2009 C5 1.6 HDI 110 - does it come with DPF or not?

[mooseshaver]

When I had the 1.6 hdi tax was the same and it had a fap.

[Bob L'eponge]

I'm not convinced my car has FAP fitted considering the emissions (and £135 tax a year), I need to have look under the bonnet.

I am certain that it will have a FAP!

A car's VED (there hasn't actually been such a thing as a hypothecated 'road tax' since the 1930's!) is based on the amount of CO2 it emits. I.e. it is effectively a carbon tax. Currently only cars that emit less than 100g of CO2 per km pay no carbon tax at all.

You also need to remember that a FAP is there purely to filter out unburnt particulates, it does not reduce the amount of CO2 the engine produces.

[Bob L'eponge]

I would say only if you use a fully synthetic oil for the 'flushing' change that is compatible with what is put in afterwards. After a change there will always be some residual oil left in the engine, and if this isn't fully synthetic, or is of low quality, this residual oil may well start to break down or carbonise, even though the bulk of the oil has been changed.

I would say it is best to use Ineo ECS or equivalent, but change it more frequently than is specified.

I got 4l of Carlube 5W30 Fully Synthetic for flush and Total Ineo ECS for clean change so I think I'll be fine.

How long flushing with temporary oil would you recommend?

I would say that any short run, say 30 miles maximum would suffice for 'flushing' purposes. However, if the Carlube oil is as good as the Ineo, why change it? If it is not as good, how could you ever get it all out so that it doesn't 'contaminate' all that lovely Ineo oil? Generally, you get what you pay for and cheap oil is often something of an unknown quantity. It might say 'fully synthetic' but what does this actually mean? What base oil was used? What additives does it contain? Etc.

[Hell Razor5543]

Asda are still doing Castrol GTX at £12 for 4l (as of yesterday evening).

[isisalar]

I may be wrong but last time I looked GTX was a mineral oil and as such is totally unsuitable for any HDI engine. Fully synthetic only.
Cheers
Paul

[Peter.N.]

In my manual it quotes 'CF' rated oil as being suitable for the Hdi which can be mineral, I use Comma semi synthetic CF rated in both of mine at around £13.00 for 5 litres and have never had a problem, this was the same oil I was using in the XUD engines. I believe that the frequency of oil changes is more important than using expensive oil, I have had XUD engines still good at nearly 300,000 miles and one of my Hdi's is at 215,000.

Peter

[isisalar]

Thanks Peter, I stand corrected, I can't say I was looking forward to paying £30+ for oil when I come to service mine.
Cheers
Paul

[spako]

So to summarise, my car does come with DPF. Now I know how the filter looks so I can't miss it under the bonnet