Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone?

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Tue 6 Jul 2010 14:43
Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone? - Xantiaman

Am not mechanically minded, educated guesses sought, please.

I have a Signum 1.9 (120) diesel. 56 plate with 54k on the clock. Had the EGR valve replaced yesterday at cost of £217. The mechanic showed me the old valve which was clearly caked in carbon.

The HJ review for the car tells me this can be a sign of trouble with the the secondary butterflies of the swirl actuator valve, that this is an expensive job to fix and frankly times are hard!

So, two questions:

Assuming the swirl actuator valve is the problem, would something like redex or using premium fuel lengthen its life?

Should I cut and run, getting another car? The Signum was brought with 7k on the clock, in the knowledge it's a high depreciator (I got a lot of car for the money) my prefered intention is to run it for another 3 years putting a further 75k on the clock.

Appreciate this is one of those 'how long is a piece of string' questions but any thoughts appreciated.

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Tue 6 Jul 2010 15:02
Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone? - Collos25

First of all they must have seen you coming £217 for an EGR valve apart from the fact you can remove them clean them thoroughly in under an hour and if you really needed to replace one then you can buy them for under £75 new and fit them in 30 minutes.You can actually bypass the egr if you want but I see no reason to do so.

The swirl valve in the manifold has nothing to do with the EGR but they both cake up with soot, in Germany it is not a problem due to the better quality diesel fuel but in the UK you see many cars having reached 200k miles without replacing either the egr or swirl valve.

I run a Saab with same engine it is also fitted to Fiat/Alfa Romeo don't worry about the swirl valve even if you have to replace the manifold at some date in the future it will be a lot cheaper than replacing the ABS/ESP module on a VAG or a pump on a Ford HJ is the eternal pesimist .

Don't forget when you change the cam belt to change the water pump at the same time.

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Tue 6 Jul 2010 16:30
Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone? - Victorbox

I agree that for £217 you were ripped off especially as it could probably have been cleaned instead. Cleaning EGR valve is explained here http://www.astraownersclub.com/vb/showthread.php?t=145193

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Tue 6 Jul 2010 16:47
Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone? - Xantiaman

Ripped off? Probably, but its paid now.

The charge included diagnosing why the engine management light was showing, does that make a difference?

As I've indicated I don't really know one end of the spanner from another and need my car most days. I suspect I could take an easy job and end up causing more than £200 damage.

But to the question in hand, need I worry about the butterfly and if I should, can I delay the day it needs changing?

Cheers

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Tue 6 Jul 2010 19:04
Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone? - Collos25

Haven't I already answered that.You worry to much.

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Wed 7 Jul 2010 12:21
Vauxhall Signum 1.9tdi (120bhp) - V'hall Signum - EGR valve - crystal balls anyone? - dieselnut

'You can actually bypass the egr if you want but I see no reason to do so.'

If you bypass the EGR then none of this exhaust soot get back to the inlet to clog things up.

So I can see a good reason to bypass the EGR, although on some cars this will throw up the EML light, but I can live with that.

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