Technical Fiat 500 Anti pollution filter clogged warning light

[marieeileen123]

Hi! i have a 2008 1.3 multijet diesel and since i have had it the ‘anti pollution filter clogged’ warning light keeps popping up, i seem to get rid of it by driving and then it comes up again. i’ve only had it 2 months and it’s happened about 4 times. The car also smokes, white smoke from the exhaust around 1.5 weeks before the light comes on. It seems like a very chemical and diesel smell. Any help would be much appreciated and it panics me to drive with it smoking

 

[bugsymike]

Hi! i have a 2008 1.3 multijet diesel and since i have had it the ‘anti pollution filter clogged’ warning light keeps popping up, i seem to get rid of it by driving and then it comes up again. i’ve only had it 2 months and it’s happened about 4 times. The car also smokes, white smoke from the exhaust around 1.5 weeks before the light comes on. It seems like a very chemical and diesel smell. Any help would be much appreciated and it panics me to drive with it smoking

I suspect it is trying to do a "Regen" to self clean the DPF in the exhaust.
If you only do short journeys this exaggerates it.
If you have an owners handbook it should tell you something like "driving at a certain speed on a dual carriageway for so, long to allow the vehicle to clean the ‘anti pollution filter" , doing longer journeys more often helps along with a suitable additive used in the fuel.
Basically modern diesels are not ideal for short stop/start journeys due to the anti pollution equipment laws they are forced to comply with.
If you cannot resolve this eventually you can end up having to pay for an expensive replacement DPF filter.
Eventually the vehicle can go into a "limp mode" where you are forced to take expensive action.
There are companies that offer to clean the filter, some less successful than others.
I note the Welsh Government have brought in 20Mph speed limits in most places, this will add to the problem for many diesel owners.Possibly an unintended consequence of the new safety laws.

 

[jrkitching]

If you cannot resolve this eventually you can end up having to pay for an expensive replacement DPF filter.

Fortunately for the OP, the early ones for the 75HP mjet used until 2010 can be had for a reasonable price.

After 15 years, it may just be worn out. If you can get a new one for around £100, it's probably not worth the bother of trying to clean the existing one.

 

[PuntoHowTo]

Next time the light comes on, you need to take it for a long drive, so if you are going home or have nothing else planned head to the nearest motorway or dual carriage way and drive it at the speed limit and for extra filter cleaning knock it down to a lower gear 4th or 5th depending if its a 5 or 6 gear car.

Basically there is a big filter in the exhaust that catches Soot from the engine. The idea being the soot builds up when you are doing slow short journeys and when when you do a longer journey at a higher speed the engine gets hotter, the exhaust gets hotter and it burns away the soot in the filter.

Every so often the filter can become too clogged and the car will try to clear the soot by putting more fuel into the engine to push the engine temperature up. this is why you can get the white smoke and what the light is warning you of when it comes on. its telling you it needs to clear the soot and heat the engine up.

So its a good excuse for whats known as an "italian tune up" some spirited driving at a higher speed in a lower gear than normal to give the engine a bit of a work out and quite literally blow out the cobwebs.