DPF Problems

[Carlos Alberto]

What speed/rpm/journey duration is required to maintain a healthy DPF on a 2.2 diesel 2012 RAV4 ?

[Bper]

Hi Carlos,your 2.2 litre diesel RAV4 has a Diesel Particulate Filter DPF that traps soot particles from the exhaust. To keep your DPF healthy and avoid clogging, it's important to consider a combination of things.Regular motorway driving. The DPF relies on a self cleaning process called regeneration to burn off the trapped soot. This regeneration cycle typically happens at motorway speeds around 50-70 mph for extended periods like 15-20 minutes. At motorway speeds, the engine gets hotter, creating the ideal conditions for regeneration.If your daily commute consists mostly of short stop and start traffic, the engine might not reach the necessary temperature to trigger regeneration. This can lead to a buildup of soot in the DPF and eventually cause clogging.Your Toyota RAV4 owner's manual may have specific recommendations for maintaining the DPF, including information on warning lights or signs of a clogged DPF and what to do.

If your daily driving is primarily short trips, try to incorporate a regular extended motorway drive every month or so to allow for proper regeneration. While DPF cleaning products exist, use them with caution and strictly according to the manufacturer's instructions. Ignoring a DPF warning light is not advisable. A clogged DPF can lead to engine damage and expensive repairs. If you suspect a problem with your DPF, speak to a mechanic for diagnosis. Remember, motorway speed for extended periods is key, and focusing on maintaining that speed is more important than hitting a specific RPM. Hope this helps.

[Carlos Alberto]

Thank you so much

[philip42h]

3 hours ago, Bper said:

Hi Carlos,your 2.2 litre diesel RAV4 has a Diesel Particulate Filter DPF that traps soot particles from the exhaust. To keep your DPF healthy and avoid clogging, it's important ...

Which AI system are you using Bob?

Its answers aren't bad, just rather verbose ...

[Bper]

59 minutes ago, philip42h said:

Which AI system are you using Bob?

Its answers aren't bad, just rather verbose ...

Hi Philip. I'm not using any AI. I am fortunate to be able to spend considerable time looking at different forums and models and trying to learn as much as possible about problems that arise. What I've found on forums is that quite often the answers given can be brief and it's often better to try and give if available, as much information as possible.

I have been able to categorise from this forum and others, various models and problems that arise and my replies are often a mixture of my own and other recommendations. Sorry if they might sound a bit ‘verbose’ but I certainly don't profess to have the knowledge that many others have. However, the forum is about trying to help others resolve problems and if any of my replies might be a bit long winded but it solves their issue along with giving them a better understanding, then I am happy to continue doing the same.

Apologies if my reply is verbose.👍

[Dippy]

No you still haven’t passed the Turing test 😉 

Wish I had had that answer a few years ago, people would say motorway but not how long and also key for me what RPM. Think finally I heard better 2000-2500 minimum, a constant speed in a high gear at 1800rpm is less likely to help. 
 

I replaced my DPF for a price barely 10% of that which Toyota were asking, I posted it here for others. Yes my car was doing lots of short trips. 

[philip42h]

1 hour ago, Dippy said:

what RPM

The conditions for regeneration to occur are having the engine at temperature and running above 2000 rpm. So, ideally, you'd want to have been driving for 20 minutes so that the engine is fully warmed, and be running at, say, 2100-2200 rpm for regeneration to have begun.

The 'how long' depends on your normal / previous journey profiles. If your regular journeys are over 30-40 minutes and include substantial proportions when regeneration can occur naturally the DPF should never soot-up too much in the first place. If you regularly run many short journeys that prevent regeneration from occurring, I would want to run the occasional journey of around an hour to recover the situation. An hour on the motorway at 70 mph will never go amiss.

Edit: and if it is an Auto, driving in Sport mode will raise the revs and help the situation. 😉

[Mjolinor]

It also helps to load up the engine so heated rear window, fan on full lights on. It is the revs and load that are important so one or two gears less that top gear and keep it loaded.

If you have a faten like mine you can stick her in the passenger seat, make any car grunt will that weight.

[Cyker]

It's tricky to say as there isn't necessarily one way to do it - The key is gettin the engine nice and hot, but there are a lot of ways to do this.

Driving at motorway speeds 1 gear lower than usual is a popular one, as is hooning around a hilly area. Hauling loads of heavy junk to the dump is another one - Diesel engines love being loaded and work better the more they have to pull against which is why they're so hard to beat for haulage (While electrics can haul heavy loads, they don't like it!).

Long journeys/road trips are the most gentle way to achieve it, but that's a lot of time wasting unless the journey has a purpose..