Smokey & Slow - Lets Fix It - VW Transporter T5 1.9TDI

So over the last year I have noticed my van getting more slow and more smokey under acceleration. I have constant stalling issues and awful MPG.
I decided to investigate and came up with a theory.. lets see if that theory is right.
Peace
Tom

[@leonnikoo]

Thanks for making this, great that you did it youself. Sadly, I am not confident enough but this will give me good questions for the mechanic.

[@glynmoore3730]

Great "educational" video. Whilst it's amazing to watch pros wrap as they make it look so easy, your video showed real life DIY wrapping, and despite hiccups you made a great job and it was inspiring.

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you! I like to show the hiccups! I’m not perfect, I don’t know what I’m doing, I’m bound to make mistakes, but if I can show my mistakes hopefully others won’t make the same :)

[@josho1191]

Informative video mate - got a similar problem on my 1.9 T5 with smoke on acceleration and sluggish performance. On the back of this will definitely be checking all the boost hoses and give the EGR a good clean!

[@TeeeTV]

One of the things I found was if I disconnected the MAF I got all my low down torque back but lost top end power, I replaced the MAF and ended up with the exact same problem, but I’m guessing when the MAF is unplugged the ECU shuts the EGR so it might be a good way to test to see if you get your torque back before you start taking things apart

[@djsiuk]

Great video. Smoker is your friend for boost leaks. The forge kit looks good.

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you! Yeah the forge stuff is always really nice quality 👌🏻👌🏻

[@jezlucas3878]

We have same van with similar issues thanks

[@silveryfox69]

Great video! I pretty much got the same problem with my T5 1.9 had nearly 10 years now. ( Failed MOT on emissions (lots of black smoke from exhaust) combined with lagging as you described. Ive changed all four intercooler pipes and used diesel cleaner in with fuel - still no better. Ive got a new turbo on the way, hopefully swapping that out will cure it but im not convinced. EGR blanking plate could be the way forward if new turbo doesn't fix it. What would you say resolved your issue? The blanking plate? Cheers bud.

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you :) I’m not 100% sure if intercooler pipes or EGR plate sorted the issue if I’m honest but I’m leaning towards the EGR plate, considering how cheap they are and how easy they are to fit you may as well have a go and see if it sorts your issue, only downside is it throws an engine light which would also fail MOT :(

[@pearlprints5019]

Great video... but ut egr was okay... it was a boost leak tht caused tht power issue and black smoke.. also bear in mind, an underboosting turbo can aslo cause black smoke

[@TeeeTV]

While I believe that a boost leak was contributing to the smoke the EGR was for sure an issue as all of my power loss was at low rpm. Unplugging the MAF would actually give me back all of the low down torque and stop the smoke, i tried replacing the MAF but even with a new one it would still smoke under acceleration.

[@davecrombie546]

Good video, I need to do this! After blanking the egr did you have to have anything done to the ECU as I've heard that it can throw up faults afterwards?..

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you! Yes it did throw an engine light and that engine light is still on now, I haven’t had the light removed yet because I have plans for a future video but you should be able to get the light mapped out by any remapping service

[@JamesBarberDesign]

Looking forward to a video of this if you decide to make it. I have a 2007 1.9 T5 like yours, thinking of doing the same :)@@TeeeTV

[@oleksasirotinin1532]

​@@TeeeTV actually if you into DIY, I can forward you libs with remapped ECU bins files and link to the channel where a guy explaining the mapping stuff. But EGR maps need to be adjusted for optimal operation

[@TeeeTV]

That would be amazing, yes please, I have ordered myself a little read/write tool to have a go, be good to get a starting point though

[@alanh259]

Did you get the rubber seals with the forge kit? I got the same/similar forge kit with only 3 parts, not 4.

[@TeeeTV]

Unfortunatly I had to order the rubber seals separately, the rubber seal kit I got from here www.heritagepartscentre.com/uk/wc145t530-boost-hose-seal-kit-1-9-diesel-t5.html?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw-eKpBhAbEiwAqFL0mitOaY-NYIDcyGszH8F1PC_dbkFzWY5fMo3XD-Fvxq6WvMJm_hLmWRoCWowQAvD_BwE hope this helps

[@macaffis]

Hello! Thanks! What are the typical problems of the vw t5 1.9tdi?

[@TeeeTV]

Hmm, tough question. Not a great deal to be honest, most issues are mainly age/milage related which are pretty common across pretty much any diesel car or van: EGR issues, n75 valve, general oil leaks etc. otherwise as far as I’m aware they are considered the most reliable transporter engine, not surprising since the 1.9tdi had been around since the late 90s most of the issues had been figured out by the time it was put in a transporter, especially if you go for a later t5 (06-08). Mine is a 07, I’ve owned it for nearly 3 years and I’d say I haven’t had any issues that I wouldn’t expect from a 15 year old vehicle. Whereas at one point I had a t5.1 2.0tdi which fought me with numerous unnecessary faults and constantly went into limp mode 😮‍💨

[@macaffis]

thank you! What happens is that since so many changes have been made to adapt to anti-pollution regulations, new elements that are easily subject to breaking have also been included. I have seen a t5 with 400k km that is supposed to have a cylinder head, and it is scary with so many kilometers

[@marktipton218]

Trust me buddy, you want to give that van a good Terra clean and Mityvac which cleans the veins on the Turbo you will have so much more power and be better on fuel it’s unbelievable

[@TeeeTV]

I have considered this however I have come up with a different plan to solve the power issue, coming to a video soon 😜

[@user-yt2wy4nc8i]

Yooo i need to the same hose , the one that is hidden all the way back with the turbo... what is that called... link to it potentially?

[@user-yt2wy4nc8i]

Is it the smallest of the set?

[@TeeeTV]

Is this the one you’re looking for? www.ebay.co.uk/itm/313740243654?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=A7bTlCzjSPy&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=ndcp_BEbQ62&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY I don’t know 100% is that’s the right one as the forge kit replaces all the original soft intercooler pipes but it looks like the one I removed

[@VidzVideo]

The thing you took off and cleaned and wasnt sure what it was is the throttle body. The EGR valve is bolted the back of the egr cooler on top of the intake. As putting the blanking plate on helped with your running issue it could be that the valve is clogged up and not opening and closing properly. Its easy to remove and clean. I think its 3 bolts and it slides out the housing.

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you for the info! Sounds like I have some more cleaning to do, I will be taking the intake off in a future video so I’ll have the EGR off at the same time and clean it all out!

[@kerdnI]

What the hell guy has no idea what is doing "egr"😂

[@menditman2004]

Hi good video, did this fix stop the black smoke ? 👍

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you, yes the smoke completely cleared up, it’s been about 9 months since I did the work now and I still have no smoking issues :)

[@menditman2004]

@@TeeeTV Thanks for getting back, I have a feeling my EGR is playing up, no real loss of power, but it’s Smokey and just isn’t running quite right, I’ll put a blank plate unit and see if it improves thanks again 👍

[@TeeeTV]

@@menditman2004 no problem, hope it solves it for you! It’s not mentioned in the video because it only popped up after I have uploaded it but the EGR plate will probably throw an engine light up though

[@DailyDrivencampers]

Have you noticed the oil breather on top with the little pin hole air coming out of that

[@TeeeTV]

Ooh thank you! I’ll have a look, see if there’s any leaks

[@DailyDrivencampers]

@TeeeTV iv got a tiny bit of air coming out of the pin hole on the oilbreather from what iv been told its normal let me know if yours does it pls mate iv never noticed it befor

[@TeeeTV]

Just been out and checked and yes I also have a bit of air coming out the pin hole in the breather

[@DailyDrivencampers]

@TeeeTV oh that good to know thanks bud thaught I was going nuts 🤣

[@beastylad7418]

I’ve got the same problem with my VW Crafter / campervan’ 2.5 5 cylinder’ drives ok , a bit sluggish’ BUT smokes when pulling away’ or after sitting in traffic ? Always black smoke 💨 uses virtually no oil ‘ so many people have taken a look 👀 but can’t figure it out . Any ideas 👍

[@TeeeTV]

Try unplugging the MAF, if you get back a load of low down torque then you might have an egr issue, that is exactly what I did and what happened to me, while it’s unplugged though you do loose a lot of top end power so I wouldn’t leave it unplugged, if you get your low torque back (and no more smoke) then there’s a high chance it’s EGR, I initially thought the MAF was the issue and replaced it only to find I still had the same problem, the blanking plate I fitted to mine has completely sorted the smoke and the sluggishness but I do have an engine light on so if you go this route you’ll either need to clean or replace the EGR or just get it mapped out (which is what I’m going to be doing soon) hope this helps and let me know how you get on

[@beastylad7418]

@@TeeeTV Thanks 🙏 Longest reply I’ve ever had 👍 Excellent 👌 even I can understand it’ I’m having my van remapped soon ‘ so will pass on what you have said’ I’ve been told blanking off the EGR can help’ if it stops the smoke 💨 I’ll be an happy camper. Thanks again’ Love your videos’ I’ll share them with my mates ok. 👍

[@TeeeTV]

Thank you so much! I really enjoy making the videos and it’s great to hear that they’re good enough that people want to watch them ♥️ Fingers crossed this sorts your issue 🤞🏻

[@mattsan70]

unplug the MAF and see if you get power back - if so get a new one. spray some cleaner in the air intake with engine on to clean injectors

[@TeeeTV]

Prior to changing the charge pipes and blanking the EGR I had unplugged the MAF, got all my power back and then bought a new one, with the new one plugged in I had the exact same problem return, I can only assume with the MAF unplugged the EGR will not open as it doesn’t know the intake flow

[@michaelrobson1751]

Did it cure the smoke??

[@TeeeTV]

Yes! Completely, it hasn’t smoked at all since!

[@next0845]

Did the smoke stop?

[@TeeeTV]

Yes the smoke completely cleared up, I haven’t had any smoking issues since!

[@next0845]

@@TeeeTV Nice 👌

[@kerdnI]

Bro fixed van so long that forget what he was fixing in first place 😂 did it fix the smoking?

[@TeeeTV]

Yeah it took ages for the charge pipes to arrive, but yes it has completely fixed the smoking, and the low down torque is back to normal

[@kerdnI]

Nice ty

[@vwtransportersandmotorcycl3729]

Did it cure the smoke though?

[@TeeeTV]

Yes! It’s been a few months since I did that work now and I’ve had zero smoke (that I can see) since!

[@comfortablynumb8832]

@@TeeeTV do you think it was blanking the egr that got rid of the smoke?

[@TeeeTV]

@@comfortablynumb8832 I do, the boost leaks were causing a bit of smoke throughout the rev range but so fine that you could only really see it in the dark in other people’s headlights. The major smoke issue was happening when pulling away from a stop, the EGR only operates at idle so I can only assume the EGR wasn’t closing properly, I think what I’ve just said makes sense 🤣

[@comfortablynumb8832]

@@TeeeTV Iv heard that before about egr not closing. I’ll give that

[@comfortablynumb8832]

@@TeeeTV last question after the egr blank do you know if you can you clear the dash light with a plug in carista ?

[@knolez1546]

Delete the EGR

[@TeeeTV]

Oh I’m planning on it, currently have an engine light which hopefully won’t be there much longer