I recently was bumped from a job where I was driving about 60km (about 40 miles) round trip. The new job I have I’m a lot closer to home now I’ll be driving 14km (about 8 miles) round trip. I was told Diesel engines don’t like short trips and will wear down quicker. Is this true?
Posted Aug 7, 2022, 12:22 AM UTC
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I’m not a professional just a backyard mechanic but I’ve had a more then a few people tell me that TDI’s turbos have problem with the veins sticking inside if they are “babied”. Which happened to mine. I replaced but don’t want it happening again so every once in a while I take it out and have a little fun down a back road or something to let the motor regen and clean itself out. My advice would be to just take up to highway speeds for at least 10-20 minutes and try to keep your rpm’s around 1500 and higher while doing so like once every two or so
Yep this is a problem on any diesel with a VGT turbo. You must make sure to not do any extended idling or lugging to prevent spot buildup and make sure once it’s warmed up to beat the snot out of it at least once a day.
VGT turbos are great, but you have to make sure to prevent sticking vanes as much as possible. And as soon as the vanes start to stick take the turbo off and clean it. Driving on a stuck turbo may potentially cause a overboost condition which will destroy cac boots and could potentially cause a head gasket to lift.
Yes it’s bad for them, take it on the interstate at min every week for an hour at 55mph or more for it to regen. It will still run a long time, just it’s not getting hot especially if your in a cold climate in winter. Which causes the emissions systems to not function properly as designed. It would still be hard on a gas car just not as bad, change your oil every 5k miles or 6 months at min. If you do this it will be a while for issues to arise, and will not cause multi thousand dollar bills especially if it’s out of warranty. If this commute continues I’d suggest getting a gas or ev since your not getting the benefits of a diesel.
Whachis29, I have been trying to reach you about your car's extended warranty
Taking your car for a 1 hour drive once a week to let the regen work is not necessary… like what.
It takes generally 20-30 min of continuous high speed driving for that to do it’s thing, so by the time you turn around it’s about an hour.
As a owner of various diesel trucks and equipment, your fine here’s why:
That saying is really for guys who buy Super Dutys and the like who don’t work the engine hard enough to burn off the soot it creates. Therefore causing issues like clogged egr valves, stuck VGT turbos and so on.
Your TDI on the other hand is engineered for the use you are giving it. It’s the best selling vehicle in most European cities for a reason. It’s a great city car!
Here’s some tips for success:
Don’t idle it for longer than 10 minutes
Buy quality fuel from stations that sell a lot of diesel(you wanna fill up wherever you see a ton of semis at)
Change your oil every 5k miles, new fuel filters every 10k.(keeping up with oil changes and fuel filter replacements are extremely important with Diesel engines) and make sure to only use VW filters.
And don’t be afraid to work it hard once warmed up, burn off that soot by gunning it at least once a day. (A couple zero to sixties should do)
Why no idle more than 10 minutes ? I like to have my lunch in my car and it’s 30 minutes should I not have the engine turned on for that ? It’s hot as balls here .
If you own a TDI you do not want to partake in extended idling at all. It will cause the following:
Clogged DPF Filter
Clogged EGR valve
Will soot up a VGT turbo, which will then cause a overboost condition which could potentially not just destroy cac tubes but could also lift head gaskets.
Causes wet stacking
This really goes for any modern diesel. Now if you can setup a high idle switch on your TDI then you can idle it.
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I’d avoid driving below 1k rpm due to that’s effectively lugging the engine which brings a whole other set of issues.
What about warming it up in winter time? Still no more than 10 minutes?
The best way to warm up a Diesel engine is to is to drive it below 2500 rpm until it’s at temp. A diesel will not warm up idling in a driveway, it needs load to warm up.
You don’t necessarily want to fill up where you see a ton of semis - the quality of diesel at Flying J, etc. is not great for smaller diesels like TDIs. Now, i appreciate the point you want to fill up where the diesel tanks cycle often, especially in shoulder seasons as they switch between summer / winter mix, but semis is the wrong guidance.
It’s literally the same type of diesel as anywhere else lol
It’s literally not? Diesel fuel starts at the same place, but then each company has their own special mix of additives, mix with bios, etc. that affects the final product. Diesel combustability is measured by cetane rating, and larger Diesel engines are less finicky about lower cetane diesel. Most gas stations i believe the standard is 40, but when you get into the higher 40s you will notice mileage / power improvement.
It is also significantly more likely that a BP, Shell, or other specialty station will have higher Cetane diesel than your highway truck stop.
I can guarantee you that none of that will negatively effect a TDI. If you are concerned, use a cetane booster.