Now that is FUNNY!! I also am starting to notice a little bit of buildup on my pipes, so I will give them a good clean and see what happens. The stations around here have also all switched to a bio-diesel blend, which I think burns a bit dirtier. I got my oil changed last weekend and I am getting ready to send the sample to blackstone...keeping my fingers crossed!!!

 

I couldn't agree more. Ive been on here every day since my dads been in the process of buying a new truck and I too have become hooked. Im just now going off to college next year and I already cant wait to save up and have my own Ford Tuck some day.

Thanks for all that help guys and keep up the good work.

 

On Wed. I posted that I had taken my truck into my local Ford dealer concerning the soot in the tail pipe. I just received a call from their sales dept. wanting to know if I am satisfied with the service dept. And, if there are any problems I am to let them know.
Can it be that customer service may be returning?

 

Can it be that customer service may be returning?[/quote]

Probably not. The first or second time I took mine in for some work the service writer told me I'd be getting a customer satisfaction survey and pretty much begged me to give him high marks. I've been in 5 or 6 times since then and havn't seen another, just that one.

 

Please don't burst my happy bubble. I returned the customer satisfaction survey a month ago. The exhaust tips appear to have soot starting to build up. I will be towing my fifth wheel about 1000 miles later this month. This should be a good test.

 

The DPF is a ceramic wall flow filter designed to remove particles of a certain micron size.
Fuel type, driving style are not relevant to the DPF.

The DPF will just regen more or less often depending on loading.
Soot in pipe=DPF failure.

If dealer doesn't get this then contact Ford regional office and/or USEPA contact in emissions warranty manual. This will get the problem addressed quickly.

 

I should add using wrong fuel type could cause DPF failure.
My previous post was only regarding PM accumulation.

 

after 3 trips to the dealer...(150 miles rt)...they finally replaced my dpf on my job 1 truck.....

of course first they cleaned the pipes......then it was the manual regen and new programing...blah blah blah.....

guess what....new dpf...no more black pipes and now no puff of smoke every time i take off......

course when i towed this weekend about 260 miles....damm truck regened 4 TIMES.....

I have 30k miles on the truck now and about 23k have been towing either a toyhauler or car trailer or dump trailer......its not my DD, its my tow truck...

 

Remember, the person who is working with you initiates the customer satisfaction form and with dealers downsizing they are likely sweating their futures.

 

Mine had regened more than it does now due to a cracked or damaged DPF. Not sure how it happened but now i have black pipes and little smoke when i stomp on it. Now for the good news. My regens have gone down and don't last as long. Mileage is slightly up so do you think i'm going to get a new DPF. H*'%$^ no i'm not. Let her stay cracked providing me more mileage and fewer regens. Shoot my truck is running like a bat out of H#$% so why would i jeopordize all this? I'm going to keep my broken filter and let my baby breath.....

 

Sawtooth: I am at the same place. I have 3300+ miles and have had only one regen @ 1700 miles and one initiated by a Ford tech.
My mpg is at the upper end of the numbers I see on this thread and the truck runs great.

 

Well, my truck is getting ready to turn over 40,000 miles. My tailpipes have been black since day 1 and it will leave a trail of black smoke. I too have been getting better than most in mpg's until lately. For the first year or so I was always in the 13 to 15 mpg range but for the last 2 or 3 tanks I can't get out of the 11 mpg range. I have had all the latest flashes, my driving habits have not changed either. Seems to be getting worse! One more thing, my regens are averaging about 450 to 500 miles apart. I'm thinking, push the little computer button until it shows a blank screen and just drive the darn thing! All this mpg, regens, flashes, smoke, soot crap gives me a headache.

 

I hear you Whisperer. When I see a new user chime in about all this stuff I always try to add what I have learned with the caveat "don't try to figure it out, outguess it, analyze it, etc...."

 

At 2500 miles my truck let me know via the DIC that something was wrong with the exhaust filter. At the dealer a code was read indicating that the DPF was faulty and also a senser was changed. My tailpipes were real black and sooty before replacement. Now at 10k they are grayish with white residue on the bottom.

 

Thanks dm. That's the way it's supposed to go. The truck will tell you if there is a problem, otherwise, just drive it. I hope your truck is right now and that you have fun with it.