Anyone had this problem?

[Borris]

We have just had the yellow pigtail engine management light come on which was shortly followed by reduced power limiting the vehicle to about 20mph with a rough running engine. It happened on a very busy narrow steep up hill road in Volterra, Italy. I couldn't stop there so carried on for no more than a mile and pulled into a service station.
The previous day the Ad Blue warning message had come up on the dash. It said that the range was down to 1400 miles and to refill asap. We filled up at the next available fuel station and purchased a 10litre drum of Ad Blue. As we were only a few miles from our holiday home I decided to fill the Ad Blue tank when we arrived. Unfortunately, I discovered that unlike the last drum I'd bought there was no filler pipe provided. So whilst in Volterra I had decided to buy a funnel to fill the tank. Before I had a chance to do this the problem occured. My immediate thought was Ad Blue starvation being picked up by the engine management system whilst climbing this steep hill. When I arrived at the service station I kept the engine running, bought another 10 litre drum (the other was back at our billet) and this time got the garage attendant to fill the tank. I then turned off the ignition and restarted the engine where upon there was a message that said something about an ignition fault. After turning it off and restarting again all was well, full power was restored, engine running smoothly again and no faults on dash board. Since the fault I have restarted the vehicle 4 times so the fault should still be stored. I will probably give VW Assist a call but am in two minds as the issue has now gone away. Anyway where we are staying I doubt if they could find us.
Anyone else had this issue?
From the time the Ad Blue warning message came on to the point that the EMS fault warning light illuminated was about 200 kms so there should still have been 1200 miles worth of the blue stuff in the tank.

Other possible causes:
1. Diesel Particulate Filter - I admit that I have forgotten to give it a damn good thrashing recently but it had just been driven across Europe including a couple of high alpine passes so that should havd done the trick.

2. The wrong diesel - I know you should never put bio diesel in a Cali and haven't knowingly done so. In the UK I always use premium diesel and whilst in Europe have done the same although not the same make. I have looked up the brands and grades of diesel purchased and I don't think that is the issue. However pumps are not always labelled correctly.

Any advice would be welcome.

 

[Ryemslie]

My guess would be that is was a combination of an low adblue level & high altitude/incline. Lower air mass/poorer combustion.

 

[s2bear]

I had that light come on and reduced power back in December with low miles on the clock. I couIdn’t go faster than 20ish either. I think it was mid DPF regeneration cycle. Called VW assist who told me that it had been logged as a turbo actuator failure, which didn’t sound very good. Anyway VW Assist man told me that the engine resets itself when you turn it off and on again (but still stores the fault for diagnosis)

He thought it may have been caused by excess heat build up as I was in slow traffic/lots of short journeys etc. and perhaps the 600 degree heat caused something (like an actuator on a new engine) to not work as it should.

Long story short (almost!) is that, that was only a guess but he also guessed that it wouldn’t happen again. Touch wood, so far (6k. Miles later), it hasn’t. He told me that if it reoccurred the Cali should still get me home, just a bit slower.

The guy put the Cali through a DPF cycle using his laptop and topped up the AdBlue for me but I don’t think my range had dropped as low as 1300 miles.

My long winded point is that perhaps you were mid DPF regen whilst laboring up a hill slowly etc. you can tell because it idles at 1k rpm instead of 900, the stop start is disabled and it makes odd noises, then, if you turn it off, the fan will keep going.
Stu





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[Keith Smith]

I purposefully ran my adblue down to 400 miles range without any problems so I doubt it would be lack of adblue.

 

[WelshGas]

I purposefully ran my adblue down to 400 miles range without any problems so I doubt it would be lack of adblue.

But we’re you going up a steep hill at the time?

 

[Borris]

I had that light come on and reduced power back in December with low miles on the clock. I couIdn’t go faster than 20ish either. I think it was mid DPF regeneration cycle. Called VW assist who told me that it had been logged as a turbo actuator failure, which didn’t sound very good. Anyway VW Assist man told me that the engine resets itself when you turn it off and on again (but still stores the fault for diagnosis)

He thought it may have been caused by excess heat build up as I was in slow traffic/lots of short journeys etc. and perhaps the 600 degree heat caused something (like an actuator on a new engine) to not work as it should.

Long story short (almost!) is that, that was only a guess but he also guessed that it wouldn’t happen again. Touch wood, so far (6k. Miles later), it hasn’t. He told me that if it reoccurred the Cali should still get me home, just a bit slower.

The guy put the Cali through a DPF cycle using his laptop and topped up the AdBlue for me but I don’t think my range had dropped as low as 1300 miles.

My long winded point is that perhaps you were mid DPF regen whilst laboring up a hill slowly etc. you can tell because it idles at 1k rpm instead of 900, the stop start is disabled and it makes odd noises, then, if you turn it off, the fan will keep going.
Stu





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Thanks s2bear.
You make some interesting points however in this case the engine was cold as we had just returned from fours hours sight seeing on foot. The engine management light came on just after I had left the car park whilst driving up the steep hill.
We are off to Florence tomorrow so I intend to pay a visit to the VW main dealer there and have them take a quick look. I will post the results.

 

[soulstyledevon]

This might be an odd question...
But why didn’t you fill the adblu tank before heading over to Europe on a big trip...???

 

[Borris]

This might be an odd question...
But why didn’t you fill the adblu tank before heading over to Europe on a big trip...???

Because Ad Blue is not only sold in the UK, they sell it at almost every service station in Europe. I don't constantly top up the tank but usually fill it up when the MFD warning comes on. It usually lasts months between fill ups. Anyway the range indicated on the MFD before we left was far in excess of the mileage we expected to be doing. The fact that the MFD had indicated that the remaining range was 1400 miles should have given us more than enough warning to find a service station and fill up.

 

[Amarillo]

I purposefully ran my adblue down to 400 miles range without any problems so I doubt it would be lack of adblue.

I think I have been lower than that before paying an extortionate price to refill in the home of extortion - Palermo, at a VW service centre.

I think the problem is unlikely to be low AdBlue. 1400 Km range is probably about 3 litres.


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[soulstyledevon]

Because Ad Blue is not only sold in the UK, they sell it at almost every service station in Europe. I don't constantly top up the tank but usually fill it up when the MFD warning comes on. It usually lasts months between fill ups. Anyway the range indicated on the MFD before we left was far in excess of the mileage we expected to be doing. The fact that the MFD had indicated that the remaining range was 1400 miles should have given us more than enough warning to find a service station and fill up.

I can buy oil and screen wash anywhere in Europe.
However before I leave for any big trip I check and fill, oil, water, air and a load of other things I expect to need or rely on.
I would say it makes more sense to fill the adblu before leaving to ensure it’s one less thing to worry about or go wrong...

 

[Borris]

I can buy oil and screen wash anywhere in Europe.
However before I leave for any big trip I check and fill, oil, water, air and a load of other things I expect to need or rely on.
I would say it makes more sense to fill the adblu before leaving to ensure it’s one less thing to worry about or go wrong...

Well maybe I could have topped it up before leaving but I am not altogether certain that this issue has anything to do with Ad Blue. That theory just seemed to fit in with the available facts. However, even if I hadn't filled the Ad Blue tank, the process of turning off the ignition and restarting the engine may well have reset the system anyway. Unless you are a white coated VW computor boffin there's no way of knowing. I intend to visit a VW main dealer today and ask them to run a quick check. It's no use asking VW Assist to come and look at the van where we are as I doubt if they could find us. It took us ages to find the place which is situated in a remote location miles up an unmade track and most maps don't even show it.

 

[soulstyledevon]

Let us know how you get on.
It would be interesting to hear what they say.

 

[s2bear]

Thanks s2bear.
You make some interesting points however in this case the engine was cold as we had just returned from fours hours sight seeing on foot. The engine management light came on just after I had left the car park whilst driving up the steep hill.
We are off to Florence tomorrow so I intend to pay a visit to the VW main dealer there and have them take a quick look. I will post the results.

Hopefully it’s nothing serious.
Do you have a Carista Dongle for the OBDII port? at around £15 they can be handy for diagnosing a multi fault warning light to check if it’s something minor. (Although in my case it would have been akin to looking up one’s medical symptoms on Google )

Good luck and keep us posted.


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[Keith Smith]

But we’re you going up a steep hill at the time?

In the 1000 miles I've done since getting the adblue warning I've been up plenty of steep hills, I live on the Welsh borders

 

[Meoncoast]

In the 1000 miles I've done since getting the adblue warning I've been up plenty of steep hills,

ditto (uk hills only)

 

[T6 CFO]

Well maybe I could have topped it up before leaving but I am not altogether certain that this issue has anything to do with Ad Blue. That theory just seemed to fit in with the available facts. However, even if I hadn't filled the Ad Blue tank, the process of turning off the ignition and restarting the engine may well have reset the system anyway. Unless you are a white coated VW computor boffin there's no way of knowing. I intend to visit a VW main dealer today and ask them to run a quick check. It's no use asking VW Assist to come and look at the van where we are as I doubt if they could find us. It took us ages to find the place which is situated in a remote location miles up an unmade track and most maps don't even show it.

Good luck sorting it Paul. Like you I doubt it’s your Ad blue. Mines also warning me to fill up so best do it but it’s reading 1400 miles and no problems.

Edit : Done with a 10 litre refill. Only done it from the pumps before and no issues from a refill bottle with the hose provided.


Mike

 

[Stoneybroke]

I had that light come on and reduced power back in December with low miles on the clock. I couIdn’t go faster than 20ish either. I think it was mid DPF regeneration cycle. Called VW assist who told me that it had been logged as a turbo actuator failure, which didn’t sound very good. Anyway VW Assist man told me that the engine resets itself when you turn it off and on again (but still stores the fault for diagnosis)

He thought it may have been caused by excess heat build up as I was in slow traffic/lots of short journeys etc. and perhaps the 600 degree heat caused something (like an actuator on a new engine) to not work as it should.

@Borris
Your symptom sounds like problems I had with my T5 - overboost. If the turbo vanes stick the turbo gives too much boost, 20% over and warning light and the engine goes to non-turbo mode. Stop, and restart the ignition and it will clear, but may reoccur. The same happens if the actuator sticks. First time it did it was on a long pull up in Wales. Then it kept coming back. Cleaning the turbo fixed it for a while, but it was terrifying when I did it. A dealer bought it, he was happy to take it and rufurb the turbo.

It really shouldn't be doing that in your 2-yr old T6. The overboost will be recorded in the ECU so I would definitely recommend a dealer visit when you get back for some warranty work... If it happens again, VW assist to log it?

 

[Jonathan Duke]

Thanks for the detailed post Borris, and for the others responses also. It will ensure I'm not reaching for my spare pants, if it ever happens me whilst in Italy.

 

[s2bear]

Thanks for the detailed post Borris, and for the others responses also. It will ensure I'm not reaching for my spare pants, if it ever happens me whilst in Italy.

Aren’t pants optional when in Italy anyway ?


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[sidepod]

My guess would be that is was a combination of an low adblue level & high altitude/incline. Lower air mass/poorer combustion.

It’s not a 1950s Petrol car with a carb! The ECU will take care of any fuelling variations caused by air mass.

 

[larrylamb]

Mods, can we move this thread to the correct section

 

[Thepiper]

I had similar problem. Warning light came, van went into limp mode, all while I was going up a steep incline. Managed to get to the top, switched off, then switched on again and no issues since. I took it to our dealer as this was the second time I had experienced this, but the first time they said it was an ECU issue and they replaced the ECU. This second time when I took it in the advice was it was a software issue and may or may not happen again but when the software fix is available it will be updated. It's only happened twice and van was new in March 2017. Both times when I was going up a steep hill. It doesn't look connected to the AdBlue. I genuinely think it is a software issue and VW are trying to work out the fix. The van has had no issues after both events, which fixed itself by switch off and restart. Both times I took it as soon as I could to the dealer and they assured me there was no issue and nothing to worry about. I have since gone up many more steep hills and it has never happened again. I await the software fix.....

 

[Borris]

Hopefully it’s nothing serious.
Do you have a Carista Dongle for the OBDII port? at around £15 they can be handy for diagnosing a multi fault warning light to check if it’s something minor. (Although in my case it would have been akin to looking up one’s medical symptoms on Google )

Good luck and keep us posted.


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No I don't have a dongle whatsit but it's now on my shopping list.
No answers yet I afraid. We went to Florence yesterday and after a long drive visited two VW garages in turn. Both said they couldn't help and directed us to the next Garage. As the third option was way outside of Florence and my family were getting restless to go sight seeing, I had to abandon the quest for a answer for the time being. In the mean time our Cali is running perfectly...............touch wood.

 

[Borris]

@Borris
Your symptom sounds like problems I had with my T5 - overboost. If the turbo vanes stick the turbo gives too much boost, 20% over and warning light and the engine goes to non-turbo mode. Stop, and restart the ignition and it will clear, but may reoccur. The same happens if the actuator sticks. First time it did it was on a long pull up in Wales. Then it kept coming back. Cleaning the turbo fixed it for a while, but it was terrifying when I did it. A dealer bought it, he was happy to take it and rufurb the turbo.

It really shouldn't be doing that in your 2-yr old T6. The overboost will be recorded in the ECU so I would definitely recommend a dealer visit when you get back for some warranty work... If it happens again, VW assist to log it?

Thanks,
The van has gone perfectly since I stopped and turned off the ignition and then restarted. I'm not getting too excited about this as I have have similar issues on other cars. Turning it off and on often resets issues. If it doesn't happen again I will get SMG at Tonbridge to check it out on our return. If it does then I'll call VW Assist next time.

 

[Borris]

I had similar problem. Warning light came, van went into limp mode, all while I was going up a steep incline. Managed to get to the top, switched off, then switched on again and no issues since. I took it to our dealer as this was the second time I had experienced this, but the first time they said it was an ECU issue and they replaced the ECU. This second time when I took it in the advice was it was a software issue and may or may not happen again but when the software fix is available it will be updated. It's only happened twice and van was new in March 2017. Both times when I was going up a steep hill. It doesn't look connected to the AdBlue. I genuinely think it is a software issue and VW are trying to work out the fix. The van has had no issues after both events, which fixed itself by switch off and restart. Both times I took it as soon as I could to the dealer and they assured me there was no issue and nothing to worry about. I have since gone up many more steep hills and it has never happened again. I await the software fix.....

Thanks for that, very interesting.

I'm not that concerned as the restart seems to cured it for the time being. I'll take it in for a check up when we get back. In the mean time there is too much nice wine, good food and scenery around to get distracted by that issue. If it happens again I'll just put the kettle on a await the arrival of VW Assist.