How much DEF does your car consume???

[drjoe66]

Our 2011 X5 Diesel showed the low DEF warning a few months ago about 5000 miles before the next oil change. Off to the dealer, they refilled it (supposedly). After 1000 miles, warning comes back. We were on a road trip, so I bought 2 liters and filled them in. Now, 1500 miles later, the warning is back!

What do you think, is this normal? I think not.

[lanbrown]

Could you have a leaky tank or plumbing? Are both tanks being filled completely?

To answer this question though:

How much DEF does your car consume???

None at all.

[serge1]

5 gallons every 10K miles is about norm. Driving harder will consume more, lighter will consume less DEF. There are 2 tanks, passive and active. Each contains 2.5gal.

[manjb]

just curious when did bmw start using DEF for diesel's?
mine is 2012 X5, will it have def, i didnt any def fuel written anywhere.

[lanbrown]

Yes. It is not def fuel. What do you mean by "i didnt any def fuel written anywhere" as it makes absolutely no sense at all.

[manjb]

what I mean is usually def is mentioned on the tank or on refilling nozzle to identify what is the nozzle for.
are you saying 2012 doesn't use def?

[lanbrown]

If you have a 2012 X5 diesel, it requires DEF. DEF is NOT a fuel! You have three options:

1) Use Google and research DEF (diesel exhaust fluid)
2) Read your owners manual
3) Don't educate yourself by doing neither option 1 or 2

[manjb]

I know what DEF is , if you have read my question I asked when bmw start using def on its diesel vehicles. just out of curiosity
and def is a type of fuel which is used to control the emission and to clean N02 nitrogen oxides produced by diesel
and the tank for def must say def on it, and if its hidden then nozzle must say def on it.
thanks for your response tho..

[lanbrown]

Originally Posted by manjb

I know what DEF is , if you have read my question I asked when bmw start using def on its diesel vehicles. just out of curiosity
and def is a type of fuel which is used to control the emission and to clean N02 nitrogen oxides produced by diesel
and the tank for def must say def on it, and if its hidden then nozzle must say def on it.
thanks for your response tho..

No, you don't know what DEF is, below is your question. You are asking if yours takes DEF, so that right there shows you don't know what it is.

DEF is NOT a fuel. Given that you consider it a fuel just further proves you do not know what DEF is.

Why would a nozzle say DEF on it? You don't even know where DEF goes in your vehicle or how you put it in. I will guarantee you that when the dealer put DEF in your X5, it never said DEF on the nozzle. Also, it is not hidden at all.

Originally Posted by manjb

just curious when did bmw start using DEF for diesel's?
mine is 2012 X5, will it have def, i didnt any def fuel written anywhere.

[007_e350]

Originally Posted by manjb

I know what DEF is , if you have read my question I asked when bmw start using def on its diesel vehicles. just out of curiosity
and def is a type of fuel which is used to control the emission and to clean N02 nitrogen oxides produced by diesel
and the tank for def must say def on it, and if its hidden then nozzle must say def on it.
thanks for your response tho..

oh gosh..
Its not a fuel, DEF = Diesel Exhaust Fluid
our cars have an active and a passive tank, one under the intake hose by the alternator, look for the same gooseneck funnel with cap on the passenger side

Op, I think when we idle more and in winter months the consumption was more, now it has gone down, but was never 1500 miles, more like 5000

[drjoe66]

Originally Posted by manjb

just curious when did bmw start using DEF for diesel's?
mine is 2012 X5, will it have def, i didnt any def fuel written anywhere.

Yes, it has a urea tank. That's what DEF is. This is for the NH3-SCR catalysts for NOx reduction in Diesel exhaust.

[CANGRKE70]

Similar situation I found by just Googling

Now was that so hard? Manjb, this should answer your question as well.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Does+my+2012+BM...haust+Fluid%3F

Question: I have a 2012 X5 xdrive 35d and have had to refill the diesel exhaust fluid several times. The warning came up at 17000km (I live and work in Germany) and then again yesterday. I am at about 22000km now. How long should a filling last. Overall I have used up about 3 Gallons of the stuff. I just went through my first service at 18000km as well. There is no leakage of any type as far as I can tell. Is this normal and should I expect to refill this as often as it has so far?

Answer: The way the urea injection (diesel exhaust) fluid should be working is that you should not need a refill until you are due for your next oil service. The fluid fill is tied to the oil service interval for your X5. There are some things that can cause you to use more fluid like towing or idling for long periods of time. At my shop we use an X5 as a shuttle vehicle and we tend to use up more urea due to long idling and short distance driving.
In your case, I suspect that the passive tank is not transferring fluid correctly to the active tank. This can be due to an obstruction in the lines or a failure in the active tank itself. With both tanks full you should be able to come close to only needing a top off when the oil service is getting close to being due. From the mileage range you are getting it sounds as if you are only using up what is in the active tank which is leading to more frequent fill ups.
Your BMW dealer or shop you use should take a good look at the passive tank to make sure it is filling correctly and they should clean out the lines from the passive to the active tank and initiate a transfer to verify that the tank is sending fluid to the active tank correctly. If not then the passive tank may need to be replaced.

[drjoe66]

Thank you for lecturing me on the use of Google. I very much appreciate your valuable feedback.

The car finally went to the service yesterday. First, they tried to tell me this is normal. Now they called telling me they are basically lost and don't really know what is going on. This ought to be interesting.....