Town driving mixed with A roads?

[JamesIS220]

I have a 2006 Lexus IS220d and wondering what things I should do to avoid DPF and EGR issues?

Is driving 25 miles at 60-70mph  from Staffordshire and then driving in Birmingham for 20 miles in town/stop start/ traffic and returning back home for 25 miles at 60-70mph cause any issues? I do this trip every Saturday visiting family. I believe short local trips should be avoided? ATM I have no issues and runs very well and even pulls well on the A38 in 6th gear at 60- 70mph with cruise on. Should I avoid 6th gear and keep the revs higher? It's done 175,000! Fuel MPG indicates 42-46mpg depending how heavy my right foot is on the 25 mile trip. From previous replies seems mpg readout is optimistic and 38mpg average. How much is a DPF replacement?

Can't wait for July as off on holiday in it, to the Isle Of Wight, so a proper test drive for the week. I like the comfort, looks and colour. It feels luxurious.

James

 

 

[Texas]

I do not have a Derv Lexus but the concensus is that to lessen or reduce (not eliminate ) the problem of the EGR system getting clagged  up is to avoid 6th gear ( unless you are doing more than 80-90 mph!) and to ensure that the engine is used, let's say spirited, on a regular basis ie use a lower gear for a bit longer to rev the engine slightly higher to give it a bit of a 'blow through'

Derv owners will (hopefully) explain their EGR cleaning regime and I gather the process is not that complicated.

Some may advocate additives but I doubt that this will be a 'cure all' and the problem of having to clean system manually will still exists.

paul m.

just re-read your post and this journey you speak of is only on Saturdays! So prob not so detrimental, how is the car 'normally' used on a daily basis?

[JamesIS220]

1 hour ago, Texas said:

I do not have a Derv Lexus but the concensus is that to lessen or reduce (not eliminate ) the problem of the EGR system getting clagged  up is to avoid 6th gear ( unless you are doing more than 80-90 mph!) and to ensure that the engine is used, let's say spirited, on a regular basis ie use a lower gear for a bit longer to rev the engine slightly higher to give it a bit of a 'blow through'

Derv owners will (hopefully) explain their EGR cleaning regime and I gather the process is not that complicated.

Some may advocate additives but I doubt that this will be a 'cure all' and the problem of having to clean system manually will still exists.

paul m.

just re-read your post and this journey you speak of is only on Saturdays! So prob not so detrimental, how is the car 'normally' used on a daily basis?

Thanks for the info, I'll avoid 6th gear. I tend to use my petrol Volvo 940 for short trips unless getting fuel in the Lexus which is a 10 mile round trip. I try to avoid short trips and ensure the engine is fully up to temp. Would it be ok for a few short trips, so long as it has a run every Saturday?

James.

[aussie_ant]

Hi James.

I have been an IS 220D owner for a week now and this forum has been invaluable!  Thanks to all.

Mine has just done 122k.

My takeaway's thus far from what i have read here.

1.  Avoid 6th gear as mentioned above.

2. This product seems to be highly recommended: GENUINE BG244 BG 244 Diesel Fuel Injector & Engine Cleaner

3.  There is a simple youtube or howto here that explains how to clean the EGR.

I was in the stealership yesterday and they mentioned there is not much point in cleaning the EGR on it's own and they would advocate doing it from end to end (i am not mechanically minded)  It was probably just sales speil TBH.

Another product that i have my eye on is this: Fueltone Diesel additive 500ml multi

Seems to have really good reviews.

I would love mine to get upto 50mpg as advertised but am sensing this is going to near on impossible.  Currently researching RaceChips and appropriate insurance to see if that will help at all. 

[scudney]

Welcome to the LOC,hoping you find it educative and informative 😊 

[Shahpor]

Welcome Anthony

I have had my 220d for 3 years now and it has covered 30k miles in my care, taking the total to just under 140,000 miles.

They do say to generally avoid short journeys, but they can be done as long as a good run is included at some point.

Avoiding 6th gear is a good idea, which for me tends to mean doing 2000-2200 rpm on the motorway.  I also use 4th on A roads when going 50-60 mph for the same reason.

James, it sounds like you are doing a fairly long run with a majority being constant speed.  If this is the case, then doing the 20 miles of stop start traffic shouldn't pose a problem.

The typical advice is at least 20 minutes constantly above 2000 rpm will give the DPF a good clean.  Also, a good old 'Italian tuneup' every once in a while helps

A quick eBay search suggests that it is between £250-300 for a new DPF of unknown quality, going up to £400-500 for an OEM type.  Or so they claim in the listing.

As for the EGR valve, no amount of motorway driving appears to keep it clean, at least as far as mine is concerned.  I would say a good scrub every 5000 miles is going to be the only way to keep the EGR valve happy.  Luckily, it is quite a straightforward procedure that should take you less than an hour to do.  The basics are covered here:

 

I do mine slightly differently.  There are two bolt above and below the metal pipe at the cylinder head end.  The top bolt is easy enough to remove, but the bottom one isn't so simple.  The way I do it is to just loosen the bottom bolt, which allows the metal pipe to be moved enough to the side to get the EGR valve out.  This way, the Battery also doesn't need to be removed.

Everytime I take mine out it is full of carbon deposits.  I am convinced that the inside of my intake manifold is also full of carbon, but unforunately it is much harder to remove than the EGR valve.  

I have managed over 40mpg, but that was taking it easy whilst doing nothing but motorway miles.  A mix of A roads and motorway got me 37-38mpg, whereas my current commute of A roads and town driving yields 32-33mpg.

Hope this helps

[JamesIS220]

Thanks everyone, some great links and info

The youtube video is great.  38MPG isn't too bad as suspect the Lexus is heavier than my Volvo 940 at just under 1.5 tonnes.

I have never calculated my 940 but suspect 25mpg in town and 33mpg max on a run. The thing I do like with my 940 2.3 low pressure turbo, is virtually no turbo lag and coupled to the aisin warner AW70 automatic gearbox it goes well, even with only 136bhp and with virtually no turbo lag. Spoilt or lazy driving if you like for the last 9 years!

The Lexus IS220d is a lovely car but needs to be auto or a better manual gearbox and get rid of the turbo lag. It feels right at home as a long distance motorway speed cruiser rather than a town car. I bet the IS 250 V6 petrol Auto is a nicer more suited combination. The ECC was lovely to use today.

James

 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

On 5/5/2018 at 11:12 AM, aussie_ant said:

Hi James.

I have been an IS 220D owner for a week now and this forum has been invaluable!  Thanks to all.

Mine has just done 122k.

My takeaway's thus far from what i have read here.

1.  Avoid 6th gear as mentioned above.

2. This product seems to be highly recommended: GENUINE BG244 BG 244 Diesel Fuel Injector & Engine Cleaner

3.  There is a simple youtube or howto here that explains how to clean the EGR.

I was in the stealership yesterday and they mentioned there is not much point in cleaning the EGR on it's own and they would advocate doing it from end to end (i am not mechanically minded)  It was probably just sales speil TBH.

Another product that i have my eye on is this: Fueltone Diesel additive 500ml multi

Seems to have really good reviews.

I would love mine to get upto 50mpg as advertised but am sensing this is going to near on impossible.  Currently researching RaceChips and appropriate insurance to see if that will help at all. 

Hi,

If you have any issues with insurance  at all then please feel free to drop me a line.

Regards,

Dan.