Sooty Tailpipes

[uga33]

Is this always a sign of a malfunctioning DPF or has it ever been any other issue? Buddies brand new 09 w/ 3k miles has sooty tailpipes. I have him talked into a DPF delete but not till fall. Any input is appreciated.

[dzchey21]

When i was shopping for trucks some new ones were like that and some older used ones were clean as a whistle, guess it just depends on the truck, i know on two of them i was looking at they had some injector issues according to the oasis, but no dpf failures, dont know if that helps....

[DieselFarmer]

I think that sooty tailpipes means that the DPF is cracked... dont quote me on that tho

[tucker]

I had sooty tailpipes after about 22K and the dealer replaced the DPF. Now at about 29K I have the same issue but no trouble codes and the truck seems to run pretty well so I am just starting to think it is not an issue.

[dieselkane]

Originally Posted by uga33

Is this always a sign of a malfunctioning DPF or has it ever been any other issue? Buddies brand new 09 w/ 3k miles has sooty tailpipes. I have him talked into a DPF delete but not till fall. Any input is appreciated.

Sooty pipes are a sign of a DPF failure, or so I'm told. Mine were clean as a whistle up until an unmentionable mod

[elibenson]

My F350 always smoked like a steam train, even with the DPF on it. The F450 is still clean after 32K miles. Don't know. My dealer never seemed to think my DPF wasbad, or I would get them to change it. Even if I don't use it, it is still worth some money, and at some point I might sell the truck. Would be good for the new owner..

[Greenhorn Diesel]

I was told some soot in the tail pipe was considered normal. Usually around the 15k mark it should become more noticeable. Now with 3k on it, yeah, the dpf may be defective. Run it untill the wrench light turns on, or just get rid of it

[jason1168tx]

Soot in the tailpipe definitely means the DPF is no good. You should see no soot in the tailpipes at all.

[samdmax75]

Soot on the tail pipe equals cracked DPF and better fuel mileage.

[geabis]

i can take a pic of my tail pipe that i have in my garage and show you the soot on it at the clamp just before the muffler (its a much finer soot than what i get on my pipes now). only has 3k on it and about 10 regens on it. go figure, and it was functioning perfectly fine (not cracked) before i deleted it.

no more 9 mpg. getting 16 now.