quote:

Originally posted by Mike Beck:
So driving my 2017 yesterday, almost 1000 miles on it, and I see the warning about the DEF range on the dash. Think it said 995 miles or so. I have towed once with it so far, about 10 miles. Is this from not really putting it under any load?

Mike, I am wondering if your truck did not come with a full tank of DEF? (And maybe they purposely do not fill them at the factory, since that stuff has a shelf life, and some new trucks might sit on the dealer lot for months)? Could be something the dealer is supposed to do at the time of sale, (fill the DEF tank), and maybe they failed you on that?
I am now at 3760 miles since I bought mine, and still no message to add DEF. After I found out the shelf life may be as little as 5-6 months on DEF in warm climates, I decided not to buy any until I see the warning message, (especially since it gives you almost 1,000 miles advance notice).
As others (like TD3550) have mentioned, these (DPF) trucks are not good for lots of in-city driving, stop & go traffic, etc. I had to spend most of an afternoon driving in urban traffic a couple weeks ago, and it spent a lot of time idling. It went into the Regen mode the next day. That was my 3rd regeneration in 6 weeks. I am to the point now, where if I am in a slow line at the drive thru burger joint, (or whatever), I shut the thing off, just to avoid another regen as long as possible. It does not really impact anything about the drive quality, other than the faster idle speed takes away some of the engine braking on deceleration. But it makes a pretty big dent in fuel mileage. The average MPG on the 3 tankfuls during which it regenerated, were almost down to what my gas truck was getting. I still like the truck, and pulling with it is great. This past weekend pulled the full load, 10,000#, 150+ miles each way, and it averaged 12.9 with a mild tailwind or no wind. Pulling back yesterday, it dropped to 10.9 with a stiff headwind, and was able to push through that wind easily.
Too bad the Texas politicians dropped the ball last year, (or more likely, took the lobbyist $$$), and didn't vote on a bill that was submitted to end the annual BULLSHYT "safety" inspections. I would love to be able to delete the DPF & SCR from my truck...

Jim, I bought my 2017 in December of 17 so who knows how much DEF it had in it to start with. I guess it's time to learn how to check and fill it. And it would be nice to be able to remove all that BS, but for now I guess it stays.

They come from the factory with about 1 gallon in the tank. When we do the pre-delivery inspection we put 2.5 gallons in per GM. Some dealers may not. When my 18 came in last September it took 5 gallons to fill.

I am considering buying one of the OBD-II monitoring devices that show live data, so I can see how much soot is in the DPF filter, (and hopefully see the approximate DEF fluid level).
Question for one of you fellas who has such a device: Does the DPF soot accumulation level only go "up", until a regen cleans it out?
In other words, idling definitely fills up the DPF. But does high-speed, high-load driving, (such as towing a heavy trailer on the highway), simply not dirty the filter as quickly, or can it actually serve to clean the filter, and reduce the level of accumulated soot in the DPF?

Bought 2.5 gallons today, will see how much it takes.

I don't know what aftermarket OBD reader will show percentages. Actual graph scales.As you know diesel engines cool down when the load factor is cut. Idle times are always a killer. On the HD truck software most have live bar graphs into percentages, rates of restrictions/back pressure/exhaust stream temps. I have a small Bosch Enhanced OBD 1 & 11 handheld and it does not. I use this handheld for the smaller trucks on the diagnostics. Codes Etc.The market is flooded with scanners. On the large units, once the DPF/SCR gets to a certain restriction rate percent, here comes the regen. You'll notice from time to time when your on the road, truck emitting a slight haze out the pipes. It's in regen. It is supposed to regen clean. I had one last year it had some computer malfunction/DPF/SCR. You thought the tractor was on fire. He pulled over and jumped out of the cab. Called the Fire Dept. Here it was a malfunction. Sorry for such a long rant.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: TD3550,

quote:

Originally posted by FootbrakeJim:
I am considering buying one of the OBD-II monitoring devices that show live data, so I can see how much soot is in the DPF filter, (and hopefully see the approximate DEF fluid level).
Question for one of you fellas who has such a device: Does the DPF soot accumulation level only go "up", until a regen cleans it out?
In other words, idling definitely fills up the DPF. But does high-speed, high-load driving, (such as towing a heavy trailer on the highway), simply not dirty the filter as quickly, or can it actually serve to clean the filter, and reduce the level of accumulated soot in the DPF?

The higher the load on the engine the more soot is created and more DEF is used. Towing increases DEF usage, espically heavy towing.

Took all 2.5 gallons I bought today. Not sure how full it is since there is no dipstick to check it with. Guess you keep pouring until it overflows. I'll worry in a few months about putting more in.

quote:

Originally posted by Mike Beck:
Took all 2.5 gallons I bought today. Not sure how full it is since there is no dipstick to check it with. Guess you keep pouring until it overflows. I'll worry in a few months about putting more in.

Yep and when it overflows get it OFF the paint immediately. Not good. JB

I monitor my grams of soot and was about to regen last weekend when I started towing and it went from 38 grams down to 15 simply because I was running the higher EGTs. I will say on mine it towed up the hills sorta like a turd unitl it did regen then pull alot better even though the soot level showed lower.

quote:

Originally posted by TGSRacing:
I monitor my grams of soot and was about to regen last weekend when I started towing and it went from 38 grams down to 15 simply because I was running the higher EGTs.

Hey TGS, what unit do you use to monitor the soot level in the DPF? Is it hard-wired into your truck, or a plug-in model that you just leave in place, or?
Thanks.

I have the Edge CS2, it is one of their lower end models however, it just plugs into the OBD2 slot and suctioned cups to the window. I really wanted EGTs for towing in the mountains, boost, and the the soot mass was a bonus that I watch now to know whats going on. I have found that the engine temp can be drastically different than the gauge on the dash which is interesting.

Just a quick update. Well, y'all know me, probably not quick.
After driving it for just over 5500 miles since I bought the truck, the DPF Level screen went from showing "Good", to now saying "29%".
This is having towed for just under 1200 of those miles.
It has been doing a DPF Regen every 1-2 tanks of fuel, (500-550 miles/tank), because I am not able to avoid 10-15 miles of urban, heavy traffic, stop and go driving almost every day.
I reset Tripmeter A when I bought it, and the average MPG over that 5500 mile span is 16.0, due to the towing I have done. I reset Trip B whenever I fill up, or at the start of a road trip. I also calculate MPG based on gallons pumped and miles driven. My figures are pretty much exactly what Ed stated for his:
19mpg commuter
21mpg highway @ 75mph
11mpg pulling 10,000+ lbs. @ 75mph
Oil consumption: It burns approx. 1/4 of a quart in 2200 miles, which is not bad IMHO.
I will probably never run the oil life down below around 40-50% between changes. Even with 10 quart capacity, 4,000 miles or so is more than enough. Especially after long pulls with the heavy trailer.
I would like to know what you guys are using for oil? I like the fact that I can buy a 2.5 Gallon (10 Quart) jug of Rotella T4 (conventional 15W40) at O'Reilly for about $35, so that is what I have put in it. And I am a firm believer in Wix filters, but their oil filter is shorter/smaller than the AC Delco PF2232, so I went with the GM brand. (Happily it is still made in the USA).
Still learning about some of the many bells and whistles on these newer trucks. Automatic "hill start assist" kicks in when you come to a stop on a slope. Locks the brakes, (including trailer), stays that way when you take your foot off the brake, until you start to touch the throttle. Not necessary, but not bad.
The integrated trailer brake controller is so damned good there is no need to use any aftermarket one. And the digital gain display lets you easily set it perfectly for your load, whether heavy or light. Collision avoidance & parking sensors do a good job, and are speed sensitive, so you can tailgate someone at 12 MPH without them going off until they detect the distance closing up, but at 65 mph or so, they get your attention in a hurry if the guy 10 car lengths in front of you slows significantly.
The Exhaust Brake is a feature I fell in love with after a near mishap. I had it engaged when pulling 10,000 pounds of trailer. It is computer controlled, and not only uses the exhaust pressure to increase the amount of engine braking, but it greatly varies the timing and RPM of the downshifts, based on load, speed, brake pressure, up/down grade, and input from the collision avoidance sensors. Coming to a gradual stop, you barely notice it, other than trans downshifting at around 1200 RPM or so. But I was driving 75 mph in left lane on Interstate 35, on a long downhill grade, on an elevated section, (like a bridge, so no left shoulder lane). Approaching a semi in R. lane who was driving much slower. Some idiot in a small car hops on an entrance ramp just as the truck passes him, and immediately jumps over into my lane, doing maybe 35 mph. At this point, I am now almost beside the semi, so no wiggle room to either side. I thought "This is gonna hurt both of us" as I stepped hard on the brakes. I did not think it possible to avoid a mess, even with ABS. The jake brake kicked in hard, and the trans downshifted 5 times in a matter of about 7 seconds, at much higher RPM, (2800-3000, which 3K is redline), and things never got squirrelly at all, (other than the guy in the car, I could see his eyes in his rear-view mirror as he realized the closing speed).
I don't recall feeling the ABS activate, but I am sure it did as well. The one complaint I have had about this truck (other than DPF regens), is that the brakes, (when cold), don't feel like they work as good as the ones on my old gas 6.0 truck, (almost identically equipped, but without the diesel engine and it's added weight). I believe that to be the brake pads, (probably a higher metallic content?), because once they get hot, they work fine. But after that near-miss, all I can think is I never expected to avoid a disaster in that situation, and if it was with my old truck, things would have been really ugly.
Bottom line, I spent way more than I ever thought I would on a pickup truck, and yeah, some of the equipment is a bit excessive, (air conditioned seats? Although I am already liking them a lot here in TX) ,
The built-in 4G WiFI hotspot is another thing I didn't need, but it sure is great to have on a long road trip, when your woman spends 6 or 7 hours straight on her iPad and you don't hear any complaints,
But it pulls like nobody's business, gets way better MPG than I thought possible for a 7700 # vehicle, is far more comfortable than a truck should be, and I feel like it has already saved my butt, race car and trailer.
Sorry about the long post, unless any issues or concerns come up I probably won't add to this thread any more, but still would like to hear the plus/minus stuff anyone has to share, no matter what brand or year of diesel they use to pull their stuff with.
If you have the Exhaust Brake switch, USE THAT SUCKER EVERY TIME YOU PULL. It doesn't turn on automatically, but it probably should!

This message has been edited. Last edited by: FootbrakeJim,

Good to hear about your experience so far.

My Ram also has the exhaust brake, while I have not had an experience like you have, I did have to get on the binders pretty hard several times, the exhaust brake is awesome. This truck will slowdown much better than my 06 did without the exhaust brake.

I get 9mpg at 75mph, 25,000lbs going down the road........

On my last trip, I used about 3 gallons DEF on a 1800 mile round trip with the trailer.

Great to hear good things as always on the truck.
Top contenders on the 15W40 is Rotella and Delvac.
Years ago i got away from Rotella. Don't get me wrong its still a good oil. As oil technology improved i just moved to Delvac. I normally keep 10 gallons in the service trucks for the calls. That's normally what they want in the units. Delvac.All preference. I can remember the days where is was not uncommon to get a call and the truck shut down. (Engine Protection System), Had to go to the call and put in 5 gallons and away they went.

I'm going to clear up some details.

The primary exhaust constituents that the EPA regulates is NOx and Particulate Matter (PM) or commonly known as soot.

EGR and DEF/SCR are NOx reduction technologies. NOx is produced at high combustion temperatures. Therefore the higher the load, the more DEF required to reduce the NOx. Likewise, you will use more DEF in the summer. Worst case is in the summer and high load/towing.

DOC's and DPF's are used to reduce PM or soot. PM is produced at low combustion temperatures. A DPF is a wall flow device that actually traps the soot as the exhaust flows through the porous wall of the catalyst. So a lot of idling or short trips to the grocery store with low combustion/exhaust temps. produce more soot that is trapped in the DPF. Regeneration is required to remove or burn off the soot from the DPF. At higher loads, less PM or soot is produced and the higher load and exhaust temps. from towing enable regeneration to occur passively or naturally. The ash in consumed oil collects in the DPF and is NOT burned off during regeneration and is the reason that DPF's need to be cleaned and/or replaced.

In addition, Sulphur in fuel increase PM or soot production. This is why ULSD or Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel (15 ppm Sulphur) is required. Prior to 2007 Sulphur was regulated to 500 ppm in the US. Other places in the world are 10,000+ ppm Sulphur content in diesel. Sulphur is a lubricant in fuel. When you remove lubricant, wear increases, unless dealt with in other ways.

Hope that helps clear up what is going on in modern low emissions diesel engines.

Jason G.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: DragRacerSBC,

I have a 2017 2500HD Silverado with the Duramax. Finally got to tow with it. I do like the Exhaust Brake, then played with the Tow/Haul Mode.

Now I engage the Tow/Haul mode everytime I get in the truck no matter what I am doing. I have a 2001 2500 6 liter that I programmed when I first got it so the trans shifted like I had the Tow/Haul Mode on all the time. If I actually did put the T/H Mode on it really shifted HARD!

I would love the new truck to shift like the T/H Mode was on all the time so I wouldn't have to hit the button each time I start the truck.