[Dennyj1992]

Wondering if this actually works (number 2):

http://www.focushacks.com/mod/DPFE_Sensor_and_EGR_Information

If so, will my CEL still be on when I do it? Will it lower my gas mileage at all? Will it cause issues in the long run, if I leave it this way?

For those of you that have already done this EGR delete for permanent reasons, how long have you driven it, and is your car still running fine?

One last thing...what do I use to block off the two metal lines coming out of the back of the EGR valve itself?

For those of you who haven't read my thread yet, that can be found here for what kind of issues I have taken care of already, and what's left that I'm still working on:

http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=497097

The same code as everyone else...p0401.

EGR has been cleaned.
DPFE has been replaced.
Vacuum lines have all been checked.
EGR solenoid sensor tested at 12.3 volts.

Please, this is my last help I'm hoping to find for this issue. Can't seem to track down the damn problem! [rant]

Edit: 3rd gear still seems to be "jolting" forward once the transmission is warmed up well, over a 40 minute drive or so. The car will revv up and then it will feel like it's hanging for a minute (not shifting) and then shift, but when it does, it jolts forward. Pretty uncomfortable feeling, considering that $1,000 bill was intended to be put to good use, and not a destroyed transmission.

 

[amc49]

When EGR is blocked off the engine then drops timing back a bit, the EGR working allows for more. Dropped back timing lowers mileage.

 

[Dennyj1992]

When EGR is blocked off the engine then drops timing back a bit, the EGR working allows for more. Dropped back timing lowers mileage.

Will it hurt the timing at all? Just had the timing belt changed, so I don't wanna mess that up.

 

[ianmcc]

I have had the EGR deleted for more than a month now-complete removal and a block off plate fabbed up. My drive-ability improved dramatically (was experiencing part throttle surging) and my mileage never suffered a bit. Getting over 500 km/tank city driving right now. CEL is lit as I expected it would but no emissions testing here.
Two things-you have mentioned what you have replaced but if you continue to see P0401 I suspect the EGR tube mounted to the manifold is the culprit. There is a metal tube that runs under the runners (see pic-the silver tube).

Perhaps this is clogged. Cleaning means removal though.

 

[Dennyj1992]

So with the EGR workaround being done, will I still need to attempt and clean that EGR tube? I haven't even tried to clean that yet. Just remove the EGR valve itself, and spray some carb and choke through there? I guess I'm asking if there is any way to safely clean it, while making sure the job is done right.

What about seafoam? Worth a shot, or no?

 

[amc49]

Not cam timing, ignition timing.

Delete EGR on earlier models with no knock sensor and they begin to ping, that should say something to people who know.

Get a new DPFE and rig longer hoses to the sensor to shield it from water in the exhaust, what makes them run bad at cold start (water freezes) or cruise and you will never fault a DPFE again. Been running the same one for years now after several problems with them. The water leaches under the silicone strain gauge seal in the sensor to screw it up. I used to get P0401s all day long, not any more. The problem got much worse when they shortened the tubing to the DPFE to let more water get to it easier. Make tubing longer to drape at back of motor and now a water trap, pull hose and dump the water to see how much gets in there. Take bad sensor apart and same, it will have water in it.

I personally wouldn't put seafoam in my tricycle.

 

[Dennyj1992]

I personally wouldn't put seafoam in my tricycle.

I've ran seafoam through 3 different cars now, and all of them seemed to run 10x better after doing so. I don't know, maybe it was just the placebo effect? Lol.

Either way, I don't want any pinging or anything like that. So, I've decided to try and clean out the lines again, and this time, clean all of the EGR metal lines, and the intake hole as well.

Anything else I should be looking at to spray some carb cleaner down (in)?

 

[ianmcc]

If the manifold tube is clogged I don't think carb cleaner will clean it. It might be caked and baked carbon build up.

 

[felixthecat]

I run a egr delete w/ a tune. Have a egr plate installed. The t/b runs cleaner & no sticking & cleaning it out w/ t/b cleaner like I had to do.

 

[Dennyj1992]

If the manifold tube is clogged I don't think carb cleaner will clean it. It might be caked and baked carbon build up.

So, what's the best way to clean it then? If carn and choke won't do the trick, what's best to clean all that gunk out of there?

 

[ianmcc]

Not 100% sure this is the issue but I guess you could remove the EGR valve and the intake tube and try snaking a wire in the hole and see if the line is clogged. Look down the throttle body and hold open the throttle butterfly and see if you see the wire.
I have recommended the following for EGR surging issues: remove the vacuum line from the top of the EGR valve. Plug the vacuum line with a golf tee or a bolt. Leave the EGR port open. Test drive and see if this solves any issues. Basically this disables the EGR from opening.

 

[Dennyj1992]

Look down the throttle body and hold open the throttle butterfly and see if you see the wire.

What line runs from the EGR port to the tb?

I have recommended the following for EGR surging issues: remove the vacuum line from the top of the EGR valve. Plug the vacuum line with a golf tee or a bolt. Leave the EGR port open. Test drive and see if this solves any issues. Basically this disables the EGR from opening.

I may try this test out, since it seems pretty simple, and quick. Time is of the essence here, since the cold is begging to settle in! [:0]

Quick update for the evening: I sprayed B-12 carb cleaner down the DPFE lines. Pulled the intake tube off. Sprayed some some more cleaner around the side walls of the throttle boddy. Also sprayed some carb cleaner through the line that goes from the back of the top of the engine, to the bottom side of the airbox (hope this makes sense).

After doing all of this, I took it for a test drive. I was trying to originally remove the EGR valve, and forgot to put the two bolts that tighten up underneath it back in! [rolleyes] She was idling pretty rough there for a minute. So I put them back in, and it runs quiet and smoother now.

However, as soon as I had it all back together, properly, I noticed that the 1st gear revvs were hanging again. Third gear to fourth is also "lurching" again, after the revvs hang through that gear. So confused! CEL light came back on after about 20 miles of city driving.

Here are a few more questions while I'm busy pondering and working at this. Any quick way to test the PCV, without taking it off? Does that little bend line that's under the t-stat housing collapse when the line goes bad? If I can manage to get it off, the PCV should rattle when I shake it right?

 

[amc49]

'I sprayed B-12 carb cleaner down the DPFE lines.'

Brilliant work, the solvent there probably just stuffed the silicone seal inside the DPFE, you can most likely count on buying one of them now. Solvent exposure lifts silicone from wrinkling to tear loose like lightning. The silicone in that sensor is like only .020" thick.

 

[Dennyj1992]

'I sprayed B-12 carb cleaner down the DPFE lines.'

Brilliant work, the solvent there probably just stuffed the silicone seal inside the DPFE, you can most likely count on buying one of them now. Solvent exposure lifts silicone from wrinkling to tear loose like lightning. The silicone in that sensor is like only .020" thick.

Haha, sorry buddy. Should of made that clearer. I sprayed them down, when removed from the DPFE. So I sprayed them down the lines, going towards the EGR. Then started the engine back up and let it spit out before I plugged it back in. I also let it sit for about another 15 minutes (to dissipate) before plugging the line back in, and starting it up.

DPFE is under warranty anyhow. [wrenchin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9GxjHZmuFU

While this video was quite lengthy, and a drag to watch...I seemed to understand quite a bit of it. May ask to go and use a space in the shop tomorrow, and run these tests. Got nothing else to do, and nowhere else to turn at this point for the issue.

 

[amc49]

'DPFE is under warranty anyhow.'

Moral vacuity at its' best...................why your parts cost so much now...........

 

[Dennyj1992]

'DPFE is under warranty anyhow.'

Moral vacuity at its' best...................why your parts cost so much now...........

Dude, I'm no mechanic, nor do I claim to be...but these sounds almost like attacks now. [facepalm]

I'm just simply asking if the workaround was safe, and clear instructions on how to do it, if it was. That's all! No harm done dude. I'd rather do it the right way, and I'm trying to.

On Thursday my mechanic has decided to let me come into his shop and run the tests in the video posted in this thread, (he's gonna help) and hopefully we can track it down for good this time. [scratch]

 

[amc49]

No attack, I simply point out to you and others why your parts are so high. Your ready willingness to stiff the parts store with a part you messed up is what the stuff of much bigger things is made of.

I've told how to fix the problem easily and permanently, you can go back to your workaround any time you wish.

 

[Dennyj1992]

I've told how to fix the problem easily and permanently, you can go back to your workaround any time you wish.

Parts go bad either way you look at it. Age, time, wear and tear. I'd have to say at this point, no one has really given me a clear answer on how to clean this at all. I don't have a workaround right now.

I've done some research on my own and attempted to actually pull the EGR valve off. I can't get the nut at this point (which i found out to be a 21 mm) and that's where I'm stuck.

I have a feeling that some gunk may be blocked in the port lines underneath the EGR. That's the only placed I haven't checked yet.

 

[amc49]

Get ahold of a hand vacuum pump and remove the vacuum line to EGR valve. Have engine up and idling. Connect vac hose to EGR valve like in the vid and slowly apply vacuum, motor should die or at least go to pure crap, if so there is NOTHING wrong with the valve or passages to it. NOTHING TO CLEAN and waste of time doing so.

Don't even need a hand vacuum pump, buy a long piece of vacuum line and use one of the vac ports on back of intake below TB to connect to the EGR; same thing.

FYI the example I gave-the DPFE was the one that kept messing up, it caused bad running several times and EGR dtcs, after the fix I'm still using the exact same DPFE and no issue at all. Like 3 years ago. So, part had nothing wrong with it.

 

[Dennyj1992]

Connect vac hose to EGR valve like in the vid and slowly apply vacuum, motor should die or at least go to pure crap, if so there is NOTHING wrong with the valve or passages to it. NOTHING TO CLEAN and waste of time doing so.

Don't even need a hand vacuum pump, buy a long piece of vacuum line and use one of the vac ports on back of intake below TB to connect to the EGR; same thing.

I know it should die, but attempting to use one at Auztone the other night (by the way, they aren't the greatest with helping out) I couldn't get it figured out.

Can you explain attaching that long piece of vacuum line to one of the vacuum ports? Pictures by chance? Also, can't you take the line off of the EGR solenoid piece, and suck up on the line really hard? It should stumble if it's working right, correct? I know it did when I sucked up hard on it. When my mechanic did it, the car actually stalled out!

http://www.denlorstools.com/autoblog/2009/07/ford-p0401-code-scanned-expedition-46-egr-low-flow/

States here in this write-up. The engine can stumble when applying vacuum to the EGR, but the passages under the TB may still be clogged up. Check near the bottom of the page for it. Right under the 3rd picture.