Black smoke from Civic diesel? DPF troubles explained

Hey there! I had a similar issue with my '05 Accord 2.2 i-CTDi last year at 115k km. The symptoms you're describing are exactly what I experienced, black smoke, sluggish performance, and that distinctive diesel smell. Took mine to the garage and they confirmed it was indeed a clogged DPF. The filter was completely saturated with soot and wasn't able to perform regeneration cycles properly anymore. They had to remove the DPF, put it through a special cleaning process, and reset the engine management system. It was quite a serious issue since a failing DPF can eventually damage other engine components if left untreated. In my case, they also found that the EGR valve was partially blocked, which was contributing to the problem. The whole repair took two days, and since then, the car's been running like new, no more smoke, full power restored, and no check engine light. Don't put this off too long; these symptoms won't resolve themselves. Best of luck with the repair.

Thanks for sharing your experience! That's super helpful as it sounds exactly like what I'm dealing with. Would you mind telling me roughly how much you had to pay for the whole thing? Also, curious to know if you've had any similar issues pop up since the repair? I'm trying to budget for this and want to make sure I fix it right the first time. Really appreciate your help with my Honda troubles!

Hey again! Great to hear back from you! Yep, I can definitely give you the details about the costs. After seeing the mechanic, they completely sorted out the "Particulate filter efficiency too low" warning. Had to shell out 1550€ because the diesel particles system was shot due to the high mileage. But honestly? Worth every penny! My Accord's running smooth as butter now, no more black smoke, engine light's stayed off, and she's got all her power back. Haven't had a single DPF-related issue since the repair, and it's been over a year now. The mechanic did a proper job, really got to the root of the problem instead of just doing a quick fix. If you're seeing the same symptoms I had, I'd say go for it and get it sorted properly. Sure, it's not cheap, but it's way better than risking more expensive engine damage down the road. Let me know how it goes if you decide to get it fixed! Always happy to help out a fellow Honda owner.

Just wanted to update you guys after taking your advice! Finally bit the bullet and took my Civic to a mechanic. what a relief, turns out you were spot on! Had the DPF cleaned and the EGR valve sorted too. The bill came to around 1400, which wasn't fun, but honestly? My car's running like a dream now. No more black smoke, engine's got its pep back, and that annoying check engine light is finally gone! Mechanic was actually pretty decent, explained everything, showed me the clogged filter, and even gave me some tips to prevent it happening again. Said I should take it on longer drives occasionally to help with regeneration. Thanks again for pushing me to get it checked out. Was worth every penny and definitely better than my last mechanic experience. Guess sometimes you just need to find the right place!