Hi all,

As above, I am reading an P244C 'Catalyst temperature too low for PDF regeneration code. Cleared it and it appeared again within a few days.

No warning lights on at the dash, I am just waiting for a vLinker to come and downloaded the Forscan lite app to try and get some more info- unfortunately no windows laptop or I’d have just got a cable.

Considering it was that code in isolation, the car isn’t symptomatic, or showing dashboard codes. Am I right in thinking the first thing that needs attention is likely the DPF vaporiser?

I will check the temperature sensors are reading believable values and getting voltage, keep an eye on the differential pressure reading. And of course checking coolant is reaching the right temperature range.

But assuming those aren’t TOO awful, am I right in assuming I’ve probably caught the issue ahead of it blocking my DPF?

Do you have any other tips for me when trying to diagnose this please? Just trying to piece together my research and would like to help others if they encounter the issue on theirs too.

Could someone remind me what the differential pressure ranges are supposed to be? Am I right in assuming sort of below 15ish at idle, and below 50 ish at 3K revs? At what soot accumulation will it refuse to regen (even if I replaced the vaporiser)

A huge thanks to those who take their time to input

Generally agree with your pressure values (below 10 ideally at idle, sometimes only goes up in steps of 10) and max 80 or 90 mBar at 3k?

Differential pressure at engine off ,(zero - sanity check) idle and 3k are standard values used by Jimmy (O'Rileys You Tube channel - recommended!) plus DPF soot loadings, open and closed loop and DPF temperatures for values 650 degrees when regen?

Ideally nowhere near 200% as a first approximation. - really need to monitor and tackle this quickly.

If it has a vaporiser then test as first step it's not blocked (clamp fuel hose to avoid need to prime) and that fuse and glow plug are OK (check resistance and come back with values of all if necessary?)

Coolant temp check is another key parameter along with, perhaps glow plug operation and EGR as a more complex issue.

15 hours ago, Shearers said:

Generally agree with your pressure values (below 10 ideally at idle, sometimes only goes up in steps of 10) and max 80 or 90 mBar at 3k?

Differential pressure at engine off ,(zero - sanity check) idle and 3k are standard values used by Jimmy (O'Rileys You Tube channel - recommended!) plus DPF soot loadings, open and closed loop and DPF temperatures for values 650 degrees when regen?

Ideally nowhere near 200% as a first approximation. - really need to monitor and tackle this quickly.

If it has a vaporiser then test as first step it's not blocked (clamp fuel hose to avoid need to prime) and that fuse and glow plug are OK (check resistance and come back with values of all if necessary?)

Coolant temp check is another key parameter along with, perhaps glow plug operation and EGR as a more complex issue.

Pressure was about 2 on idle max of 15 at 3000rpms

Soot loads were 73% & 105%

Mass 6.6g/L CL & 9.53 OL

It is almost constantly attempting regens 33km Since the last one, and it attempted one whilst I was on a 8 mile b road drive, exhaust temps maxed out briefly at 480C approx I am guessing during this cycle.

I attempted a static regen, and it almost immediately aborted.

Are we still looking at vaporiser as a main culprit?

Do you think there’s a chance that if it is replaced, the DPF won’t need a cleaning and it can carry on it’s merry cycles?

I'd definitely look at multiple videos on Jimmy's channel (definitely the Guru IMHO):
https://www.youtube.com/@ORileysAutos/videos
I see that the pressure values actually look good and the soot loadings a bit high but not desperate ...yet.
I (and Jimmy) don't like forced regens, except as a last resort (other views differ) they can overheat and cause cracking - you'll see he uses the cleaner (spray cans can be bought off e-Bay)
Assume you have done his finger test i.e. no heavy soot on exhaust pipe?
If it's attempting regen (how do you know) 480 may not be quite high enough.

If you have a vaporiser IMHO that is DEFINITELY the first system to check (fuse, glow pug resistance and clear of blockage must not hold any pressure) after that is sorted the cleaning spray injected at front of DPF as per instructions would be my next step with monitoring a la Jimmy.
All above just my opinion and we had a vaporiser go at about 80 k due to low glow plug resistance (even though it was within tolerance, it still blew the fuse) and blockage.

DPF, if not cracked is usually the victim of some other fault and at the values you quote, at the moment, I'd say it should not need replacing but don't quote me!

1 hour ago, Shearers said:

I'd definitely look at multiple videos on Jimmy's channel (definitely the Guru IMHO):
https://www.youtube.com/@ORileysAutos/videos
I see that the pressure values actually look good and the soot loadings a bit high but not desperate ...yet.
I (and Jimmy) don't like forced regens, except as a last resort (other views differ) they can overheat and cause cracking - you'll see he uses the cleaner (spray cans can be bought off e-Bay)
Assume you have done his finger test i.e. no heavy soot on exhaust pipe?
If it's attempting regen (how do you know) 480 may not be quite high enough.

If you have a vaporiser IMHO that is DEFINITELY the first system to check (fuse, glow pug resistance and clear of blockage must not hold any pressure) after that is sorted the cleaning spray injected at front of DPF as per instructions would be my next step with monitoring a la Jimmy.
All above just my opinion and we had a vaporiser go at about 80 k due to low glow plug resistance (even though it was within tolerance, it still blew the fuse) and blockage.

DPF, if not cracked is usually the victim of some other fault and at the values you quote, at the moment, I'd say it should not need replacing but don't quote me!

Just checked with my finger there is only quite mild soot after a few wipes, nothing lumpy or dense looking. And it doesn’t kick out smoke when on boost (usually I check my other people’s headlights at night)

I think it’s attempting quite frequently, because there are 30 failed attempts logged and it logged another failure after I saw those temps rise.

I wish the YouTube guy could come and have a look, he seems to work quite methodically and usually gets a resolve.

Can you remember the location, fuse number or whatever it is for the glow plug?

27 minutes ago, Sausage2026 said:

Can you remember the location, fuse number or whatever it is for the glow plug?

Fuse F48 15A under the bonnet.

Relay R3 is also for the vaporiser.

Whilst you’ve popped you head in, Tom. Do I need a genuine Ford part for this?

I wasn’t considering a no-name £50 eBay bit, but is a Febi branded part likely to be of adequate quality for the job?

Just that they are quite pricey, but look (maybe deceptively) so simple

8 minutes ago, Sausage2026 said:

Whilst you’ve popped you head in, Tom. Do I need a genuine Ford part for this?

I wasn’t considering a no-name £50 eBay bit, but is a Febi branded part likely to be of adequate quality for the job?

Just that they are quite pricey, but look (maybe deceptively) so simple

I haven't needed to replace one myself. My DPF cars were all post-injection without the extra complication of a vaporiser.

Looks like the genuine one is around £300 for these. And only around £60 for aftermarket. I would definitely risk an aftermarket one given the price difference. They are simple but the glowplug may burn out sooner on a cheaper version.

Ours was from e-Bay several years ago, about £80.
I think Febi is a well known, at least reasonable brand which I'd certainly use.
I can't see how £300 can ever be justified for a nozzle, glow plug a bit of wire, connector and fuel pipe - they must have a real laugh sitting around deciding on prices along the lines of "How much do we dare charge for this?" then double or triple it?
Best get on and check it first: clamp fuel pipe as said, blow through or use Mityvac type pump, test glow plug resistance and fuses
If removing, check Jimmy's process (blow torch often needed although ours didn't) and get, I think, 22mm spanner (check)

53 minutes ago, Shearers said:

Ours was from e-Bay several years ago, about £80.
I think Febi is a well known, at least reasonable brand which I'd certainly use.
I can't see how £300 can ever be justified for a nozzle, glow plug a bit of wire, connector and fuel pipe - they must have a real laugh sitting around deciding on prices along the lines of "How much do we dare charge for this?" then double or triple it?
Best get on and check it first: clamp fuel pipe as said, blow through or use Mityvac type pump, test glow plug resistance and fuses
If removing, check Jimmy's process (blow torch often needed although ours didn't) and get, I think, 22mm spanner (check)

I’ve been watching a few of his, the focus he did it on he couldn’t get it out at all. But he definitely does interesting videos

I have a feeling it’s definitely gonna need a clean. Face palm moment … I was reading kPa … which is 10x lower than mbar. Can get quite a bit higher under load. Whoops

So need to get on the case more quickly - get the vaporiser (if you have one???) checked ASAP?
If not, there's some other fault (you'll need the Forscan app and adapter to be sure that all Ford specific codes are captured)

5 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

I haven't needed to replace one myself. My DPF cars were all post-injection without the extra complication of a vaporiser.

Looks like the genuine one is around £300 for these. And only around £60 for aftermarket. I would definitely risk an aftermarket one given the price difference. They are simple but the glowplug may burn out sooner on a cheaper version.

6 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Fuse F48 15A under the bonnet.

Relay R3 is also for the vaporiser.

Fuse is all good

Trying to source one, but there’s 1902014 and 1856982 showing when searching parts. Are these interchangeable?

47 minutes ago, Sausage2026 said:

Fuse is all good

Trying to source one, but there’s 1902014 and 1856982 showing when searching parts. Are these interchangeable?

No. They aren't even the same shape.

1902014 is the only listed for Mk3.5 Focus on the parts catalogue.

41 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

No. They aren't even the same shape.

1902014 is the only listed for Mk3.5 Focus on the parts catalogue.

Mine is a MY 2015, thought it was a Mk3.5 cause it doesn’t have the cutout around the Ford badge on the bonnet and doesn’t have round fogs?

Just to add, one says 06-20, another says 2014-2020 or 2015 on (the 1902014 part). Same thing with autodoc and eBay part checker, some say it fits, others say it doesn’t, and vice versa.

It does indeed look stubbier, the newer part, and seems a different connection to the fuel line with a tin foil wrapping.

Is my best bet to phone Ford?

9 hours ago, Sausage2026 said:

Just to add, one says 06-20, another says 2014-2020 or 2015 on (the 1902014 part). Same thing with autodoc and eBay part checker, some say it fits, others say it doesn’t, and vice versa.

It does indeed look stubbier, the newer part, and seems a different connection to the fuel line with a tin foil wrapping.

Is my best bet to phone Ford?

I got that part number from a Ford parts catalogue. But you are always welcome to double check with a Ford dealer, or any large aftermarket parts seller.

Wouldn't take too much notice of online compatibility checkers. 06-20 doesn't make sense for any Ford model or engine. 14-20 could be covering Mk3.5 (accounting for late registrations).

It looks like the '18' version is for Mondeo rather than Focus.

1 hour ago, TomsFocus said:

I got that part number from a Ford parts catalogue. But you are always welcome to double check with a Ford dealer, or any large aftermarket parts seller.

Wouldn't take too much notice of online compatibility checkers. 06-20 doesn't make sense for any Ford model or engine. 14-20 could be covering Mk3.5 (accounting for late registrations).

It looks like the '18' version is for Mondeo rather than Focus.

I put my VIN into Ford parts website and it’s coming up with the stubby 1902014 part number one. Is that to be trusted more than other checkers? Yeah probably give them a call. I guess the updated design (if it is that one) didn’t negate it getting clogged.

3 minutes ago, Sausage2026 said:

I put my VIN into Ford parts website and it’s coming up with the stubby 1902014 part number one. Is that to be trusted more than other checkers?

Yes, more than ebay or Autodoc. But I still wouldn't trust it completely.

I think the different shape is just due to different DPF shapes and pipe/cable routes on different models, rather than it being an improved design. Usually improved designs are interchangeable and in that case one part number supersedes another, but that isn't the case with these.

4 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Yes, more than ebay or Autodoc. But I still wouldn't trust it completely.

I think the different shape is just due to different DPF shapes and pipe/cable routes on different models, rather than it being an improved design. Usually improved designs are interchangeable and in that case one part number supersedes another, but that isn't the case with these.

How many exhaust gas temp sensors are there? I added one that I didn’t think existed, but if it didn’t, why would the voltage be showing between 1.15V-1.8V variable? Is this just an odd quirk of Forscan? I just imagined it to be 0.00V and -40C if it didn’t exist hmm?

1 hour ago, Sausage2026 said:

How many exhaust gas temp sensors are there? I added one that I didn’t think existed, but if it didn’t, why would the voltage be showing between 1.15V-1.8V variable? Is this just an odd quirk of Forscan? I just imagined it to be 0.00V and -40C if it didn’t exist hmm?

4x temp sensors. 2x lambda sensors. 1x pressure pipe.

3 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

4x temp sensors. 2x lambda sensors. 1x pressure pipe.

Hmm I need to figure out where sensor 4 is, could that be the whole cause of my issues?

And why it aborted the static regen (not planning on another, since watching that O’reily guy on YT)

Wish I could figure out which one is which, there are 4 listed on Ford under my vin with no descriptions on which one they are.

Edit: make that 5

28 minutes ago, Sausage2026 said:

Hmm I need to figure out where sensor 4 is, could that be the whole cause of my issues?

And why it aborted the static regen (not planning on another, since watching that O’reily guy on YT)

Wish I could figure out which one is which, there are 4 listed on Ford under my vin with no descriptions on which one they are.

Edit: make that 5

I don't know how they're numbered but they are shown clearly in the parts catalogue.

All the red lines shown on the right hand side of the exhaust are temp sensors. (Bizarrely the vaporiser is also in red, but on the left hand side.)

As far as I can tell there is:

One pre-cat for raw exhaust temps.

One pre-DPF for vaporiser increased temps.

One central DPF for ceramic core temps.

And one post-DPF, but I can't think of any critical use for that one at the moment.

3 hours ago, Sausage2026 said:

Hmm I need to figure out where sensor 4 is, could that be the whole cause of my issues?

And why it aborted the static regen (not planning on another, since watching that O’reily guy on YT)

Wish I could figure out which one is which, there are 4 listed on Ford under my vin with no descriptions on which one they are.

Edit: make that 5

If you disconnect them one at a time you will be able to work out which one is which using FORScan.

1 hour ago, Tizer said:

If you disconnect them one at a time you will be able to work out which one is which using FORScan.

That’s a really good shout, obvious now you said it - but good idea. I am thinking I might have two separate issues, because it is definitely trying to regen with the above temps- but is that sensor 4 enough to stop the process. I’ll definitely keep the thread updated with whatever is found

Getting it looked at this week.

I’ve noticed my oil level is off the charts high on the dipstick, 36 failed regens under its belt. It’s almost constantly trying.

Although this model is fitted with a vaporiser, does anything happen on the engine end? Does it partially rely on some level of post injection, too? Was thinking maybe, since all EGT sensors get hotter during a cycle. Could this explain the oil increase?