I admit it--I've deleted my emissions equiptment

[Diesel_Dave]

I've decided to finally "come clean" and admit that I've deleted much of the emissions equiptment on my truck. This was all done early last year:
~Removed diesel particulate filter (DPF)
~Removed diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC)
~Removed NOx adsorber (aka lean NOx trap)
~Removed EGR system
~Removed intake throttle plate
~Reprogrammed ECM with Smarty Jr Fuel Economy tune with most advanced timing

Here's the background on what happened. Diesel emissions regulations in the US were significantly reduced in 2007, resulting in significant changes to the Dodge diesel trucks in 2007. Halfway through 2007 Dodge switched from the old 5.9L Cummins engines to the new 6.7L engines witch met the new emissions standards. My truck has the 6.7L. Unlike the 5.9L, the 6.7L came equiped with EGR, DPF, DOC, NOx adsorber, and intake throttle. Early on it became evident that the newer trucks had a lot of issues with all the emissions equiptment.

I bought my truck early last year and got a great deal on it. A big reason for this was because the powertrain warranty had just run out at 70,000 mi. 3 months after buying the truck, I started having probelms with the DPF pluging up. I took it into the shop and they tried to do a stationary regeneration to try to clean eveything out. That test failed, so I was faced with taking it to the Dodge dealer to have the DPF system replaced. This is typically a $3,000-4,000 price ticket, so I wasn't too happy about that. I knew I could buy the programmer and delete kit parts for under $1,000 and get a vehicle that would be more reliable and more fuel efficient. Technically, it is illegal to modify or remove the emissions equiptment, however, I live in Indiana which does not have any vehicle inspections of any kind. Also, almost all my driving is in small towns and semi-rural areas, so I rationalized the increased NOx and particulate emissions to myself that way. That with the fact that getting rid of the emissions equiptment yeilds a hefty improvement in fuel consumption which reduces CO2 emissions. Also, having the aftertreatment in place requires that you keep your rpms up and drive it "hard" to keep things from plugging up. Deleting allowed me to drive in a more economical way--keeping rpms low and driving "soft".

As far as the mileage effects you can see it from my fuel log. My first 4 entries was before everything happened (averaging 18.7 mpg). The next 2 entries were while I was in the process of doing things (averaging 21.8 mpg). The next 3 readings, with everything finished averaged 25.3 mpg. So, all told, I gained about 35% over where I started. The rest of my mods have brought me from there to where I am today.

So that's the story. I'm sure some of our more "environmentally friendly" members may not like me for this, but I decided it was time to lay everything out there, rather than hiding behind "undiscolsed powertrain mods" on my vehicle profile.

[mcrews]

wow......not sure what to say......

But I repect you and admire your willingness to come 'clean' here an ecomodder.

[Weather Spotter]

Plant a few trees and call it good

[t vago]

Install a water injection kit if you're concerned about NOx. Not sure what to say about the DPF, though, other than this:

[Diesel_Dave]

Originally Posted by t vago

Install a water injection kit if you're concerned about NOx. Not sure what to say about the DPF, though, other than this:

Yeah, those DPFs burn a ton of fuel, especially during regens. Back before I deleted, I could be going down the highway about 20 miles after reseting my trip mpg meter. It would be fairly stable at about 22 mpg, then all of the sudden it would start to drop, drop, drop, for about 5-10 miles until it would hit 17 mpg. That's when it was doing a regen. That would happen 2-3 times per week. Even in my pre-ecomodder days, that was hard to stomach.

[ron]

did you ever have it tested afterwords to see how your doing with emissions. in cal. you have to reinstall every 2 yrs

[NachtRitter]

I won't tell anyone... oh, wait...

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by Diesel_Dave

I've decided to finally "come clean" and admit that I've deleted much of the emissions equipment on my truck.

I've been expecting this ever since I've seen the undisclosed drive train mods

Early on it became evident that the newer trucks had a lot of issues with all the emissions equipment.

Tell me about it ... it's not just the diesel trucks.

I bought my truck early last year and got a great deal on it.

I guess you now know why it came cheap.

I'm sure some of our more "environmentally friendly" members may not like me for this, but I decided it was time to lay everything out there

With all the after-treatment stuff gone, why not go with Biodiesel or a high BD blend ?

It'll make less soot.
It'll make "sizeable", flocking soot, not the < 2,5 µm microscopic soot that eventually DPFs produce and that goes even deeper in everyone's lungs.

Some reports state that with rapeseed esters, NOx goes down rather than up. Dunno if you can get RME or REE biodiesels locally ?

Another way to clean up your emissions is CNG blending.
Wether you can recoup the cost for that installation depends on how many miles you expect to run this truck - and wether you can get CNG locally.

Originally Posted by Diesel_Dave

Yeah, those DPFs burn a ton of fuel, especially during regens.

Sounds very familiar.

My instant FC doubles - or worse - during DPF regenerations.
A long regen can add 10% to my tank average



Do I have to say it again ?

DIESELS ARE NOT THE SOLUTION

CLEAN DIESELS ARE DIRTY MARKETING

Stay away from modern diesels.

[jakobnev]

Have you put any thought into developing a DPF that regenerates with power from a wall-socket?

(Who knows, maybe i could be as simple as a hole in the tube where a hot air gun fits.)

EDIT (Piwoslaw): This is a good question which deserves its own thread:
DPF regeneration alternatives

[vskid3]

I don't blame you. Heck, if I knew I could gain even 2MPG in my Escape by removing the cat, it would be out in an instant.

I would be willing to bet that Dave's truck ends up putting out less emissions than stock. He doesn't have to waste fuel clearing out any filters and he probably drives a lot more sensibly than the average person with a diesel truck.