Jump to content

Subaru Outback


David BASC
 Share

Recommended Posts

Purchased as 08 plate diesel Outback at the end of November with 82k on the clock, with a decent service history. Great motor but it had squeaky breaks and quite a bit of black smoke if you accelerated it hard.

 

So, dropped it into my local independent garage this morning...this is what they did:

 

84K service

Inspected and cleaned the breaks

Sorted the smoke on acceleration

Checked and fixed a bit of body trim that has come loose

 

The car now runs very smooth, its quieter, pulls like a train, no smoke, squeak all but gone...and the cost..£150, well chuffed!

 

David

Link to comment
Share on other sites

They said I had been driving it a bit too gently, suggested I gave it a bit of a raz now and gain to give it a clean out. Smoke was black, suggesting a bit of soot / un-burnt fuel, they found nothing else wrong with the engine

 

Typically when driving I tend to short shift and change gear at or just below 2000 rpm

 

Took it for a bit of a run about, accelerated hard up to about 3500 rpm - 4000 in 1st, 2nd and 3rd and put the throttle flat to the floor doing 40mph in 4th and accelerated to 70, no smoke at all

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, from the research I have done the 08 models were fitted with the open loop DPF ,while the 09 onward have closed loop DPF. From what I have read the closed loop tend to have more problems with blocking due to failed regeneration, i have heard of engines with lower millage than mine blowing up.

 

The other thing that can go wrong is the Exhaust Gas Recycling valve, that can get clogged up with deposits and the gears jam it open or closed, but the Scooby has none of those symptoms...yet

 

The final thing to look out for is over pressure at the injectors, apart from clogged injectors I am not sure what would casue that

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, from the research I have done the 08 models were fitted with the open loop DPF ,while the 09 onward have closed loop DPF. From what I have read the closed loop tend to have more problems with blocking due to failed regeneration, i have heard of engines with lower millage than mine blowing up.

 

The other thing that can go wrong is the Exhaust Gas Recycling valve, that can get clogged up with deposits and the gears jam it open or closed, but the Scooby has none of those symptoms...yet

 

The final thing to look out for is over pressure at the injectors, apart from clogged injectors I am not sure what would casue that

These new dpf systems are ****. Make sure you only fill up when you need to (don't just stick a tenner in) and really put your foot down at least once a week. I had a 14 plate Audi a3 tdi with 20k on it have problems with the dpf. I managed to get it to about 950 degrees to regen it, the thing was glowing red :L I am a mechanic by the way and see it all to often :/ Edited by Hendrix's rifle
Link to comment
Share on other sites

sadly it seem the emission regulations have ruined reliable and well built engines. I recently owned a 22 year told Subaru legacy AWD, it was great, and never missed a beat. Now it seems all modern cars manufactures struggle to meet the emission targets, and as a result produce engines with know defects or try to cheat the tests like VW.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The 14 plate will almost certain,y have the closed loop dpf where half the tiny tubes are blocked half way down, much more efficient at removing particles etc but well prone to blocking and subsequent nasty and expensive damage. Removing them is, of course possible, BUT its an automatic MOT failure if you do apparently - not sure if the same applied if you blank off the egr?

 

Advice I have had is put the best quality fuel in you can, i use the Shell premium stuff with added cleaner, plus make sure the filter get well up to temperature - ie give it a good hard run for 30 min or so regularly, once a week or so, especially if in the we you do lots of short runs where the filter does not get up to temp or have the time for a regen.

 

Never the less, apart from that i cant fault the Scooby! However, when I change it in 2-3 years time (funds permitting for another Scooby ) I will probably go for the petrol version - if i do it will be the first petrol motor i have had for 20 years!

 

David

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The 14 plate will almost certain,y have the closed loop dpf where half the tiny tubes are blocked half way down, much more efficient at removing particles etc but well prone to blocking and subsequent nasty and expensive damage. Removing them is, of course possible, BUT its an automatic MOT failure if you do apparently - not sure if the same applied if you blank off the egr?

 

Advice I have had is put the best quality fuel in you can, i use the Shell premium stuff with added cleaner, plus make sure the filter get well up to temperature - ie give it a good hard run for 30 min or so regularly, once a week or so, especially if in the we you do lots of short runs where the filter does not get up to temp or have the time for a regen.

 

Never the less, apart from that i cant fault the Scooby! However, when I change it in 2-3 years time (funds permitting for another Scooby ) I will probably go for the petrol version - if i do it will be the first petrol motor i have had for 20 years!

 

David

You are correct, removing the dpf system is an instant fail. The egr blank however is not, providing you can keep the gasses down :) if you ever get a problem just pm, might be able to point you in the right direction ;) bloody modern cars :L

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, the 84K service includes the changing of the air and fuel filters.

 

The Scooby has a Mass Air Flow sensor in the filter housing, this does what is says on the tin and measures the amount of air going through on the exit side of the filter and talks to the ECU, and tells it how much air is on the way and the ECU tells he fuel pump (I guess) how much fuel to add, this will compensate up to a point if the filter gets partly blocked as it gets older

 

There are other sensors too all talking to the ECU and I think if any of these gut mucked up that too can cause issues.

 

I will keep my eye on it and the garage has said to bring it back if I have any other questions

 

David

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...