

[Ed_White]

Much to my distress I just learned here in the Southern Baja that the owner of a late model GM diesel pickup paid almost $3,000 to ship his truck back to the USA when it went into limp mode (5 mph) in Los Barriles. It is a 2013 and he experienced the typical signs of TEMPORARY sulfur poisoning of the emissions system. That is, engine light on, followed by DEF QUALITY POOR warning light, then progressive speed limitation.

The reason I'm distressed is because he didn't need to spend the $3,000 !!! These problems are COMPLETELY MANAGEABLE when you know what to do to force a regeneration. The regeneration cycle burns the sulfur compounds out of the system. I can only think that he was not computer literate so never located references to the extensive knowledge base about this issue on the net.

Anyway, if anyone knows of, or hears of, an owner of a late model (post 2007.5) diesel pickup truck having the above problem, PLEASE PUT THAT PERSON IN TOUCH WITH ME IMMEDIATELY at whitetmp@aol.com

Depending on the model year, I can provide the model appropriate information needed to completely manage the problem and NEVER go into limp mode.

Thankfully, the issue of excessive sulfur in Mexican diesel is almost over. Pemex announce last September that it had allocated funds to refurbish their refineries during 2015 so that ULSD (Ulta Low Sulfur Diesel) will be available across 60% of Mexico by mid-year and throughout Mexico by early 2016. Let's hope they stick to the promised timetable.

[bighatnohorse]

Thank you to Ed White. Your experiencial posts are appreciated.

[briansue]

The paragraph above is indeed "From The Horses Mouth",

What "HORSE"?? You claim so many quotes but never include where the quotes come from or provide links to web addresses where the information can be found.

Everything found on the internet these days without proof and clear sources where the information came from is suspect.

Roll the dice!

Without clear "facts" from sources such as manufacturers backed up by detailed information from said manufacturer is next to worthless.

Long drawn out informational "facts" that do not provide web addresses and proven sources for those "facts" are NOT "facts". This applies to any post in this or any thread - or internet forum.

[Tequila]

My latest info is 2018 for ULSD all over mexico

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Moise,
The vehicle owner added additive to the correct reservoir.

100.00% of the diesel fuel in Baja California SUR is regular diesel originating at the Salina Cruz Refinacion in Oaxaca. It is offloaded first at the tank farm offload facility at Tompolobampo, Sinaloa then barged across the gulf to the storage facility at Pichilingue just north of La Paz. Privately owned and operated barge tugs haul the comistibles both gasolines and diesel. The Pemex chartered ship tanker then lproceeds to go to Rosarito Baja California to delivery diesel MARINA and #6 fuel oil to the CFE generation plant and load PREMIUM gasoline and sails back to Oaxaca.

Gasoline and diesel refined at the joint venture refinery in Houston is pumped to Mexicali and enters the Pemex pipeline there. Gasoline is traded between US refineries so there is no telling what the Southern Pacific pipeline is sending to Mexicali. The distribution web covers Tijuana, Rosarito and the El Sauzal tank farm.

The new gasolinera right at the border immediately north of the monumento paralelo 28 may have opened. If so, it will be the most southerly point in Baja California to dispense both UBA gasoline and refined in USA Magna and of course made in USA Premium. However the most southerly gasolinera that offers fuel dispensed with accurate pumps continues to be Antonio Munoz's Baja Cactus gasolinera in El Rosario B.C.

Hope This Helps

[Ed_White]

iguana07, what model year and make is your truck ?

[iguana07]

I made it to LDM with my particulate filter using Mexican diesel. Not one regen cycle seems to be running same.

[Ed_White]

Regarding the 2015 Powerstroke using Mexican LSD diesel, last January the owner (Chris) of a 2015 Ford diesel F350 took a caravan tour south on the Baja to Cabo. He had no issues while towing his fifth wheel trailer along the caravan route. However, after arriving in Cabo, he left the caravan group and traveled to La Paz where he stayed for several weeks with the trailer parked while he drove the truck around town.

After a few weeks the truck had its engine light come on and the owner continued to drive the truck until it went into limp mode. It is a fact that no dealer in Mexico can service Ford pickup late model diesels, so he called a dealership in the States which, when they found out he was in Mexico, canceled the warranty on his almost new 2015. He ended up bringing a delete kit into Mexico and removing the entire factory emissions system.

The puzzling thing about this case is that I have no other examples of any Ford, of any year, going in to limp mode on Mexican diesel, and we have no way of knowing whether this owner's issue was caused by sulfur in the fuel, or by the unrelated failure of an emissions system component. That is why I have been posting alerts about the 2015 Ford diesel pickups.

As a result of the confusion about this case, I have been recommending, until there is more data available, that owners of 2015 and later Ford diesel pickups bring an Edge CT2 tuner with them into Mexico, because the Edge CT2 can force a regeneration to burn sulfur out of the system. Owners should use the Edge CT2 to force a regeneration if the engine light or any other emissions message comes on - a regeneration is all that is required to fix the temporary sulfur poisoning. Owners need to call Edge at 1-888-360-3343 and make sure they order the correct model for their truck. https://edgeproducts.com/

It is important to note that I do NOT make any commission for the sale of Edge products, and I have no connection whatsoever to the Edge company. My ONLY interest is in helping owners of late model pickups cope with problems they experience using Mexican LSD.

The trucks which have the most problems are GM products. I have a 2015 Duramax powered Silverado myself, so I know from direct experience that limp mode can happen, and it takes specialised equipment to run a Service Regeneration, followed by a Reductant (DEF) Quality Test to get the vehicle out of limp mode.

In the past ten days I have assisted 3 separate owners of GM pickups, two with 2012 model year, and one with 2013 model year, deal with speed limitation issues after the POOR QUALITY DEF warning light came on and speed limitation messages were being displayed.

Mexican LSD is a VERY SERIOUS PROBLEM for all Duramax powered pickups 2012 through 2016, and possibly the 2015 Ford, per the information above. Dodge pickups with the Cummins engine appear to have no problems other than the occasional engine light on, and DEF consumption up to 3 times the normal amount. (The Dodge emissions system uses increasing amounts of DEF to compensate for the decrease in efficiency of the SCR as it becomes sulfur poisoned).

If Pemex can't get it's act together and begin producing ULSD, hopefully in 2017 when foreign oil companies can begin importing their own fuel in to Mexico there will be service stations carrying ULSD all across Mexico. Can't wait for an Esso or Shell station down the street carrying ULSD from the USA or Canada.

[moisheh]

Are you saying you added DEF to the diesel tank??????? Why????

Moisheh

[Ed_White]

There is plenty of evidence that there IS ULSD all the way down the Northern Baja to, and including, Jesus Maria. I personally collected a sample of diesel from El Rosario and had it tested in the USA last April - it was ULSD from the USA, and Pemex's own distribution paperwork, plus interviews with staff at the Pemex stations, confirms that all of the diesel comes from Ensenada, and originates in the USA and Japan. South of Ensenada the diesel originates at Mexican refineries and is distributed out of La Paz.

Anyone taking a 2011 or late diesel pickup in to Mexico should contact me at whitetmp@aol.com for advice on their specific truck make, model, and year. Of particular concern is the 2015 Ford Powerstroke.

Here is my latest summary report on the situation:

DIESEL FUEL IN MEXICO – AN UPDATE
FOR 2007.5 - 2015 PICKUP OWNERS


For those new to this topic, Mexican diesel fuel presently contains up to 500 ppm of sulfur, while the Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) sold in Canada and the USA is just 15 ppm. Unfortunately, the higher sulfur Mexican diesel can cause temporary “sulfur poisoning” of the emissions system for some pickup trucks with diesel particulate filters (DPF) and selective catalytic reducers (SCR). (DPFs were introduced in late 2007, SCRs were added by Ford and GM in 2011, and Dodge introduced SCRs in 2014). Your pickup truck has both DPF and SCR technology if you add Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) to a separate on-board tank.


THE GOOD NEWS

Despite the potential for emissions system problems on DPF/SCR equipped pickups, laboratory testing prior to 2007 suggested that 2007.5 through 2010 model year diesels, whether Ford, GM, or Dodge, would tolerate well the higher sulfur Mexican diesel. This has indeed turned out to be the “real world” situation. There can be occasional bluish exhaust smoke during regeneration cycles, but no serious fault conditions are triggered. In addition, testing prior to the release of DPF equipped pickups confirmed that there would be no permanent damage to the emissions system, as long as higher sulfur fuels were not used for more than 40,000 continuous miles.

For 2011 and 2012 model years, some owners have been experiencing occasional engine light illumination, and “DEF QUALITY POOR” warnings. Those warnings typically disappear, however, following a 15 minute high speed run, OR during subsequent heavy trailer towing, OR after the next regeneration. All of these situations usually raise exhaust gas temperatures high enough to purge sulfur compounds from the system.

DEF QUALITY POOR warnings tend to occur a few weeks after a fifth wheel or other heavy trailer has been disconnected, and the truck is being driven around locally in Mexico. Lower exhaust temperatures while unloaded permit the buildup of sulfur compounds, reducing the efficiency of the emissions system until an error code is triggered. The Diesel Exhaust Fluid is NOT the culprit in these cases, even though that is the message displayed. It is simply a matter of the engine computer thinking that higher than expected NOX (oxides of nitrogen) in the exhaust is evidence that the DEF is not doing its job.


THE “NOT-SO-GOOD” NEWS

In 2013, Environmental Protection Agency monitoring requirements for NOX in the exhaust became much stricter. Monitoring is more frequent, and NOX must remain within a tighter tolerance level. In addition, regenerations to burn off the soot and sulfur compounds are less frequent. As a result, 2013 and later model year diesel pickups are more likely to register fault codes while in Mexico, and clearing the codes is more complex.

Also for GM 2013 and later model years, the distance which can be travelled after a DEF fault is triggered, and before “limp mode” (maximum speed 4mph) is initiated, gets accelerated with time. This means that the available non-limp-mode miles often disappear more quickly than warranted by the distance travelled, creating a stressful experience for owners.

Luckily, not every owner will experience such fault conditions, but when they happen, the key is to get the truck to do a regeneration as soon as possible. Once the emissions system is cleared of sulfur compounds by the heat of a regeneration cycle, the engine computer stops thinking that there is a problem with the DEF, and the fault condition disappears. It is critical that a regeneration be initiated well before limp mode occurs, because the vehicle must be driven at highway speeds for about 35 minutes during a regeneration.



FORCING A REGENERATION CYCLE

Unfortunately, there is no direct method for an owner to force a regeneration, but some pickup models have an indirect method based on EPA requirements that regenerations must occur approximately twice as often if there is a problem with the DPF pressure sensors. So, disconnecting the DPF pressure sensors can sometimes force a regeneration, provided that more than half the normal distance between regenerations has already been travelled.

Typically, immediately after disconnecting the DPF pressure sensors, the driver will see a message that soot filter cleaning has started and to keep driving at highway speeds until it is finished. If half the normal distance between regenerations has not yet been travelled, it could be up to 200 hundred miles before a regeneration is triggered, but odds are, for a fault to have been triggered by excess sulfur buildup, it is likely that more than half the normal distance since the last regeneration has already been travelled. Information is available from the author on how to unplug the DPF pressure sensors on some 2013 and later model years, but forcing a regeneration is significantly more complicated if limp mode has already occurred.

Unfortunately, in mid-February of 2015, Pemex cancelled the ULSD refinery upgrades it had announced in September of 2014 - upgrades which would have made ULSD available across Mexico by early 2016. This means that most Mexican diesel fuel will continue to be LSD for the next few years. For those traveling the Baja though, there is reasonable evidence that Pemex stations in the Northern Baja are all carrying ULSD originating in the USA or Japan.

Irrespective of the manufacturer of your pickup, if it also requires Diesel Exhaust Fluid, be sure to take at least 7 gallons with you into Mexico, because DEF consumption will increase, and even double, as the system tries to compensate for temporary sulfur poisoning of the emissions system. DEF is available from some Napa Auto Parts and heavy truck service centers on special order, but the price can be twice as much as in the USA.

Owners needing more specific information, or with a personal experience to share, can contact me at whitetmp@aol.com. Please note though that the information provided in this article, and to any owners who need assistance, is provided only in the interests of sharing of knowledge, and should not be interpreted as an endorsement or encouragement by the author for owners of 2007.5 and later pickup trucks to drive them into Mexico.


Ted White
April 26, 2015

[moisheh]

Still no signs of ULSD being available soon.

Moisheh

[Godfather2u]

Okay, it's 2016....Any news on this?

[moisheh]

None of the Diesels sold in Mexico have 2007 and up pollution systems. Same for the big trucks. No need for them as there is no ULSD fuel. Maybe once the fuel is available ( it will not be next year!) things will change. I also doubt there will ever be real competition at the retail level for gas and diesel. The station owners Association has too much clout.

Moisheh

[briansue]

We have a friend who has a Ford diesel pickup and we went with him last year to get parts at a Ford dealer in Guadalajara. I went and asked about this and the result is that the trucks built for the Mexico market are different from the trucks built for the US market. Same with the Semi Tractors - Kenworth builds Ken-Mex in Mexicali for the Mexico market and they do not have DPF. DPF is an environmental filter to cut down on pollution. They actually had them in other parts of the world before the US - like Europe. Mexico hasn't gotten there yet so they are not required in Mexico. And technically they probably can't require them until they can produce 15ppm fuel.

[Trackrig]

I fly to Mexico two to three times a year for several weeks and drive by the car dealerships without really looking at them. Do any of them sell Ford, Chevy, or Dodge diesel pick-up trucks at them that are the same as sold in the US?

If anyone is in Mexico now who sees this discussion and you go by a dealer, let us know.

Bill