DEF system question
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DEF system question
2011 F-250 KR, at start up I get a warning, says to drive to clean exhaust system, I hit ok and drive but it does nothing to clean or reset, I have had the truck almost 3 months now, first vehicle with the def system, until recently it would display that message and it would reset while driving, now it’s the first thing to pop up when I start truck, and it’s not clearing, thinking maybe a filter needs replaced? Suggestions???
Cargo Master
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,975
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From: Archdale,N.C.
What kind of miles are you putting down when you start it and get the message? If it takes you several miles to get to a highway where you can keep it at highway speeds, once you get on the highway at highway speed it may still takes several more miles to actually begin the regen process.
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It has 123,524, I drive it a good distance, enough to give it proper time driving to reset, I do a lot of hauling with it,
FTE Legend
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 31,962
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From: Western NY
You're getting the message because the truck has not been properly completing regens which happens in city driving with a lot of stop and go. So you may have bought it with the truck in that condition. What type of driving do you do?
There's a pressure sensor on the inlet to the filter. When pressure gets too high, you get that message. You need a way to monitor when the truck is in regen and the soot load % of the DPF.
It's very easy to miss the "CLEANING EXHAUST FILTER" message when driving as it only displays for a few seconds on your dash. You can buy a digital monitor like the Edge CTS2 or the Banks iDash1.8 which I use. It actually displays ACTIVE before the truck even displays the cleaning filter message. Or you can use a old iPhone, tablet or current phone to use to display PIDS, the data such as coolant temp or exhaust gas temps. You would use an app like Torque Pro or FORScan. You would also need an OBD2 Bluetooth adapter.
You can also have the factory DPF soot load percentage screen enabled so you know what's going on with the filter and when it gets close to 100%, you know a regen is coming.
I hope this helps. There are plenty of threads on here on this very subject. Use the search feature. Someone else will chime in.
*plus with a digital monitor, you can read and clear codes. Good luck.
There's a pressure sensor on the inlet to the filter. When pressure gets too high, you get that message. You need a way to monitor when the truck is in regen and the soot load % of the DPF.
It's very easy to miss the "CLEANING EXHAUST FILTER" message when driving as it only displays for a few seconds on your dash. You can buy a digital monitor like the Edge CTS2 or the Banks iDash1.8 which I use. It actually displays ACTIVE before the truck even displays the cleaning filter message. Or you can use a old iPhone, tablet or current phone to use to display PIDS, the data such as coolant temp or exhaust gas temps. You would use an app like Torque Pro or FORScan. You would also need an OBD2 Bluetooth adapter.
You can also have the factory DPF soot load percentage screen enabled so you know what's going on with the filter and when it gets close to 100%, you know a regen is coming.
I hope this helps. There are plenty of threads on here on this very subject. Use the search feature. Someone else will chime in.
*plus with a digital monitor, you can read and clear codes. Good luck.
Last edited by Overkill2; Jul 21, 2019 at 12:27 PM. Reason: Add to post
Lead Driver
Joined: Jan 2010
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If these drives have been more than 30 miles, I think you need to run through an OCR (manual regeneration). Drive it to get it heated up (an active regeneration will not start until EOT is 150°F on a 2011), park it in a open area (it gets hot), follow the instructions (such as opening the hood) and start the OCR.
Once that process has completed and the soot GPL is 1.50 or less (mine would burn to 1.20 or less), drive it as normal and see if the issue eventually returns after a tank or two of fuel.
The soot GPL will continue to build as normal and while driving/towing on the highway, it should run the active regeneration process as normal by 2.70. If the soot builds and exceeds 2.80 without decreasing, I'd say you have an issue that needs to be further investigated.
Once that process has completed and the soot GPL is 1.50 or less (mine would burn to 1.20 or less), drive it as normal and see if the issue eventually returns after a tank or two of fuel.
The soot GPL will continue to build as normal and while driving/towing on the highway, it should run the active regeneration process as normal by 2.70. If the soot builds and exceeds 2.80 without decreasing, I'd say you have an issue that needs to be further investigated.
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Junior User
Joined: Feb 2015
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I think the gpl is different on all trucks. Each truck builds it's on strategy on the way they are driven. In the beginning mileage on my truck I was seeing gpl readings over 8. My current is at 3.75 with 80 percent on the factory reading
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Lead Driver
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Interesting. Mine was always 2.66 (unless I stopped it too many times) until one of the firmware updates that contained emissions changes (around the time of the EGT sensor shutdown fix) then it was 2.55 and regeneration wouldn't last as long by a few miles. Other 2011's have been similar from what I've read here over the years.
6.7 Weight Loss
Joined: Jun 2017
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From: Woodbury CT
This really isn't the DEF system but the DPF system. There are 3 emissions systems in the truck, DEF, EGR and DPF. The drive to clean exhaust system message is a bad message, if the regen fails to complete eventually you will wind up in limp mode. As folks have posted it's because the truck thinks it hasn't been able to finish a regeneration. As others have posted, if you're trying to regen in stop and go traffic it's not going to happen. You're probably looking at roughly 10 - 20 miles of uninterrupted driving on an interstate to clean the thing out. As others have mentioned, you can do a curbside regen if you have Forscan or a dealer can do it for you. With over 100k on the odometer you may need a sensor or worst case the DPF replaced.
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