2015 Passat and Regeneration Issue

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
Hello,
This is my first diesel car so please bear with me.
I have a 2015 Passat TDI SE that I picked up in Dec. 14. It has 666 (?!?) miles on it. As I was driving my son to school, suddenly I had the following lights appear: Engine (solid), Glow Plug (Flashing) and DPF (Solid) along with limp mode. I made my way to the dealer who stated that "scanned vehicle and found fault for the particulate filter regeneration. Ran test plan and it went though regeneration mode. Suspended test but send on line for GFF in case it needs to be readdressed in short future. Test plan stated that the test performed successfully and the vehicle is now good. Probable cause was due to short driving trip making the trip not able to regenerate itself. Recommend that some long trips be done so that it can regenerate itself and that it won't have to be done via the scan tool at the dealer"
Background: I have been driving short distances. 3 miles daily and the last time I drove some distance (70 miles) was a few weeks ago.
I have two questions:
1. Shouldn't the DPF light have shown up before the other lights? The manual says that if the DPF light shows up, drive over 50 for around 10 miles. The DPF light never showed up until the other lights showed up as well.
2. Do I really have to drive the car on the highway every week?
Thanks a bunch,
Greg
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
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Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Yes you really do have to drive the car on the highway every week (or at least 10-15 miles in the city to get everything up to temperature, but highway is best). 3 mile trips are not sufficient to get the engine up to temperature, let alone complete a regeneration (which usually takes 10 minutes of driving once the process has been initiated).

Constant short trips will also result in very poor fuel economy. I would guess that you aren't seeing much more than low 20s on your 3 miles per day... a very far cry from the mid 40s that this car is capable of.
 
Last edited:

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
OK. Thanks for the input. It is not really a matter of fuel economy. I am just surprised that the car is brand new and broke down due to my driving style. I usually take long weekend trips but not always. In all of my research before buying, I gathered that short trips resulted in bad fuel economy, not trips to the dealer.

Thanks again,
Greg
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Well, you came across the right place for information about your new car. Hopefully we can help keep you away from the dealer in the future. :)
 

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
And just to clarify, it seems clear that the DPF light (solid) should have come on and given me a warning so that I could do some driving and clear it out. It seems strange to me to go immediately into limp mode with no warning. Am I right on this point?

Thanks,
Greg
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
Hopefully, this is a one-time occurrence. The emissions system SHOULD compensate for the short trips by going into regeneration more often. It should NOT send the car into limp mode, certainly not with 660 miles on the odo.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
And just to clarify, it seems clear that the DPF light (solid) should have come on and given me a warning so that I could do some driving and clear it out. It seems strange to me to go immediately into limp mode with no warning. Am I right on this point?
Thanks,
Greg
It is my understanding that you are correct. I'm not sure why it did that... perhaps because the vehicle is so new.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Hopefully, this is a one-time occurrence. The emissions system SHOULD compensate for the short trips by going into regeneration more often. It should NOT send the car into limp mode, certainly not with 660 miles on the odo.
It can't go into regeneration when it's only doing 3 miles a day.
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
...ooops...You're right. It's never getting hot enough. Thanks for the clarification.
 

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
Thanks a bunch everybody. I will be sure to take it for an extended highway spin at least once a week and hopefully I will never see this problem again.

--Greg
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Thanks a bunch everybody. I will be sure to take it for an extended highway spin at least once a week and hopefully I will never see this problem again.

--Greg
Good deal! It may seem inconvenient or wasteful, but it's actually nice to get away from the daily grind and just cruise around once a week and see what's going on out in the world.
 

tyrntlzrdking

Banned
Joined
Feb 3, 2013
Location
Michigan
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SE 6MT
Thanks a bunch everybody. I will be sure to take it for an extended highway spin at least once a week and hopefully I will never see this problem again.
--Greg
Sad that the insane EPA regulations designed to save the planet make it necessary to go for "extended highway spins" .

Not sure how good the thousands of failed turbos is for the environment either.
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
Good deal! It may seem inconvenient or wasteful, but it's actually nice to get away from the daily grind and just cruise around once a week and see what's going on out in the world.

^^^exactly this. I've used this "excuse" many times here in my new neighborhood, Ft. Worth. I've got a good idea where all the good destinations are...Mex. restaurants, Mex. restaurants, Mex. restaurants...etc...
 

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
Just wanted to update this issue. So, now at about 5,700 miles, I encountered the same problem. Car went into limp mode with flashing glow plug and check engine light. No DPF light this time but when I took it back to the dealer they said there was a regeneration error as before. There was no DPF warning before this. The dealer kept the car for 3 days and returned it yesterday. They did a "#2309 TDI ECM Software Update" and said that would fix it. Don't know much about this update. Searched around and found this link on tdiclub that suggests it has something to do with emissions or ash load. Hope this fixes it.
--Greg
 

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
The service adviser did not tell me to be on the look-out for any new warnings. I would be happy if the DPF light just came on in advance of limp-mode so that I could drive a bit and deal with the issue.

--Greg
 

pparks1

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2013
Location
Westland, Michigan
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SE
I've had my TDI for about 2 years now. Never had a problem, and I don't do a lot of real highway miles. But I do drive 10-15 miles everday through city/urban type traffic to get to work, so my regens happen during this time.
 

panther_v

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 28, 2003
Location
orange county, so calif
TDI
'13 Passat TDI SEL
my commute is relative short, ~15 miles daily, mostly local street. I do get the regen once a while (high speed fan). never had any issues.

i wish i can manually turn on regen without using vcds.....
 

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
Yes, I went on a big road trip. I am hoping this software update helps. I wish I could get some more specifics on what the update actually does but I gather it is next to impossible to get that info. I also gather it is a 2015 only update so I guess not too many people are having it done. It is frustrating to be having these DPF issues yet never see the DPF warning light before all hell breaks loose... I also wish there could be more user control over active regeneration. It start at the most inopportune time for me such as when I have to be at a meeting and cannot keep driving around in circles to let it finish. VW acts like regeneration all happens easily behind the scenes without any driver involvement but I do not believe that is really realistic.

--Greg
 

Thunderstruck

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 19, 2004
Location
Chicago
TDI
2015 GTI SE 6M
You can just park and let it finish. Had to do that several times with my 13 Passat. Always happened at the end of my weekly trip on the expressway to the suburbs. I actually learned to anticipate it after a while, and just sat in the parking lot and waited for it to finish.
 

Rico567

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 13, 2003
Location
Central IL
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL Premium (Turned in 7/7/18)
Regeneration is a part of life with these cars. It's useless to worry or carp about it. We drive enough highway (@70%) that most of the regenerations happen when we're on the road, I guess. I've had a few happen when I pull into the garage or stop in a parking lot. I turn the car off and walk away.
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
Rico657: You're right. However, for those of us that joined the world of TDI at the advent of the CRTDI, and naïve folk that joined later, the whole concept of "regeneration" blindsided us. There was ZERO mention of this during purchase. In addition, I honestly had no idea when I purchased my first TDI that it isn't well-suited to a life of city driving.

Add to that the reality that VAG chose to under-engineer the design (they really made no provision for cooling hyper-heated oil at shutdown), and it's no wonder that we're all trying to compensate for the engineering deficiencies. I prefer to think of it as "enthusiast" interest, not worry or carping.

Just my 2-cents.
 

showdown 42

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2012
Location
naples,FL
TDI
2016 TDI touareg
There needs to be a big yellow sticker on the vehicle before being sold to warn potential buyers not to buy if you drive less than 20k miles per yr . This regen stuff is total garbage, since when should a modern car have to be babied like this. The other issue is the replacement of emissions parts within 100k miles to the tune of $7000.DPFs.Ugh.

If most people knew all this stuff, VW would sell hardly any of these cars.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
There needs to be a big yellow sticker on the vehicle before being sold to warn potential buyers not to buy if you drive less than 20k miles per yr . This regen stuff is total garbage, since when should a modern car have to be babied like this. The other issue is the replacement of emissions parts within 100k miles to the tune of $7000.DPFs.Ugh.

If most people knew all this stuff, VW would sell hardly any of these cars.
And that's why they don't tell you about it. ;)
 

cheoah

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 6, 2013
Location
Western NC
TDI
'06 Jetta PD, '14 Passat
I dunno. I drive it 10,000 miles a year right now, and it's the vehicle I'd rather drive.
Am I taking full advantage of its strengths? Nah. Big deal. It's a great car, and even though there are several things I'd change about it, I enjoy getting in my 2014 6MT, and I enjoy the road trips. My situation may change soon, and eventually I'm hoping I can tune this thing.

I think it is worth running a scan gauge and trying to not interrupt every regen. But I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. Cursory research prior to purchase does reveal that this is newish technology, and there are some problems. I'm not sure how much, does anyone know the actual failure rate? I'm kind of blurring the lines between engine models here but it's similar component failures stemming from similar issues,,right?

I would not count on any car company to highlight the weakness of the product. I know it's a big deal on the internet here, but out in the wild? what do the numbers say? I guess it is an issue being such a new model, things are still shaking out with the 2015. Clearly I'm not the authority on the issues affecting NMS cars, but I did buy a 7 year 100,000 warranty because I don't have lots of confidence in the new technology. I run a fleet of modern farm tractors and trucks so I'm not clueless, it just doesn't seem like something to worry about. But ya, I'm not putting out $7000 for a new exhaust system, so I don't have any reason to give it much attention.

Over time I guess they will learn more about these issues and find some modifications. I hope that's the case. I'd like to hang on to this car, tune it, do some basic mods and enjoy it.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

GregPD

Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2015
Location
New York
TDI
Passat
Just some further information about the 23O9 update. The service manager gave me the technical bulletin and it looks like it came out on 5/15/15 and is for the 2015 Passat, Jetta, Beetle and Golf. It is designed to address the following:

"Deviation between the calculated and actual soot mass of the particulate matter trap causing DTC P2463 to set in the ECM fault memory.

Incorrect data for the particulate matter trap regeneration time causing DTC P2458 to set in the ECM fault memory."

--Greg
 

ZootsAlures

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 6, 2013
Location
Windsor, CT
TDI
2012Passat SE TDI
Shhhhhhhh - I told my family that I need to drive on the back roads for up to an hour to perform "Necessary Maintenance". Actually, my manual says that for my '12 6SpM to drive the car at 45mph in 4th gear for 15 minutes.


'12 Passat TDI 6SpM
Pre '65 HD's Rule

New England
 

NSTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 26, 2002
Location
Nova Scotia
TDI
15 Passat
IMHO, a modern car will be driven by non car people who just stick the key in and drive, get where they are going, whether that be 3 miles or 300 miles and turn the car off. And they should be built to be driven by non car people who don't know what a regen is, etc.

All this babying your car is crap, most don't do it and shouldn't have to. If it says in the manual what to do to maintain the car, do that and forget about it. Modern technology is supposed to improve the car, not handicap it so it has to be run more than a few miles to keep it working. It doesn't say that in the manual does it?

Don
 
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