NHTSA Update on CR HPFP failure investigation

JSWTDI09 said:

I see no mention of an HPFP for a CR diesel engine. The HPFP for an FSI engine is a totally different beast (that's a gasoline engine). All APR sells for our engines is a tune and an intake.

Have Fun!

Don

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pinkertonfloyd said:

Is this one new? Was over on Quattroworld, and this add showed up for a Lawfirm looking for HPFP failure victims... looks like they want to start a class action.

http://audivwproblem.com/

Here's the ad...

http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/simgad/3514361473508348666


I'm at Quattroworld/Dubworld quite a bit and this is the first ad I've seen on this over there. Dunno about the firm... but shows it's getting on someones radar. Edit: I looked them up... they're a big California based Class Action firm...

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pknopp said:

That would certainly be the way to go if you are looking for a coupon for $500 towards your next purchase.

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pknopp said:

That would certainly be the way to go if you are looking for a coupon for $500 towards your next purchase.

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TDI2000Zim said:

If most of the failures happen in October, when they start adding the winter blend, then the problem is probably related to the change (does the residue of non-winterized diesel mixed to winterized diesel form gunk???).

Or, it may point to non-winterized diesel still being sold when the temperatures drop below freezing.

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03_01_TDI said:

Wouldn't biodiesel provide improved lubrication?
I thought the limit of bioD was due to washdown during the over fuel dpf burn mode.

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1. Poor quality biodiesel breaks down under high pressure in the pump, polymerizes, causing all sorts of fun there
2. Too high gel point biodiesel can cause fuel starvation in cold weather, allowing the pump to run dry
3. Poorly washed biodiesel has a lot of methanol and lye in it - the methanol being very poor lubricity, the lye actively attacking the aluminum in the HPFP
4. Poorly stored biodiesel can collect algae, causing a filter clog and fuel starvation
5. Poorly stored biodiesel also very easily collects water (and unlike dinodiesel, it very easily stays in suspension), which severely reduces the lubricity of the fuel, and can cause corrosion of fuel system components everywhere

In California, the Air Resources Board (ARB) has regulated an additional requirement.
All diesel fuel sold in this state must have an aromatics content of 10 mass percent or
less. Alternatively, a fuel supplier can test and certify a fuel with higher aromatics level, if
emissions are equivalent to those of a specific reference fuel with a 10 mass percent aromatics
level. In that case, other fuel properties (cetane number, sulfur, nitrogen, aromatics, and
polynuclear aromatics) are recorded. Fuel marketed under this certification must be within
the recorded limits of these five properties......

California: A Special Case
Because of its unique diesel fuel regulations, California is a special case. California
regulations restrict the aromatics content of diesel fuel in order to reduce emissions.
The regulations can be met with either a low aromatics diesel (LAD), having less than
10 wt% aromatics, or with an alternative low aromatics diesel (ALAD) formulation that
gives an equivalent reduction in emissions. Many of these ALAD formulations use cetane
number improvers to help achieve the necessary emissions reduction. As a result, a
significant percentage of the diesel fuel now sold in California contains some cetane
number improver.
Reducing diesel aromatic content to 10 wt% requires more severe hydrotreating than
reducing sulfur content. As a result of this severe hydrotreating (which removes the
molecules responsible for boundary lubrication), the lubricity of some LAD may be low,
and some suppliers may treat the fuel with a lubricity additive. The ASTM D 975 diesel
fuel specification requires a minimum level of lubricity for all diesel fuels. The lubricity
specification states that all diesel fuels must have sufficient lubricity to produce a wear
scar diameter no larger than 520 microns using the High Frequency Reciprocating Rig
(HFRR, ASTM D 6079).

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RNDDUDE said:

So in regards to the California "special case" issue, there remains some unanswered questions. I may be wrong, but logic would tend to make me believe that 'severe hydrotreating' may be more costly for the refiners to do rather than just adding lubricity enhancers (ALAD). If that is the general case, that is to say they refine a base diesel that does not meet the Ca. requirements for aromatics, but rather post-treat with additives, then there is a much greater chance for lubricity variables in California due to decisions about how much additive to use, or even if it is dispensed correctly at the terminal. The aromatics requirements in Ca. run directly counter to the lubricity potential of the fuel. Makes a pretty strong case for adding your own to be safe, and it may help explain the higher incident level of HPFP failure in Ca.

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RNDDUDE said:

So in regards to the California "special case" issue, there remains some unanswered questions. I may be wrong, but logic would tend to make me believe that 'severe hydrotreating' may be more costly for the refiners to do rather than just adding lubricity enhancers (ALAD). If that is the general case, that is to say they refine a base diesel that does not meet the Ca. requirements for aromatics, but rather post-treat with additives, then there is a much greater chance for lubricity variables in California due to decisions about how much additive to use, or even if it is dispensed correctly at the terminal. The aromatics requirements in Ca. run directly counter to the lubricity potential of the fuel. Makes a pretty strong case for adding your own to be safe, and it may help explain the higher incident level of HPFP failure in Ca.

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03_01_TDI said:

What production year offer the newest hpfp revision? I really want a new tdi and need to know if a near new very low mileage 2012 would be ok or do I need to spend the cash for a 2013.

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LRTDI said:

Great graph an commentary.

When you factor in California's domination of the failed HPFP, and read about excessive Bio, have to wonder if Biodiesel is more freely available there than it is here on the east coast. Don't want to paint Californians as all greenies all the time, but have to wonder if there is a correlation.

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