When to change timing belt 08 Focus TDCI? How many miles to regenerate DPF filter?

nogiggity

So, I bought my first ever diesel recently and am looking for some newbieadvice.According to the service history the timing belt was done at about 50,000 miles and again at 90,000 miles which seems to be more often than necessary but ill not complain!. There is currently 138,000 on the clock. When would ye recommend the next belt change? It's an 08 Ford Focus 1.6TDCI. Also, I know it's been discussed here before.... but is lack of high miles/long journeys leading to DPF filter failure something to be concerned about? If so, how many miles/journey duration per month should I be hitting?
Thanks in advance.

mikeecho

If the timing belt is due every 40/50k miles.. well.. it looks like it's due a change about now.

colm_mcm

I’d be checking the service history, if it’s had 2 timing belts, there well may be a lot more mileage on it than 138k. The interval on that engine is every 10 years or
140,000km


Also, the 1,6 TDCI is a pox of an engine. Don’t know why you’d bother, especially if you’re not doing much mileage.

bazz26

But the cheap tax.....

As said I'd be checking the validity of that service history manual if it's stating that the timing belt has been changed at 50k and 90k miles. They don't need to be changed on that engine at those intervals.

Also back in 2008 only the 110bhp version had a DPF afaik, the lower 90bhp certainly didn't anyway. Seems bizarre that someone not doing alot of long journeys or high miles would buy a diesel engine especially that one which has a reputation for not being very reliable.

Gregor Samsa

Assuming yours is the 110bhp one with the wet DPF, I have the same engine in my Volvo V50. Currently on 218,100 km (135,500 miles) - 2010 model.

Timing belt as stated is 140,000 miles/10 years. Very strange that it's been replaced twice already, when really it's only due this year. I know a lot of people do it early, but that seems very excessive unless something was wrong both times. Mine was done at 167,000 km (about 100,000 miles) by the previous owner - so while it was quite early, it was bang on the 100k miles that many people have in their head it should be done at.

If you're unsure if you have a DPF, check right at the front of the engine behind the grille. the DPF is a large metal barrel with a heat shield around it, just beside the turbo.

(random pic found on internet showing where it is: )



If you have that, read on.

The engine gets a bad rap, but it was one of the most used engines ever, Ford, Volvo, Citroen, Mazda, Peugeot, Mini and others all used it across multiple popular models for many years. The key to success is to service it religiously on time (or before time) and to use the correct oil, and to drive it like diesels were designed for.

One of the main complications with it is it's wet DPF system, which is a bit of a pain. It has a tank at the back axle that contains a fluid (known as ELOYS or PAT fluid) that's added to the fuel from time to time to aid in burning off the soot in the DPF (as the engine can't get the temperatures up to the required heights on its own). This tank needs to be refilled every 36k miles. the DPF itself has to be replaced at 75k miles, but can last a bit longer. If your car has reached 138k miles (you say miles, are you sure it's not KMs?), then it's pretty certain that it's been replaced already, but will be due again at 150k miles at the soonest (may be more, depending on when it was changed previously and what extra life you can get out of it). Later models had dry DPFs that don't require the fluid and are designed to last the lifetime of the vehicle (but like everything else, sometimes don't).

The DPF regen takes place around every 300 – 900 km depending on driving conditions. Regeneration normally takes 10 – 20 minutes. To successfully regenerate, you should aim to have the car revs at over 2k for about 20 minutes, so a motorway trip is idea. I have two 20 minute motorway commutes a day, but sometimes if I've been driving less I take a small detour to extend the trip to 30 minutes and keep the revs over 2.5k to make sure that regen kicks in and completes - motorway speeds in 4th will get you there. You'll notice higher fuel consumption during a regen.

If you're only doing short trips, you should try to give it a good run once a week.

I have the Volvo diagnostic tool (Vida/Dice), so I can check on my ELOYS level, DPF pressure and any related codes from time to time, plus force a regeneration if necessary (haven't had to yet). No sure if Forscan (the excellent free diagnostic tool for Fords) can do it too, but I assume it can. Otherwise, you'll be relying on dashboard messages to tell you when to get out and do a good run to clear a filling DPF, refill the fluid or replace the DPF.

Stoolbend

phutyle wrote: »

I have the Volvo diagnostic tool (Vida/Dice), so I can check on my ELOYS level, DPF pressure and any related codes from time to time, plus force a regeneration if necessary (haven't had to yet). No sure if Forscan (the excellent free diagnostic tool for Fords) can do it too, but I assume it can. Otherwise, you'll be relying on dashboard messages to tell you when to get out and do a good run to clear a filling DPF, refill the fluid or replace the DPF.

The forced regen on this engine is pretty severe. I won't do them anymore. If the filter gets blocked get it removed and cleaned.

We generally say 100000km for the belt to customers. I know it's before the recommended mileage but better be safe than sorry.

nogiggity

Ok, So to elaborate, I bought the car as it was a bargain,great condition, and had everything I wanted with great specs. I did a full history check before buying and there was no red flags so mileage/service history seems legit although the car was originally an UK import.. I'm currently not doing extremely high miles but that could change in near future. The engine IS 90BHP but it DOES seem to have a DPF Filter so I'm confused...
Over the next few months I will be travelling two 13km trips (on a straight 100km speed limit road) 5 days per week. Would this be enough to regen?

Audioslaven

phutyle wrote: »

I have the Volvo diagnostic tool (Vida/Dice), so I can check on my ELOYS level, DPF pressure and any related codes from time to time, plus force a regeneration if necessary (haven't had to yet). No sure if Forscan (the excellent free diagnostic tool for Fords) can do it too, but I assume it can. Otherwise, you'll be relying on dashboard messages to tell you when to get out and do a good run to clear a filling DPF, refill the fluid or replace the DPF.

Forscan will reset the fluid, check the pressure on the DPF and allow you tell ECU its got a new DPF. It really is a great free tool

Audioslaven

nogiggity wrote: »

Over the next few months I will be travelling two 13km trips (on a straight 100km speed limit road) 5 days per week. Would this be enough to regen?

In my opinion yes. The volume of Oil in the car is around 4 liters which allows the car to get up to a normal temperature pretty quickly so it should keep it clean on 13KM consistent driving. Don't be afraid to drop a gear and give it welly if you see the fuel consumption go up - this usually means a regen is happening

mullingar

The timing belt on the 1.6 tdci is every 125k miles or 200km or 10 years.

The 110hp has a Gareth turbo (look for the name molded on it) . The 90hp has a Mitsubishi turbo (no marking)

Only some early 90hp in the 05-08 shape had no dpf.


These are a good reliable engine, but needs to be maintained correctly with correct oil