soot problem

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 7:18 am

i have a 2.0 abk engine that has a bad soot problem round the tail pipe and also every now and then the engine has a lose of power but will still idel are these problems related and and idea's as to a fix will be brilliant cheers

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 2:23 pm

Does the car get used on a lot of short journeys

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 5:16 pm

not really i avarage 22miles to and from work at motorway speeds with 2ish miles of low speed

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 7:32 pm

It's possible the cat is partially blocked. only way to tell is to remove and check the condition of the core

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 8:06 pm

ok i'll check that tomorrow cheers

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:16 pm

When the cats start breaking down, you should be able to smell a sort of eggy gas at the tail pies (maybe someone else has a better description). But it does sound like the cat is braking up

Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 11:49 am

I'd suggest, the first thing to check is the condition of the ECU relay. Seems very common for these to cause running problems with ABK cars.
relay is behind the panel under the dash on the driver side. Has '30' on top of the cover. pop the cover off and check for faulty soldering on the small pcb inside.

Is it heavy on fuel?
Is it using oil?

Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 5:35 pm

had the cat off today just looks abit sooty but no eggy smell. and it is fairly heavy on fuel.

Posted: Fri Apr 29, 2011 7:15 pm

Usually a car runs with extra fuel added, until the coolant temp reaches approx 80 degC. Then the lambda sensor kicks in and starts controlling fuelling.
If the coolant temp sensor is failed, it could run rich all the time. If the lambda sensor is failed, it also usually results in the engine running rich.
running rich might cause the soot around the exhaust, if it is not burnt oil.
ECU relay gremlins tend to cause a smelly exhaust, very hot bonnet and sometimes bucking/jerking
Does it start well when hot?

May be worthwhile lifting the bonnet when it is dark, see if you have any HT leads arcing?

Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2011 6:50 am

i've put new ht leads on about 2months ago but i'll give them a check,there is no problem starting it first turn everytime,had new coolant temp sensors aswell and fan kicks in as it sholud, yeah it does buck and jerk sometimes its just as and when it does it and never when i take it to the garage and its been ok for the last 3days now

Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2011 9:39 am

ECU relay gremlins, will not show up on a fault code read. A new relay is approx £14, or you can check/resolder the old one. worth ruling out before you go down the road of changing all of the usual suspects only to find, that you still have the fault?

Posted: Mon May 02, 2011 10:16 am

If you can find a garage or someone with a laptop and the OBD plug get the codes checked and cleared. Then re-check them maybe a week later. If someone has took something off while engine is running it will log a fault. i.e coolant temp sensor etc.. My o2 sensor was goosed at last MOT causing rich running. Very Happy

Hope that helps..