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    Can I clean my DPF and do cleaning additives actually work?

Skoda officially reveals the Octavia Mk4

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In what was a rather strange event, Skoda has finally unveiled all-new fourth generation Skoda Octavia.

Reminiscent of a Eurovision showreel, musicians and dancers accompanied the CEO of Skoda, Bernhard Maier in hatching welcoming the new Octavia from its polygon”egg”.

This “simply clever” show has to be hands down one of the strangest car reveals we’ve seen in a long while. Berny was joined on stage by a number of executives from Skoda, all struggling to kerb their scripted enthusiasm in all it’s cringy glory.

Despite all this, the Skoda showcased what in my opinion is a beautiful evolution of my favourite family mover. Taking cues from the all-new Superb, the new Octavia drips in understated class. It’s crisp and clean lines complement a well-proportioned body which even in non-VRS trim looks stunning. 

Unfortunately, there was no sign of a VRS model but we’re confident that one will be confirmed in the near future.

Octavia Highlights

  • 6.5 million Octavias “delivered”
  • The Octavia represented 31% of Skoda’s global car production in 2018
  • Skoda will be electrifying the entire Skoda range
  • The Octavia Combi is the best selling estate in Europe

What’s changed in the Mk4

Despite the corporate cue card “buzzwords” we managed to salvage a few highlights from the event. We’ll confirm more when the press pack drops.

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GPF / PPF Removal Delete FAQ – Is it illegal?

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So you’ve got a car equipped with a GPF / PPF (Gasoline Particulate Filter / Petrol Particulate Filter) and you want it removed / deleted? Is it legal? Do you have to remap the car?  Want to know more? You’ve come to the right place.

Since our DPF removal FAQs have been so popular with diesel drivers, we thought it only right to help out fellow petrol-powered cousins who are looking to remove their GPF / PPF filters for good.

What is a GPF / PPF?

(Taken from our page  The Gasoline Particulate Filter FAQ)

A GPF (Gasoline Particulate Filter) is an inline exhaust filter designed to capture soot particulates in direct injection petrol engines (GDI). Much like a DPF, it comprises of a honeycomb-like filter structure made from a synthetic ceramic material.

As exhaust gasses pass through the filter, soot particles are captured. These filters are highly efficient, capturing in excess of 90% of airborne particulates which would otherwise be released into the atmosphere.

In Germany, theses filters are referred to as Otto particle filter (Ottopartikelfilter or OPF)

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How to replace a Ford C-Max Mk 2 battery inc TDI 2011–2019

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When I get a call from the Wife during the day it means one of 2 things. Someone has been hurt or something is broken. Luckily for me, it was the latter. I really didn’t want to spend my afternoon in A&E with one of the kids.

Upon hearing in great detail on how her 2011 Ford Grand C-Max 1.6tdi wouldn’t start and “just make this clicky noise”, it was pretty obvious that the battery was at fault. I was over in Peterborough, so I popped it at Milfiled Autos for a new battery. £80 later (when the f**k did batteries get so expensive?!) I was on the way to swap out her battery and drive it home. Like most “simple” tasks I undertake, it’s wasn’t going to be that easy. 

Under the bonnet of the C-Max you might first think that at the battery was located in the boot. Nope, they just put it as far back as they can and make it as awkward as possible to get at. Since I was only equipped with some basic spanners, I opted to jump it using the VRS and head home to get wrenching.

On this unfortunate occasion, YouTube was of very little help but I managed to find this little gem hiding away on a Ford owners club form website. 

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How to fix “Exhaust filter limit reached. drive to clean now” (Ford GPF Filter)

Posted on by Karl — 2 Comments ↓

We were surprised to see comments by Ford owners on our GPF / Gasoline Particulate filter FAQ asking about the error “Exhaust filter limit reached. drive to clean now“.

We were made to believe that unlike the DPF filter, the GPF was a “maintenance free” filter which would “clean” itself under normal driving conditions. Unfortunately, that doesn’t look like it’s the case.

I’ve been through all the new Ford Ecoboost manuals I can find online and unfortunately, I can’t see anything about the GPF or related error anywhere. As you would expect, there is a section dedicated to the DPF but the Gasoline Particulate filter is not mentioned anywhere.

Some of the Ford forums suggest that this error could be due to a sensor malfunction however we’ve seen comments with increasing frequency from owners with cars under a year old.

Could it be that like a DPF, the GPF requires the same sort of conditions for regeneration? If so this is going to pi** a lot of owners off, especially those that have moved over to petrol cars from diesel cars due to low milages or driving habits that we’re ideal for modern diesel cars.

Is this the start of GPF regeneration issues for petrol car owners?

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VAG DPF Review (Andriod) – VAG DPF Monitor app

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Are you looking to buy a VW, Skoda, Audi or Seat diesel car equipped with a DPF? Are you the lucky owner of a VW Group diesel car?  If you answered yes to at least one of these, you need this app.

What does VAG DPF do?

VAG DPF is an android (only) app which lets you monitor, track and log data from a wide range of sensors related to your DPF and diesel emissions system. The app lets you view information on DPF regeneration, the DPF burn cycle and most importantly the oil ash content of the filter itself. 

Depending on your engine/vehicle, the app lets you display live DPF data available from your ECU. See below for a screenshot from the app running on a Motorola Moto G3 I keep in the car just for this and resetting the dreaded EML (engine management light) – VW life 😉

The data displayed is pretty self-explanatory. The key value for me is the Oil Ash Residue reading. We’ll go further into this later in the article.

Before you can use the app, you’ll need to get yourself an ODB2 dongle, that leads us on to…

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Skoda “leaks” the new Octavia Mk4 before it’s official unveiling / VRS

Posted on by Karl — No Comments ↓

Is anything sacred these days? Is this an unfortunate leak or a clever PR exercise to get people interested before the big Octavia MK4 unveiling on November 11th?

If it was a PR exercise, Skoda nailed it. My news feed has been filled with images of the New Skoda Octavia MK4 naked and in all it’s glory. The image you see above was “apparently” leaked from the Skoda car configurator but the source of the leak has yet to be confirmed.

Honestly, I rather like it. The design language takes its queue from the “new” Superb, In fact, I initially thought it was a Suberb before I saw the Octavia number plate. 

Is this the new VRS?

Not only was the monochrome configurator image of the MK4 leaked, what could be the MK4 VRS was revealed/leaked too. 

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Why choose a business fuel card?

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filling with supermarket fuel prices petrol green pump

Reducing fuel costs in your business isn’t just about driving efficiently. There is another great way that businesses can help reduce costs by simply changing how they pay for fuel.

This is why a large number of UK businesses choose fuel cards. Business fuel cards allow your staff to fill up using a dedicated card which offers a wide range of cost-saving benefits. For those businesses such as fleet operators and hauliers, they can offer substantial business benefits which can prove vital in highly competitive markets.

Save money on fuel

Some fuel card providers fix the price of fuel to below forecourt prices. These savings can be up to 3p a litre cheaper than those advertised. Over a large fleet of vehicles, even just a small saving per litre can represent a huge saving in overall fuel costs to the business. 

Control your outgoings

A fuel card lets you see exactly what you’re spending on fuel, where and when. They let you budget for business fuel expenditure and allows you to plan your fuel costs in advance. Fuel cards also let you monitor fuel usage for your drivers, allowing you to access their efficiency. It can highlight where driver training / education is required so you can maximise your fuel usage and minimise waste.

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