[James-335dx]

I posted on here a few months back about black deposits around my exhaust tips after having my car remapped but was assured it was nothing to worry about. However after catching up on some reading I saw an article in the July issue of BMW Car magazine about new MOT regulations relating to smoke from diesels fitted with a DPF. See below image

Should I be worried now???

Anyone had an MOT since May 20th? Mine was done in April so before the new regulations came into effect

[robbiep]

Should you be worried ?

In a word, yes.

As you yourself point out, ANY visible smoke on the MOT test is now an automatic failure.

I foresee either a number of 'dodgy' MOT stations doing lots of tests, or a lot of people facing big bills for re-instating the original emissions control equipment

[NotGotABimmer23]

Black deposits on tips <> smoke

Does your car produce any black smoke? If it does then its going to fail, of not then you are fine.

[James-335dx]

I havent seen any black smoke coming from the exhaust but I assume the deposits around the tips might be a result of small amounts of smoke possibly? My DPF is still intact but might be struggling to keep up with the increased fueling and power of the remap?

[lethbridge]

Just get someone to rev the engine when cold and hot and have a look for ANY smoke - that's all the MOT will do - I can't see that the test would look at it under any load situation which I assume would be when it is more likely to smoke. However if it smokes under load then you obviously still need to get it sorted as if the police happen to be following and are particularly bored they could fine you/take the car off the road on the spot I would think - so probably worth having someone follow you when you floor it if you are concerned?

[Techno 9000]

If you're that concerned take the car to be tested before it needs its next ticket.

Sure, visible smoke is a fail, but the actual limits are far lower and IMHO might not be visible to the eye, only the test machine.
For instance, my 2015 car would fail above 0.5 which is about a sixth of limits for much older cars.

[ROCKETRON]

Don’t take it in for an early mot to see how it does. Under the new regs if it fails you can’t just carry on using it until the old mot runs out. If it fails on a dangerous you can’t even drive it away from the test centre, which is bad news if it fails on something that the mot place can’t fix. I think this will probably mean the end of the mot centre type places that don’t do repairs, apparently you will have to get it towed somewhere for repair.

[Chas325]

Originally Posted by ROCKETRON

Don’t take it in for an early mot to see how it does. Under the new regs if it fails you can’t just carry on using it until the old mot runs out. If it fails on a dangerous you can’t even drive it away from the test centre, which is bad news if it fails on something that the mot place can’t fix. I think this will probably mean the end of the mot centre type places that don’t do repairs, apparently you will have to get it towed somewhere for repair.

A garage cannot stop you taking your car; however, you could be open to prosecution if you drive it on the rod and are caught.

[ukbeemerboy]

Originally Posted by ROCKETRON

Don’t take it in for an early mot to see how it does. Under the new regs if it fails you can’t just carry on using it until the old mot runs out. If it fails on a dangerous you can’t even drive it away from the test centre, which is bad news if it fails on something that the mot place can’t fix. I think this will probably mean the end of the mot centre type places that don’t do repairs, apparently you will have to get it towed somewhere for repair.

You can have the car tested on the emissions equipment without it being MOT’d. And no garage can stop you driving your car away if it fails, you’d probably have to sign a disclaimer to say you are though.

[Techno 9000]

^^^ This is what I meant. If you are that concerned there is an issue (due to the black tips). Have the car tested on the machine without going through an actual MoT.

[xenon]

It should fail for visible smoke regardless of whether a DPF is fitted or not.

[JustChris]

Sorry to say this but I'm delighted.

My heart sinks when I see a tuned diesel go past chucking soot out at everyone!! OP I know this is not your car...but as usual these knobs ruin it for everyone.

Why should I get to taxed to hell on emissions while some guys removes his DPF for a few cheap HP!

So yeah, if in future people are going to fail for that, good news.

[....,,,,..,,..]

Originally Posted by JustChris

Sorry to say this but I'm delighted.

My heart sinks when I see a tuned diesel go past chucking soot out at everyone!! OP I know this is not your car...but as usual these knobs ruin it for everyone.

Why should I get to taxed to hell on emissions while some guys removes his DPF for a few cheap HP!

So yeah, if in future people are going to fail for that, good news.

Fully with you on this.

It's about time they really clamped down.

[Watsey]

Have London black cabs, yet again, been granted exemption from emmissions/smoke limits ? Genuine question. These things chuck out a lot of visible smoke and absolutely stink.

[xenon]

Originally Posted by JustChris

Sorry to say this but I'm delighted.

Not sure why you're sorry then. Like you, I think it's excellent news and should extend to any vehicle that emits visible smoke, whether it has a DPF or not. As mentioned, TX1 taxis are usually frigging horrendous.

[chris-c]

My D5 Volvo has black tips, has been remapped and passed its MOT last week with "no emissions to worry about".

My 340i also remapped gets black tips.

[Rich9600]

Originally Posted by chris-c

My D5 Volvo has black tips, has been remapped and passed its MOT last week with "no emissions to worry about".

My 340i also remapped gets black tips.

My standard 340i gets blacker tips than my standard Jan14 EU5 330d did! So the DPF did its thing...

But, there is no PPF on my July16 (EU6?) 340i...

[SW6Steve]

Originally Posted by Watsey

Have London black cabs, yet again, been granted exemption from emmissions/smoke limits ? Genuine question. These things chuck out a lot of visible smoke and absolutely stink.

It seems to me all commercial vehicles are exempt!
It annoys me to see buses churning out plumes of smoke, with maybe two people on board! And they get dedicated lanes as well!

[SkyJawa]

Every car I have ever owned leaves black deposits on the exhaust over time, both petrol and diesel, occasional polish with autosol.......

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by Rich9600

My standard 340i gets blacker tips than my standard Jan14 EU5 330d did! So the DPF did its thing...

But, there is no PPF on my July16 (EU6?) 340i...

Carbon particulate matter is a problem with DI petrol. Hence a key need for the PPF. In a way, it is a good thing the new WLTP test came when it did, as manufacturers were dragging their heels on cleaning up the DI petrol issue.

[Sasquartch]

I wonder whether petrol cars when fitted with particulate filters will then suffer the same issues as diesels when used for short journeys ?

A major plus for petrol cars is that they're more suitable for short runs and city traffic, if that advantage disappears with a GPF that's going to impact a lot of people potentially.

[James-335dx]

Thanks All,

Haven't seen any smoke and only really gets sooty after a heavy thrashing so hopefully it'll be fine. I agree with JustChris as well, I hate to see those clouds of black smoke coming out of the car in front gassing me out. Shame it only applies to newer DPF cars