Tail Pipe Soot

NickBeek

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2011
Location
Upstate, SC
TDI
2013 Passat TDI 2006 Dodge Ram
Someone else asked about this issue with their CR TDI. I looked at my tail pipes and there is a hint of soot in mine as well. Here are a few pics. Also of note, I ran my finger inside the tail pipe and it came out with a little black on it. This is at around 3800 miles on the odometer. How do all of your tail pipes look.

Left
 

tdi90hp

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2002
Location
Canuckland
TDI
2011 Golf TDI 6 speed(gone but NEVER forgotten)
my golf is same...super clean...mind boggling how they have cleaned these babies up....my 03 Jetta was a smoker...
 

NickBeek

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2011
Location
Upstate, SC
TDI
2013 Passat TDI 2006 Dodge Ram
My point is there IS a little bit of soot in there. I believe it should be completely clean......
 

Fixmy59bug

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Location
Las Vegas, NV
TDI
2015 Passat TDI SE
Considering the vehicle is a combustion engine, there will always be some remnants of that combustion, especially when the vehicle is first started and the emissions components aren't warmed up yet. It is very difficult to COMPLETELY clean all of the exhaust all of the time.
 

NickBeek

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2011
Location
Upstate, SC
TDI
2013 Passat TDI 2006 Dodge Ram
IDK, some of the big three diesel pickups with DPF look pristine inside their tail pipes. Personally, I wouldn't care if the whole exhaust fell off and was replaced with straight pipe. Although I won't do that to my vehicle. I just found it odd.
 

NickBeek

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2011
Location
Upstate, SC
TDI
2013 Passat TDI 2006 Dodge Ram
I thought about it being dust or road grime, that's why I shot the pics straight on so I could see inside the tail pipe not just the chrome tips. I also stuck my finger in the tailpipes, I'm fairly certain it is a light dusting of soot.

I stopped by my dealer this week to ask a service advisor about this and my long crank issue. I really wish I could speak to a tech, because the SA started talking nonsense about fuel quality. I told him I use the same fuel stations I have been using for 157k miles in my truck. He says are you sure your using ULSD? Umm yeah, that's what the pump is labeled! I stopped talking with him before I lost my cool. No sense in arguing with an idiot. I asked him about HPFP issues, and he said they have seen none. I later asked a lube tech, and he said they have seen a few......
 

Mach1

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Sep 27, 2005
Location
Spicewood, Tx.
TDI
05.5 Jetta 5 spd, 06 Jetta DE DSG, 04 F250 6L, 2000 F250 7.3L
Those are clean compared to older diesels, you will get some residual contaminants..
 

MayorDJQ

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 4, 2001
Location
Williamstown, Mass
TDI
'10 Golf 2dr 6m, sold.
I wouldn't be worried about it. I doubt the DPF can trap 100% of all particles. I would think .001% gets through or some similarly insignificant amount.

With all the grime on the roads of New England, I haven't even bothered looking at mine.
 

turboboost1

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 12, 2010
Location
NH
TDI
None, Did the buyback
To NickBeek

My 2010 Jetta TDI now has about 14K miles on the clock, and my exhaust is pristine. No soot at all. My car see's 90% highway driving though. Very little around town and stop and go.. Also, you're right about not arguing with an idiot. .They've had a lot more practice than you.
 

MayorDJQ

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 4, 2001
Location
Williamstown, Mass
TDI
'10 Golf 2dr 6m, sold.
I've noticed that the Big 3 trucks have those funny looking tips on the exhaust. Maybe the extra airflow helps keep them clean?
 

andy7079

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 21, 2010
Location
La Grange, IL
TDI
2010 Jetta Sedan, 2014 Touareg
I've noticed that the Big 3 trucks have those funny looking tips on the exhaust. Maybe the extra airflow helps keep them clean?
I think they're to mix cool outside air with the hot exhaust air during a DPF regen. Wouldn't want the super hot exhaust just coming out on its own...could melt paint off nearby cars and such.
 

Rod Bearing

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 18, 2007
Location
Fort Worth
TDI
Several

BlueGraphite'10TDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2009
Location
Casa Grande AZ
TDI
2010 Jetta TDI 6Man
I just went out and looked at my '10 with 43k miles. Stuck a flashlight in the pipe and it was a lot cleaner than I thought it would be. I still got a good amount on my finger, but the pipe was clean and there was only a thin film of soot. About the same as yours, I suppose.
 

1120JettaTDI

Active member
Joined
Mar 19, 2011
Location
USA
TDI
2011 Jetta TDI
I own a 2008 Chevy Diesel with a DPF on it. The soot is normal. With 60K miles on my truck the inside of the pipe is black. No visible black smoke comes out of the truck. It just slowly accumulates over time. Those pictures look clean enough to me.
 

1120JettaTDI

Active member
Joined
Mar 19, 2011
Location
USA
TDI
2011 Jetta TDI
Another way of looking at it is we have 90% to 95% cleaner emissions. This means we are still going to get 5%-10% black smoke.
 
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