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Captiva never revs up over 1500-1800 RPM

12K views 20 replies 6 participants last post by  Aussie Ed 
#1 ·
Good evening everyone,
First of all I want to say thank you to bring me the chance to write in this very interesting forum, that has a lot of information and where I found that there are a lot of colleagues sharing information and why not, all their experiences.

Second, you probably will find that my English is not good enough, so my apologies for that (I’m not a friend of Google translator, so everything it’s on my own).

And third, I’m sorry if this post is very long, but I need to write exactly how this happen, and what I have done all this time to leave this creature working as I was expecting (in other words, like it should be working).
This is due because at this point, I’m looking for help (and I really need it).

Besides the official intro that I made a few weeks ago, my name is Mariano, I’m 39 years old and I’m from Argentina. Currently, and during the week, I’m working from my country as a pre/post support engineer for a computer related Dutch company, and every Saturday I’m working as a mechanic in my garage. This was a project that I started since five years ago with my cousin, and it’s part of my weekly therapy ?
The truth is that the Captiva LT (not LTZ as I mentioned in my signature) is from my parents, and my real car is an old (but quite good) Renault 21 TXE (J6R engine) that I modified with a programmable ECU, a better camshaft, and has some parts from the Turbo version, that I imported one by one from UK. This was my first car and even when I know that it’s a very old car, I really love it and fortunately I can still using it here in my country (we don’t have a hard pollution laws here… yet).

Well, the story begins by the end of 2017, when my stepfather called me to ask me about a 2011 Chevrolet Captiva VCDi. I have mentioned to him that I has no experience with it but it seems to be a very good car. Then he asked me if I could go with him to see the car and only with my OK he will be buying it.
We meet the sales guys in the store, it was not an official Chevrolet, they sell used cars and We tested the Captiva for a while. The truth is that I felt that the turbo was not quite good (too much hiss on throttle) and probably the car had a lot of miles on it, but I felt good, it has a good response, everything was working good and with exception on the start (not too much, and by the way, was very fast starting) there were no black or blue smoke behind.
Still, I had my doubts, but my parents were very excited that they will changing the old KIA Sportage and after testing the Captiva I give to them my OK to get the new vehicle.
Today, I’m very embarrassed because of my choice, but I’m assuming my mistakes and I’m trying to help them to solve it.

After one month, and as I felt it before, the turbo blowed up. I did not have the time, so they send the Captiva to their usual garage. They repaired the Turbo, but the P0045 DTC code appears and there was no way to quit it. I have 2 generic scanners, that I have used to clear the code, but the appears on every start up.
The Captiva seemed to worked fine, but on the next month, more problems appears, such as fuel pressure problems, particle filter errors, the turbo problem (P0045) and during a travel to the beach, the gear box had problems and the beautiful Captiva has towed for about 400Km until it reach my parent’s house.
Then they claimed to the seller, who said that he will be taking care of the vehicle, and the Captiva was in the seller’s garage for about 4 more months, and they only fixed the gear box.
During the last travel to my parents house, the gearbox has been stuck again, so they have the car 3 more months, the gearbox was finally fixed, but the car started to work like an old diesel locomotive… on every throttle there was a large amount of black smoke on behind, no power, and a knocking rod….
The car sleept till the end of 2018, moment in that tired of this, and having in mind that there will be no return of the money, they decided to leave me the car in my garage. They said that they want to fix it, so the car is in my hands since almost one year.
This was in January of 2019, and working only on Saturdays (and sharing the day with other serviceable cars) we did this…

1) Engine dismantling: We found that the connecting rod from cylinder number 3 had a lot wear in the piston bolt, and that’s why the engine was knocking. Cylinder 1 and 4 had a lot of wear (taking the piston from the head, I was able to move it on X and Y axis) so probably the rings have been in end of life.
Cylinder head wasn’t bad, there was no problems with valves, valve guides, camshaft, followers, etc. Everything was fine.
The clutch was almost dying, also the flywheel, so we pulled put to repair it.
We sent the complete engine assy. for a complete rebuilding (2 months, hard to find parts)
2) In the meaning time, an engine bay clean up was made and also we double check the wire harness and all the damaged zones have been repaired.
3) We checked the exhaust components: there were no more DPF (was empty) and no CAT converters. Only the final muffler.
We made a complete clean up to the EGR valve, tested it. It was not blocked but we pulled out a lot of carbon deposits from it.
4) Fuel pump and injectors: We checked the primary fuel pump (the one from the tank) and found that it was working at 5psi, very good. Then fuel filter was completely clogged, so we changed it.
Then we have sent the HP fuel pump and injectors to a laboratory. They found that the injectors had a lot of return flow (not good as they said) so the needles have been changed, and the fuel pump received a maintenance (clean and new seals). Everything was tested in the lab. and seems to be working fine again.

So, the engine arrived, with a complete rebuilding. Cylinder liners have been rectified (don’t know if this is the correct term) plus 0.5mm with new pistons also with plus 0.5mm of diameter.
The crankshaft was OK, only the bearings has been changed and regarding the piston rods they only changed the piston bolts. The rest of the engine was OK, including the oil pump and the harmonic balancer.
A complete cleanup was made to the rest of the engine and cylinder head.
The engine was installed again in the engine bay, with the gearbox, then we have installed the cylinder head, exhaust manifold with the turbo, new water pump, timing belt using the timing tools, high pressure fuel pump, injectors, valve cover, intake manifold, sensors, wire harness, etc.
Once everything was connected, we have purged the fuel line up to the injectors, and then started the engine. It took 5 o 6 attempts and then started, idling perfect!
There was good oil pressure, alternator voltage, water circulation, so everything seemed to be fine. After 10 minutes, we tried to start the engine several times, and immediately the engine fires up and stays in a perfect idle state.
No black or blue smoke behind, until we tried to push the throttle pedal….

We found that the engine never revs up more than 1800 RPM, it feels like a rev limiter in that range, and even if you try to push more the pedal, it keeps there, and if you leave it there, the engine starts to knock (the ignition effect, not because of a mechanical problem of the engine).
Behind the car there’s a lot of black smoke and it impossible to breath there…


What we have done trying to solve the issue:

1) Checked the battery voltage with the engine idle it’s in 14.3V, and accelerating rises 15V. Seems to be fine.
2) We already knew that the DFP was empty and there’s no cat converters installed, so there is no blocked exhaust system in this car.
3) The EGR valve it’s not blocked and we have cleaned up. Also, we took it off the engine and we have seal the inlet side and the exhaust side, and the problem remains the same.
4) We double check the engine timing position and it’s perfect, in fact, the engine starts inmediately.
5) We check the CKP sensor signal: there’s a clean signal, also with the engine idling and accelerating.
6) Checked the Phase sensor in the camshaft, and we get a clean signal when the engine is idling and accelerating.
7) Water temperature sensor was checked and has a normal resistance at room temp. There is no open circuit or extreme low/high resistance, also with the engine warm.
8) Changed the MAF for the same brand and type. We also checked the frecuency in both MAFs and it’s exactly the same idling or rising the 1800RPM.
9) We changed the MAP sensor, that also includes the IAT and the measurement with both scanners was the same in both cases.
10) We found that the P0045 (TURBO / SUPER CHARGER BOOST CONTROL SOLENOID CIRCUIT / OPEN) wasn’t a circuit problem in the electronic actuator or in the wire harness, it was a working position related error (if you leave the lever that connect the actuator with the variable geometry, the error disappears), so we dismantle the repaired turbo, assembly it again, and seems that now it’s working in the right position.
11) With the electronic actuator lever disconnected, we tried to throttle the engine changing the turbo geometry and of course, when the turbo push more air, the black smoke disappears, so it seems to be that there is an excess of fuel, but the rev limiter still there.
12) In some occasions, a new DTC code appears, P0402 - Exhaust Gas Recirculation Flow Excessive Detected, but I’m assuming it’s because the excessive black smoke in the exhaust side.
13) We have also checked the vacuum pump, to see if there is oil leaks, or no vacuum, but this works fine.
14) I tried to run some of the special functions of my scanners, such as the DPF cleaning, clean the ECU adaptive memory, but nothing gave us results.
15) Also, we started to think that the problem could be that the car has the front side dismantled, so we have connected the external air temperature sensor, and also we have emulated that the hood it’s closed.

Probably, there is a hidden error that our scanners are not showing us, but I have no chance to get the GM scanner from a colleague.

I have read a lot of threads in this forum, and also in internet, but I could not find much more information about what to do.

Any suggestion or tip on how to move forward with this issue, I will really appreciated!

Thank you!
 
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#2 ·
My guess is that the missing DPF is generating the error and the rpm limitation. You might find a way to trick the signal from the differential pressure sensor, you can check what is the typical voltage that it should output and try to emulate it with a voltage source (even a battery+voltage divider if needed). it will be much harder to emulate the O2 sensors, right now the car sees that it has no catalyst sensor, so this could be another reason for rpm limit.

here is an tutorial regarding the O2 sensor that it could be helpful to diagnose your car. You will need a portable oscilloscope, I think it would be hard to diagnose both sensors with a multimeter.



You can try to ask DiagnoseDan on his facebook page what does he thinks about your issue. The guy surely knows more about this kind of errors and he can point you to the right direction.

Don't forget to post the outcome of your findings so we will have it documented here, on the forum.

Good luck!
 
#3 ·
Hi Ches,
Thank you for your answer. I read something about that differential pressure sensor, but this model doesn't have one. Also, there is no O2 sensor (pre and post cat converter). Seems to be strange, special the lack of O2 sensor...
Also there are no unused connectors below the car, so I'm asumming that's a factory configuration.

The thing that make me dizzy is the fact that sometimes I read the P0402 DTC code and in my poor experience with common rail diesel engines, I don't understand how the system knows that there is an excess in the exhaust flow...
If there's no 02 and no differential pressure sensor, how it's that possible?

Before to dismantle the engine, the engine had throttle over the entire range. Really, it's weird.
I will double check with the service manual what is the correct configuration of this model/engine and I will let you know.

BTW, thanks for the tip about DiagnoseDan. I'm going to contact him on FB.
 
#4 ·
Mariano, after reading your first post my initial reaction was the nuclear option – cut your losses and get rid of the car. If you’ve bought a turbo charged diesel with automatic transmission and it’s uncertain what’s been messed about with then it’s likely to become a money pit.

How sure are you that the automatic box is really fixed because, even if you get the engine running right, if the auto box fails again then it’s not economically viable to repair it (not in this country anyway).

If the DPF and EGR valve have been deleted then the ECU should have been remapped to accommodate this otherwise there would be no proper control over the fuelling and running of the engine. The engine could have uncontrolled horse power and over-torqueing, resulting in damage to engine components and possibly auto box.

You’ve already had some good advice from Ches but you’ve got so much going on that nobody can give you a simple road map out. That said, I’ll post some further comments which might help..
 
#7 ·
Mariano, after reading your first post my initial reaction was the nuclear option – cut your losses and get rid of the car. If you’ve bought a turbo charged diesel with automatic transmission and it’s uncertain what’s been messed about with then it’s likely to become a money pit.

Victor,
Thank you for the time that you take to give me a reply. I really appreciate it. Well, the nuclear option was also my idea wink: but now i'm swimming in the middle of the sea and I need to find a way to reach the coast...
The gearbox is a 5 gears manual transmission with AWD (this feature yes, it is automatic) but i'm plenty sure that I will be not getting, or advice to someone, to get a used diesel car again.


How sure are you that the automatic box is really fixed because, even if you get the engine running right, if the auto box fails again then it’s not economically viable to repair it (not in this country anyway).

In fact the MT works, but still i'm not plenty sure that it will keep working fine...


If the DPF and EGR valve have been deleted then the ECU should have been remapped to accommodate this otherwise there would be no proper control over the fuelling and running of the engine. The engine could have uncontrolled horse power and over-torqueing, resulting in damage to engine components and possibly auto box.
Well, like I said i'm an ignorant on the common rail technology, i'm learning, and unfortunately this is the first car that i'm trying to fix, but reading what you said, i'm assuming that the initial problem of this car was this, because de engine had a lot of damage, special with the internals. The EGR still installed, I have only tried to remove it and seal the intake and exhaust side, to see what happen.


You’ve already had some good advice from Ches but you’ve got so much going on that nobody can give you a simple road map out. That said, I’ll post some further comments which might help..
I'm going to check what Ches told me, but unfortunately I will see this on Saturday. I need to understand why this model doesn't have the O2 sensor and the differential pressure sensor.
Regarding the post itself, it's ok, my intention is not to get an answer on how to solve this. I completely understand that probably there's a lot of things to do prior to get this thing working again and in only one day I started to get some tips from you guys, and I really appreciate it!


Collapsed air filter element / leakage at intercooler / inlet duct hose; I assume you have checked these already inc intercooler for leakage and the duct hose running from the intercooler to the throttle box.
Yes, everything is checked and there is no air leaks in the entire circuit.


Collapsed fuel filter element. The 2 litre Captiva has a single element fuel filter mounted on the bulkhead, I have read that the filter bowl needs to be really severely tightened up to avoid air / fuel leakage.

The fuel filter it's brand new, but probably theres a little leak, because sometimes I see that the bottom of the bowl it's wet with fuel. I will double check this.


The tank pump should deliver 50 psi, not 5 as you reported. It doesn’t matter anyway, the car is starting OK and the transfer pump inside the HP pump takes over once the engine has started.
I will double check this. The engines starts very good but I will measure the pressure in order to bring a correct number.


The Suction Control Valve (SCV – also known as Fuel Metering Valve) in the HP pump should have been renewed. Sticking SCV would limit the fuel flow unpredictably however it usually results in difficulty starting which you don’t seem to have.
Yes, that's right, the engine starts perfect. Honestly I don't know if the valve that you mentioned is internal (i'm going to investigate it) There is an actuator in the back side of the HP fuel pump, and it's the Fuel rail pressure regulator and it's installed in the back of the HP fuel pump, but the service manual says that a "a shark tooth signal in this regulator can be an indicator of a sticking fuel regulator"
I did not measure this yet, but it seems that it's an important thing to do.


You’ve already had the injector needles etc replaced and, presumably, the leak-off rate checked on a test stand. However, you also need to check the leak off return pipe all the way to the tank for blockage.
Absolutely, and I'm trying to get the the measurement pipes to double check the injectors return flow to see if they are working fine, or there is an excess of injection in some of the 'repaired' injectors.


You need better diagnostics equipment, possibly even use paper clip to check fault codes and see if you get any further info.
I know, unfortunately the GM Tech2 scanner is quite expensive here, but i will try to see if there is someone that can bring me that scan service and give me a more precise report.


You have changed the MAF and MAP sensor – are you using OEM sensors? Aftermarket sensors (even if they’re marked Bosch or Delphi) are sometimes Chinese copies. Incidentally if it runs better with the MAF sensor unplugged it usually means the MAF is faulty.
I agree with you, but I have changed the MAF for an original German Bosch and there was a lot of difference in money between this one and the chinese copies, so I'm asuming that this one is not fake.
I already tested with the MAF disconnected and the fault and there were no changes.


You say you changed the MAP sensor which also includes the IAT and the measurement with both scanners was the same. Have you checked the ambient temperature and barometric pressure reference reading in the ECU and verified that it is the same? I believe the ECU has its own barometric pressure sensor and shares the IAT sensor mounted on the chassis.
Yes, I had the chance to get another MAP (exactly the same) and another bosch with the same pin out and specs from another common rail turbo diesel engine (I guess from a Fiat) and with the engine at ambient temperature (after one week turned off) I have compared the IAT temp values with the values of an external thermometer and they have been almost the same (one or two degrees celcius of difference).
Honestly I did not measure the barometric pressure and compared it with the one indicated in the ECU. I need to get a barometer to do this. This is another important test to do.
Forgot Item 1: Check Accelerator Pedal Position sensor and Throttle Position Sensor circuitry.

I have checked the throttle body with an emulator, and seems to be fine, but as may you know, with the engine running, it's a completely different story. I must to check the pedal.

Thank you for your help!!
 
#5 ·
Collapsed air filter element / leakage at intercooler / inlet duct hose; I assume you have checked these already inc intercooler for leakage and the duct hose running from the intercooler to the throttle box.

Collapsed fuel filter element. The 2 litre Captiva has a single element fuel filter mounted on the bulkhead, I have read that the filter bowl needs to be really severely tightened up to avoid air / fuel leakage.

The tank pump should deliver 50 psi, not 5 as you reported. It doesn’t matter anyway, the car is starting OK and the transfer pump inside the HP pump takes over once the engine has started.

The Suction Control Valve (SCV – also known as Fuel Metering Valve) in the HP pump should have been renewed. Sticking SCV would limit the fuel flow unpredictably however it usually results in difficulty starting which you don’t seem to have.

You’ve already had the injector needles etc replaced and, presumably, the leak-off rate checked on a test stand. However, you also need to check the leak off return pipe all the way to the tank for blockage.

You need better diagnostics equipment, possibly even use paper clip to check fault codes and see if you get any further info.

You have changed the MAF and MAP sensor – are you using OEM sensors? Aftermarket sensors (even if they’re marked Bosch or Delphi) are sometimes Chinese copies. Incidentally if it runs better with the MAF sensor unplugged it usually means the MAF is faulty.

You say you changed the MAP sensor which also includes the IAT and the measurement with both scanners was the same. Have you checked the ambient temperature and barometric pressure reference reading in the ECU and verified that it is the same? I believe the ECU has its own barometric pressure sensor and shares the IAT sensor mounted on the chassis.
 
#8 ·
Hi Mariano,

I have the same engine as on your Captiva (2.0 VCDI) on my Chevrolet Epica. If the car had DPF sensor for sure it had the differential pressure sensor. This sensor is used to check the pressure before and after the DPF and if the difference between the pressures (checked by the differential pressure sensor) is bigger than a threshold the ECU commands a DPF cleaning cycle. Maybe this sensor was removed and/or tricked by ECU mapping in order to make the car work without a DPF and after you disassembled the engine the dummy sensor was disconnected by mistake. Do you have a service manual? I guess it would be helpful to find the sensor location on your Captiva. At Epica it is placed on the firewall on the driver side and there are 2 small hoses (1cm diameter) that are connected to it.

Regarding the O2 sensors, you should have 2 of them, one before and one after the catalyst. There are some older cars that have one, but to close the loop you need to have at least one of them. The ECU continuously checks the O2 sensor/sensors voltage(s) and adjusts the amount of fuel that is delivered to the injectors to get the desired air-fuel ratio. The cars that have 2 sensors can also detect if the catalytic converter works fine.

If all these sensors are missing and were missing before you took the car apart, then most likely the car was hacked brutally by the guys on the service. I don't know what they did to the ECU mapping, but it seems that now it is not working properly.

Maybe someone who has a Chevy Captiva series 1 can help with some pictures and locations of sensors.
 
#9 ·
Hi Ches,
Yes, I have the service manual (the one in HTML format) and seems to be that this model had the differential pressure sensor, the DPF, also an EGT sensor (did not see this either), but there is no O2 sensor, so I should be focused checking all that we have discussed with Victor, and also trying to find where is the differential pressure sensor.
Also I have discovered that what I thought it was the DPF, it was the cat converter (just down the turbo, on the down pipe, and it's empty now) and the real DPF it's not installed on the car (there's a piece of pipe welded).

Today I have visited some guys from a Chevrolet parts store in Buenos Aires, they are very good guys and I discussed with them about this. Lucky me, there was another client there that has exactly the same Captiva (year, model and also color...unbelievable!). He also made the same (crazy) job to the car (a complete engine rebuilding) and had the low power, black smoke issue, but the car was reving normal. A new turbo, EGR, PCV (replaced by an oil catch can) and DPF removal has solved the issue (probably this car will never know what Euro 5 means again...).
He has confirmed that this model doesn't have O2 sensor, at least here, model 2012 and newer ones have two of them, so it seems that I will not find the O2 in my car....
Next Saturday will be a very long day...

In two weeks I'm going to travel to the US and I was thinking to invest in the GM diagnostic tool. Could you please give me advise on what I should be buying? I have seen the GM Tech 2, but also a new one called GM MDIS II, that also have a Tech 2 software emulator, to be used with the same interface.
Am I looking to the correct diagnostic tools? Or there is a better one?

Thank you!
 
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#10 ·
Check if you have the Bosch ECU like I had on my Epica. If yes, then it is tricky because on my Epica only with the original GM SCAN-100 I was able to diagnose. If you have the Delphi ECU, than you can go with a Delphi DS150 clone, it does the job. You can also check what others use on Captiva series 1.
 
#11 ·
Hi Ches,
Well last Saturday and due to a healthy issue, I could not checked and tested the Captiva, so I'm going to do that next Saturday.
The Captiva has a Bosch ECU so probably I should try to get a GM Scan-100.

I'll keep you posted.

Kind Regards,
Mariano.
 
#15 ·
Hello guys,
I hope you're doing well and that you as well your family and friends are safe and healthy. It's been a long time since I wrote my last message and yes, until today (with the exception of the 7 months of quarantine) I've been working with the Captiva...
I had long nights in my garage, analyzing engine signals, making research, finding information regarding other brands with the same engine and investing on parts, new tools and talking with colleagues, other workshops, etc… It has been a difficult task.
I resumed the work on September 2020, when I took the car from my parent home and parked it in my garage. It was hard to see it again, with a lot of dirt and special because it was parked outside during all that time, flat tires, bird excrements…yeah…forget it…

First thing that I’ve done was to wash it, repaired the tires and start from scratch. During the quarantine I had the chance to buy a GM MDI clone scanner and lucky me I found that it has a lot more features than my multi-brand scanner but still the Chevrolet Captiva was detected as Daewoo Lacetti and not all the features have been available since this particular model lack of some features and components in comparison of the ones sold in other countries.

There were a lot of DTC codes and I started to check each one of them, checking each component:

P0045 – Turbocharger circuit open: The problem was the VNT electronic actuator. Replaced for a new one.

P0115 – CLT sensor circuit problem: It seems it was faulty. Replaced for a new one.

P064C – Glow control module malfunction. Replaced the harness connector from the module to the plugs.

P0402 - Exhaust Gas Recirculation Flow Excessive Detected / P0401 - Exhaust Gas Recirculation Flow Insufficient Detected: Double checked the intake hoses, air filter box, vacuum lines and the EGR valve and I found a leak between the EGR input tube and the exhaust manifold. Replaced the gasket.

Then I cleaned up the DTC memory with the new scanner and started the engine. The problem still the same and the engine cuts on 1700-1800 RPM, but repeating that action for about 4 or 5 times has activated the check engine light again, and I found the next DTC:

P0335-28 – Incorrect frecuency

The problem was focused there, in the crankshaft sensor. I replaced it for a new one and now the engine didn’t reach 1100RPM, so it was worst!!

The next weekends I started analyzing the CKP problem…Checked the signals with an analog and a digital oscilloscope. I compared the signal from the crankshaft and the camshaft to check the correct phase and timing set, and everything was fine. With a signal generator, I emulated the CKP signal with differents RPMs and the ECU has reacted in the right way.
Double checked the wire harness for noise and also bypassed the car harness and connected the sensor directly to the ECU, and nothing happened.

In May 2021, after several attempts, with my white flag on my hand, I decided that it was impossible for me to find the issue and I sent the car with all my documentation/tests reports to a very known colleague that has a lot of experience. Two months later, and after doing all what I did and more, he told me that he couldn’t find the problem and his recommendation was to send the car to an official Bosch dealer in Buenos Aires, in order to make a full tests with the official scanners and benchs from that brand.

They had the car for almost entire August, and a week ago this Bosch specialist called to my colleague and tell to him the next:

- We tested the ECU on our bench lab and it works perfect.

- There are no problems in the wire harness (open/short circuits, noise).

- There are no problems within the power wiring (positive, grounds, alternator).

- Sensors are perfect.

- Low pressure and high-pressure fuel pump, as well the flow control valve and the pressure sensor are OK.

- Bosch scanners are telling us the same: P0335-28 – Incorrect frecuency.

The recommendation now was to play the last card and that was to remove the oil pan and check the reluctor wheel…

So the Bosch dealer has sent the Captiva back to my colleague’s workshop on last Friday (August 27th) and they removed the oil pan. He double checked the reluctor wheel several times and he didn’t find nothing strange until today…
Making some extra visual inspections, he found that the reluctor wheel has 2 teeth positioned a little bit below from the rest, just like if someone has ‘kick' them a little bit downwards to the crankshaft side. He fixed them and two hours later, the Captiva was on the road….

It seems that when I sent the engine to make a fully rebuild, they damaged the reluctor wheel and the gap between the sensor and the wheel is so small that the ECU has detected that all this time as an ‘incorrect frecuency’. It has a lot of sense, but how you could imagine that this could be happening when 3 guys (including me) have been checked the signals and everything was 99,9% perfect?
Definitively I’m amazed how perfect must run everything on these engines in order to work properly…

I hope that this information can help other guys to fix cars with the same engine. The problem is that most probably you will be never rebuilding an engine like this, so I’m not sure how many guys will find this issue…

My apologies for my late reply, but my intention was not to be bothering you with no sense questions, I think that I’ve done a lot of work, I learn a lot and I’ve been smart to say ‘You can’t fix it, ask for support!!’ and now I can give you a result of my work, a gratefulness of your initial support, but special a ‘How to fix it”.

Some last things, just in case...
I confirmed with this Bosch dealer that this Captiva model with Z20S engine, that Chevrolet has been selling in Argentina from 2008 to 2009 lacks of DPF, EGT and the most crazy thing is that it also lacks of lambda sensor!!! Unbelievable...

And you can find all the information and tests, most of them are in Spanish but you can translate them in order to get some useful information


Again, thank you for your support!

Kind Regards,

Mariano.
 
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#16 ·
Mariano, I admire your tenacity when many others would have given up ! Well done.

It was interesting that your diagnostic reader identified the vehicle as a Lacetti. It it worth noting that some diagnostic readers (I have a GMTec2) need to be switched to the 'Trucks' setting. In the USA the Captiva is defined as a 'truck' and not a car. As soon as I switched mine to the 'Truck' setting it recognised my model as a Captiva. This might be a useful tip for other members when using their scanner.
.
 
#18 ·
Hi Aussie Ed,
Mate read your post about the scanner and i had a laugh because My Autel MK-808 Scanner is exactly the same as you described, if i want to do anything on my captiva i have to go to the GM USA, then pickup trucks, then there it is My Captiva 7 and Also the Captiva 5,, strange how they setup these scanners and their software, but i can do just about everything i need to do in that section, (Stationary regen, injector timing and most diagnostics (but my car was made in Korea),
Maybe i am missing something Aussie Ed,
Lurchy :)
 
#17 ·
Hi Aussie,
Thanks for your words! Definitively, it was hard but also with support it's solved and believe me, I have learned A LOT!!.
I found that when you talk about diagnostic tools they works in the way that you have described before. In the case of the GM MDI, I tried with all the available Captiva series and there were no way to recognize the system and the tool software version dates from 2019, so it should be recognizing the 2011 Captiva. My feeling is that this Bosch common rail diesel injection is one of the firsts series, and they are not open to make too much calibrations and like i said, the car doesn't have DPF, EGT and Lambda sensor, so it's a strange monster...
The good thing is that with this specific GM tool i had the chance to test most of the actuators, special the throttle body and the VNT actuator.
I will be testing the car during the next weeks, so I'll let you know how it works.

Kind Regards,
Mariano.
 
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#19 ·
Hi Lurchy, Somewhere along the way both of us are missing something but I have no idea exactly what!
My first reaction to finding the Captiva being listed under 'trucks' on diagnostic equipment, was to question why American technical boffins interpret virtually anything with four or more wheels as a 'truck' !?
Then I did a rethink and realised that virtually all these diagnostic tools are made in China or other nearby Far Eastern countries. So I had to start asking do these Countries define SUV's as trucks? The answer seems to be no.

I've looked up the dictionary definition of 'truck' which states "a large, heavy road vehicle used for carrying goods, materials, or troops; a lorry.". Then I looked up the definition of a lorry....... guess what ... it is defined as a 'truck' ! Then I looked up the definition of an SUV and that is stated to be 'a car'.
I'm therefore no further forward in establishing whether the diagnostic equipment is designed in the USA (with the 'truck' definition originating from the USA), or whether the diagnostic tool maker in China is responsible for the 'truck' classification.

At the end of the day, anyone with reasonably advanced diagnostic equipment should thoroughly double check the base settings options so as to be able to fully recognise their vehicle.
 
#20 ·
Hi Lurchy, Somewhere along the way both of us are missing something but I have no idea exactly what!
My first reaction to finding the Captiva being listed under 'trucks' on diagnostic equipment, was to question why American technical boffins interpret virtually anything with four or more wheels as a 'truck' !?
Then I did a rethink and realised that virtually all these diagnostic tools are made in China or other nearby Far Eastern countries. So I had to start asking do these Countries define SUV's as trucks? The answer seems to be no.

I've looked up the dictionary definition of 'truck' which states "a large, heavy road vehicle used for carrying goods, materials, or troops; a lorry.". Then I looked up the definition of a lorry....... guess what ... it is defined as a 'truck' ! Then I looked up the definition of an SUV and that is stated to be 'a car'.
I'm therefore no further forward in establishing whether the diagnostic equipment is designed in the USA (with the 'truck' definition originating from the USA), or whether the diagnostic tool maker in China is responsible for the 'truck' classification.

At the end of the day, anyone with reasonably advanced diagnostic equipment should thoroughly double check the base settings options so as to be able to fully recognise their vehicle.
Hi Aussie Ed ol Mate :),
Well i am the same thought as you i don't know how but i will do a video showing how i use my scanner made in (USA) to do a regen of a Holden Captiva made in (Korea), to do a manual regen on my car i use USA car section, and my Captiva 7 is a either a large pickup or a truck, we will see end result, my engine needs it it has tried to regen twice (5 times if it fails i will get the regen light), when it auto tries to regen you know, rpm goes to about 750rpm, strong smell from exhaust and if you turn it off before regen is complete the fans on radiator will kick in even after turning off ignition key and removing key and run for 2 to 3 mins to cool down dpf. I will do video when i can and post
Lurchy
 
#21 ·
Hi Lurchy, Failed DPF regeneration discussions are a 'book of their own' on this Forum under no end of different titles. You might find it useful to read some of those (find by using the Advanced Search facility) and add your discussions to one of the existing topics because DPF doesnt belong under this current Topic title. The knack of DPF regns is NEVER stop them while still running. Happy reading.
 
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