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General Are Diesel Qubos Suitable for Doing Lots of Short Journeys?

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General Are Diesel Qubos Suitable for Doing Lots of Short Journeys?

Don't believe anyone who says on no it doesn't have one of those dpf things.

Check yourself.

Remember if you get the 1.3 diesel it has a timing chain not a timing belt.
Don't assume a chain is better than a belt , especially on this particular fiat motor.
The chain when it stretches or wears out costs a very large amount of money to Change the chain and it's associated components.

To make the chain last as long as possible , the engine oil and filter has to be changed at least once every year , using a top brand oil of the correct grade.
I don't know how many miles Fiat specify between oil changes but as you will be doing manly short journeys halve it.
Cam chain could need changing at 60,000 or less if unlucky
Or if very unlucky the chain could break , if that happens cheapest option is a complete replacement motor.

It's not just Fiat that messed up with cam chains vw Audi group have had appalling problems too.

I am not anti fiat or anti diesel I drive a Fiat with a 1.9 jtd.
 
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....and there I was, thinking that soot=carbon emission=something which would affect Road Tax. You can see how it might. But no. So it's just CO2 gas that determines the Road Tax bracket, not CO gas as well? Why, that's krazy.

Jackwhoo, many thanks for the timing chain advice. Utterly indispensable.

So what's everyone else's take on MowerMender70's miraculous Toolstation diesel fuel treatment? Can it really allow a DPF to lead a charmed life?
 
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Vietislav said:
....and there I was, thinking that soot=carbon emission=something which would affect Road Tax. You can see how it might. But no. So it's just CO2 gas that determines the Road Tax bracket, not CO gas as well? Why, that's krazy.

Jackwhoo, many thanks for the timing chain advice. Utterly indispensable.

So what's everyone else's take on MowerMender70's miraculous Toolstation diesel fuel treatment? Can it really allow a DPF to lead a charmed life?
Click to expand...
Come on-
Even main dealers sales people have been told not to recommend diesel engined vehicles for predominantly short journeys.

Mower man says short journeys then states a 175 mile round trip. Not knocking mower man just reading his post.

Fuel Additives are not recommended by manufacturers. Until I see an independent scientific report that they are effective in saving dpf , they remain to me snake oil and will increase your cost per mile
 
Vietislav said:
....and there I was, thinking that soot=carbon emission=something which would affect Road Tax. You can see how it might. But no. So it's just CO2 gas that determines the Road Tax bracket, not CO gas as well? Why, that's krazy.

Jackwhoo, many thanks for the timing chain advice. Utterly indispensable.

So what's everyone else's take on MowerMender70's miraculous Toolstation diesel fuel treatment? Can it really allow a DPF to lead a charmed life?
Click to expand...
Road tax based on co2 emissions a way for government to gain more tax revenue while pretending it was of environmental benefit.
 
hi,
the 1.3 isn't my thing..
it has pro's and con's

it's better on fuel than the 1.2 petrol,
but a LOT more complex

has a cam CHAIN to change at higher mileage.. but if you only do short journeys..and don't do them for UPS / DHL then it'll take you @20 YEARS to need one ;)

the 1.2's BELT is cheap and simple.

DERV is actually BETTER for short journey's .. but all of that is negated by the DPF gubbins needing to get HOT for a sustained period.. :(

I know people who bought a DPF equipped ( japanese) 4x4 = horsebox towing

that's ALL it did , and it needed @£700 of DPF work every 2 years

my son had a late 2008 focus TDCi = no DPF.. good car - the DPF was still "optional" back then .. and it worked flawlessly.
 
varesecrazy said:
hi,
the 1.3 isn't my thing..
it has pro's and con's

it's better on fuel than the 1.2 petrol,
but a LOT more complex

has a cam CHAIN to change at higher mileage.. but if you only do short journeys..and don't do them for UPS / DHL then it'll take you @20 YEARS to need one ;)

the 1.2's BELT is cheap and simple.

DERV is actually BETTER for short journey's .. but all of that is negated by the DPF gubbins needing to get HOT for a sustained period.. :(

I know people who bought a DPF equipped ( japanese) 4x4 = horsebox towing

that's ALL it did , and it needed @£700 of DPF work every 2 years

my son had a late 2008 focus TDCi = no DPF.. good car - the DPF was still "optional" back then .. and it worked flawlessly.
Click to expand...
glad you agree 1.3 has a cam CHAIN

Yes the cam CHAIN can wear out and or stretch in as little as 60,000 miles.
Cam CHAINS have even broken at such a low mileage.
There are examples on this forum. Together with examples where intensive servicing has lead to longer CHAIN life.

The OP isn't looking to buy a car brand new, so what ever is bought will have miles on it . Best not to buy something that may require cam CHAIN replacement in a few thousand miles. A stamped service book is sadly no guarantee of correct servicing .

By the way why are we Using capital letters for CHAIN ?

Again not having a go at Fiat some vag group engines could break a cam CHAIN at 25,000 miles.
 
jackwhoo said:
By the way why are we Using capital letters for CHAIN ?

Again not having a go at Fiat some vag group engines could break a cam CHAIN at 25,000 miles.
Click to expand...


BMW ones don't last any longer.. the CHAIN.. ;)

the OP has to realistically decide what the vehicle is going to do.. unless they make a 400 mile round trip once a month the petrol will be fine - cheaper to buy, and cheaper to maintain..

look at the MPG figures of JR Kitchings 1242cc panda :cool:
 
Oooo yes BMW vanos rattle , written down that sounds like something antibiotics should be used for ?

I agree petrol is way forward for the OP .

Robert made very good points regarding current governments political leanings about diesel road vehicles .

:)
 
jackwhoo said:
<SNIP>
Fuel Additives are not recommended by manufacturers. Until I see an independent scientific report that they are effective in saving dpf , they remain to me snake oil and will increase your cost per mile
Click to expand...

Hi,
Do you have a reference for Fiat not recommending fuel additives?
There are two broad classes of diesel additive (with some overlap). First are the cleaners, typically a one-shot treatment used every few tanks of fuel e.g. Redex. Second are the fuel improvers that ate typically multi dose bottles e.g. Millers Diesel Ecomax.
The cleaners are typically solvents such as refined kerosine or naptha. The additives typically contain mostly 2 ethylhexyl nitrate. This improves the cetane rating of the fuel. I've found a clear improvment in drivability and fuel consumption when using Millers. It also improves the lubricity of the fuel.
I've never found the cleaners to make much difference.
There are also additives that are supposed to claed the DPF, but as there are at least two classes of DPF (one has a system that automatically doses the fuel with an additive) it's hard to see how they can make a universal DPF cleaning additive. However anything that improves the combustion efficency of the engine will reduce the the unber of regenerations required.

Robert G8RPI.
 
g8rpi said:
Hi,
Do you have a reference for Fiat not recommending fuel additives?
There are two broad classes of diesel additive (with some overlap). First are the cleaners, typically a one-shot treatment used every few tanks of fuel e.g. Redex. Second are the fuel improvers that ate typically multi dose bottles e.g. Millers Diesel Ecomax.
The cleaners are typically solvents such as refined kerosine or naptha. The additives typically contain mostly 2 ethylhexyl nitrate. This improves the cetane rating of the fuel. I've found a clear improvment in drivability and fuel consumption when using Millers. It also improves the lubricity of the fuel.
I've never found the cleaners to make much difference.
There are also additives that are supposed to claed the DPF, but as there are at least two classes of DPF (one has a system that automatically doses the fuel with an additive) it's hard to see how they can make a universal DPF cleaning additive. However anything that improves the combustion efficency of the engine will reduce the the unber of regenerations required.

Robert G8RPI.
Click to expand...



Hi Robert,


you are right as usual.


My punctuation left a lot to be desired.


I am not anti all fuel additives , for instance the Millers you mention is excellent.


I am anti add to fuel tank fuel additives that claim a diesel with a dpf can be used for short journeys without any problems, these are the additives that I feel could be snake oil and could cause the OP to think a dpf diesel would be a super choice for him .




No I have no Fiat reference for not recommending fuel additives , more a recollection of other manufacturers drivers hand books over the years saying fuel additives are not necessary.
Read as they don't recommend fuel additives rather than don't use fuel additives.

Cheers to all this lovely sunny day, drink plenty of water if working.

Jack
 
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Hi Robert ,

I didn't take your post badly.

Re-reading my post realised it wasn't quite what I was trying to say and needed clarification.

So I thank you.

Considering the number of years dpf causing problems on short trip vehicles, if there was a proven fuel additive that kept dpf from clogging the manufacturers would be shouting it from the roof tops.

Cheers Jack
 
Hi all. Regarding the OP'S initial post.There are only 2 Qubos in the area where I live, both semi auto.Mine is a non DPF, the other, a newer model with DPF. We both do mainly short journeys. With my car obviously no problems with DPF, just top mounts, springs and electrical issues, with the other car there have been numerous issues with the DPF. The owners are much like myself, getting on more than a bit. They have no idea about regeneration etc as it's too complicated
They have just paid out another £400 to get it "fixed"
Read into this what you will.
Road tax is £30.
The 75 hp is no pocket rocket, the book says that 0-60 is 18secs(about right). Again read into this what you will.
 
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