Who can sort my Mazda6 problem?

I currently drive a 2006 Mazda6 TD Sport with 260,000km on the clock - I'm a taxi driver so I do big mileage: over 200,000km in two and a half years. Needless to say I've had problems with the DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) and had to have it regenerated six or seven times. Now the DPF has run it's course and can no longer be regenerated. The price is very prohibitive to get a new DPF, as it costs about €2,500 before fitting.

I couldn't afford to go for this option so decided to have the DPF removed and get the ECU remapped. This has worked to a certain extent, economy has improved and power has been increased. Only problem is that the DPF light is still flashing and engine management light is on.

Would you be able to recomend somebody who can sort this problem for me?

Ronan Laverty (Bettystown )

Mar 2011 Filed under: taxi

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Expert answer

Hi Ronan,

We asked Ciaran Lowe, a former service manager for Nissan Ireland, to answer this one. He told us. "I can understand your reasoning for removing the Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) because of the excessive cost of replacement. However, the DPF on diesel vehicles plays an important roll in reducing vehicle emissions. In fact these filters can reduce diesel soot emissions by up to 80 percent, so by removing the DPF it is interfering with the emissions on your vehicle. By re-mapping the ECU it is only tricking the engine management  system to see emissions within spec regarding the DPF system. However even with the ECM re-mapped the vehicle will still fail any future emissions tests. The fact your light is on indicates the system has identified out of range emissions."

I'm afraid the best solution all-round is to seek a used DPF filter.

We've talked to a few people in the industry and short of messing with the actual lights in the dashboard there is no way around this. We can't recommend this route, but it could be done by any auto electrician.

Complete Car Adviser