Cleaning The Egr Worth It ?

[80andybrown80]

I have read countless posts on this subject and to be honest had never heard of this engine part until two days ago. I also had no idea it could make such a difference to the performance if it is dirty and clogged.

When I bought my Rav (2002 5door D4D gx) it run like a charm. Over the years it has got rather noisy and although it is still quite nippy it just doesn't feel like it did a few years back.

I can only assume the egr on my Rav has never been cleaned, certainly not in the time I owned it. Would I expect to see a difference in performance and fuel economy ? I do get smoke on fast accelerations but always assumed that's just what diesels do. Current Mpg reads 38 mixed city / main roads driving.

Either way I think I might give it a go and include it in my yearly service routine.

Any input greatly appreciated.

(PS is there anything else I should have a look at when doing this)

[Davrav]

I have read countless posts on this subject and to be honest had never heard of this engine part until two days ago. I also had no idea it could make such a difference to the performance if it is dirty and clogged.

When I bought my Rav (2002 5door D4D gx) it run like a charm. Over the years it has got rather noisy and although it is still quite nippy it just doesn't feel like it did a few years back.

I can only assume the egr on my Rav has never been cleaned, certainly not in the time I owned it. Would I expect to see a difference in performance and fuel economy ? I do get smoke on fast accelerations but always assumed that's just what diesels do. Current Mpg reads 38 mixed city / main roads driving.

Either way I think I might give it a go and include it in my yearly service routine.

Any input greatly appreciated.

(PS is there anything else I should have a look at when doing this)

Just dome mine on my 4.3

Not as badly clogged as I expected [37.5K miles] but manifold was getting to be quite restricted.

MPG readout before - 42ish

MPG readout after - 48ish

Haven't done a brim to brim check since cleaning but I'm pretty sure the cleaning has made a differnce as nothing else has changed.

[three5]

I have read countless posts on this subject and to be honest had never heard of this engine part until two days ago. I also had no idea it could make such a difference to the performance if it is dirty and clogged.

When I bought my Rav (2002 5door D4D gx) it run like a charm. Over the years it has got rather noisy and although it is still quite nippy it just doesn't feel like it did a few years back.

I can only assume the egr on my Rav has never been cleaned, certainly not in the time I owned it. Would I expect to see a difference in performance and fuel economy ? I do get smoke on fast accelerations but always assumed that's just what diesels do. Current Mpg reads 38 mixed city / main roads driving.

Either way I think I might give it a go and include it in my yearly service routine.

Any input greatly appreciated.

(PS is there anything else I should have a look at when doing this)

Just dome mine on my 4.3

Not as badly clogged as I expected [37.5K miles] but manifold was getting to be quite restricted.

MPG readout before - 42ish

MPG readout after - 48ish

Haven't done a brim to brim check since cleaning but I'm pretty sure the cleaning has made a differnce as nothing else has changed.

Did mine last week at 24,400 and three years old. All the advice on this thread is fine, only thing I would add is that I used a Bottle Brush for cleaning the manifold ports. It made the job even easier. Also used a length of garden hose fitted to the vacuum cleaner with duct tape to get the loosened carbon out.

Minor digression: Some of you will know that just coming up to 3 years ago my brother and I bought identical cars from the same dealer on the same day. From then until last September they both had the "kid glove treatment" as far as driving goes. For the first 20k miles his was run on supermarket fuel and mine on Shell. I doubt if either of them has ever exceeded 75mph in their lives. However, my brother was ready to trade his in last September for a Subaru Forrester so I bought it off him for my daughter. At the time she lived between Perth and Dundee and traveled from there to our spot in West Yorks and her in-laws in Salisbury fairly regularly. The poor car must have had a bit of a shock as she has the cruise control set to 80 on motorways, runs it on the cheapest fuel she can get and "takes full advantage of the power output of the engine" The outcome is that she is getting a steady 50mpg on journeys while I only manage about 45!

I'm hoping to get my hands on my daughters EGR valve in the near future to see if it was as blocked as mine or if the "Italian Tune Up" method clears it out. Will report back

[hyperactive72]

Realise this isnt about the EGR at least I dont think it is butthe engine management light has come on my Rav4 on a number of and has lost total power usually between 2000-3000revs and i have had to pull over turn the engine off and wait a few minutes. It always re-starts, took it in to have it tested no codes on the computer. Took it to my garage who said they found iron filings in the fuel line filter and fuel line, this could mean the injector pump is breaking up but may not or any number of other things all of which ar £400+ but they are insure what is the problem...any one else had this problem?

[80andybrown80]

Well, pulled of the EGR today and was surprised at how clean it was. Obviously there was a layer of sooty carbon stuff but for never being cleaned or maintained for 80,000 miles it was not bad at all.

Just gave it the carb spray treatment and cleaned the engine ports too. Hard to say if its really made a difference although considering how quick it is to do and the problems it can cause its definitely worth cleaning when doing a full service.

[80andybrown80]

Meant ask , when cleaning the egr i noticed a pipe with oil in it (in picture) is this normal ?? Surely oil going down this air duct cant be good.

[Mistermena]

Meant ask , when cleaning the egr i noticed a pipe with oil in it (in picture) is this normal ?? Surely oil going down this air duct cant be good.

It looks like to me that its the breather pipe from the rocker cam cover. Its a way of the engine to get rid of the gases that are built up through the Turbo. Mine on my VW Polo TDi is more oily than that. And mine is still going strong at 192K...

[loscar]

your car too dirty,what troubling it is!Of all the routine tasks which have to be completed daily, vacuuming is the most brain-numbing! How often have you caught yourself wishing this job away? You could these days own a robot vacuum cleaner slave that does the car for you!

[anchorman]

Well you could but it doesn't solve the oil issue!

I agree with MM, it really is normal for oil to be inside that pipe. Don't worry.

[nig.xl]

Did my 4.2 at about 60K and hardly any soot let alone build up in the EGR. I think the EGR clean has more of an effect on the 4.3 models. Incidentally does anyone know if the EGRs get as dirty after the new engines are fitted ?