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DEF fluid warnings and guage sensor issues

Pmccammon00

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I've waited for mine for two years after it became obvious our 2016 2dr Rubi didn't have the room or power to handle towing an off road trailer (BoreasXT). We absolutely love this new Rubi. We have had at least one sensor problem with something about the humidity sensor that the dealer replaced. Not sure if that is diesel related or not. My biggest concern so far is the amount of DEF fluid we have had to put in. Have already added 5 gallons of DEF and we only have 3k miles on it. Don't know if the dealer put in more than 1 gallon because I didn't know where the DEF guage was. The guage is not a float like the gas/diesel tank but a sensor that predicts the amount you are using and projects the mileage. I had the 500 mile warning message come on, went another mile or so and restated the engine, message got the 460 mile warning, went another mile and after a restart got the 420 mile warning. Freaked out and abandoned our Backcountry trip and made it to a small town and added my second 2.5 gal DEF at 2400 miles. Any thoughts anyone?
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toolaide4fit

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I've waited for mine for two years after it became obvious our 2016 2dr Rubi didn't have the room or power to handle towing an off road trailer (BoreasXT). We absolutely love this new Rubi. We have had at least one sensor problem with something about the humidity sensor that the dealer replaced. Not sure if that is diesel related or not. My biggest concern so far is the amount of DEF fluid we have had to put in. Have already added 5 gallons of DEF and we only have 3k miles on it. Don't know if the dealer put in more than 1 gallon because I didn't know where the DEF guage was. The guage is not a float like the gas/diesel tank but a sensor that predicts the amount you are using and projects the mileage. I had the 500 mile warning message come on, went another mile or so and restated the engine, message got the 460 mile warning, went another mile and after a restart got the 420 mile warning. Freaked out and abandoned our Backcountry trip and made it to a small town and added my second 2.5 gal DEF at 2400 miles. Any thoughts anyone?
I got the warning this weekend. I had the dealer fill it up when I bought it...not sure if they did or what. I went to a truck stop and filled it up until it cut off. I put in 3.84 gallons. So now I have a bench mark and know that I filled it up with 4,000 on it.
 

shufly09

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I also got the 500 mile warning with about 3600 miles driven. Unless the gauge is wrong, it was full when I got it. I added a little over 4 gallons to the DEF tank.
 

sylverknuk

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I just posted on another thread as well. While your experience(s) seem "not right" that is exactly what I've seen. Picked up the JLUR EcoDiesel and checked the DEF guage and it showed 100%. Put ~500mi on it and it showed around 3/4. Then, took off on a 4.8K trip (in warm to hot temps) and added Blue DEF 2x. In both cases, the guage reacted as expected showing the added fluid. Have 5600 miles on the jeep now and DEF showing above 1/2. This is using WAY more DEF than Jeep leads us to believe - so as far as I can tell, there seems to be something wrong or they have grossly miscalculated the amount of DEF that this thing uses.
- as an aside, based on my 1st hand experience this is not a case of "mis-reading" the guage or the dealer not filling it up on deliver; really wish it were that simple.
 

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Pmccammon00

Pmccammon00

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Update on DEF usage. We are right at about 5k miles on our diesel and have already added 7.5 gallons of DEF, with the current guage reading about 3/4 full. I notice DEF usage really goes up when hauling our off-road trailer (about 2500 lbs loaded). On the positive side found that DEF is readily available and somewhat cheap ($8-$9) for 2.5 gallons. Have learned to read the date codes to ensure using fresh fluid. With how much I love this diesel, i'm willing to put up with this issue and always make sure I top off before any long trip.
 

Gorilla57

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Update on DEF usage. We are right at about 5k miles on our diesel and have already added 7.5 gallons of DEF, with the current guage reading about 3/4 full. I notice DEF usage really goes up when hauling our off-road trailer (about 2500 lbs loaded). On the positive side found that DEF is readily available and somewhat cheap ($8-$9) for 2.5 gallons. Have learned to read the date codes to ensure using fresh fluid. With how much I love this diesel, i'm willing to put up with this issue and always make sure I top off before any long trip.
Again, DEF usage is based off of your fuel usage......so of course it will be used up quicker when you are towing. You are burning more fuel, hence more DEF use. What is your average MPG over the past 5k miles? Use that total fuel consumption and calculate out your DEF usage. If it is above about 5% of your fuel consumption, then you can start to worry. These little diesels are great, loving mine in my 1500.
 
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Pmccammon00

Pmccammon00

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Again, DEF usage is based off of your fuel usage......so of course it will be used up quicker when you are towing. You are burning more fuel, hence more DEF use. What is your average MPG over the past 5k miles? Use that total fuel consumption and calculate out your DEF usage. If it is above about 5% of your fuel consumption, then you can start to worry. These little diesels are great, loving mine in my 1500.
Mileage has been very good overall. First 1K mile trip hauling trailer from AZ to CO with several high passes to get over, got just over 20 MPG. On another trip of 1.7k miles with maybe 60% towing, averaged around 23 MPG. Normal mixed travel still have been getting around 25 MPG so my mileage is as good as thought it could be, but DEF just seems much more than expected.
As I said, refilling DEF more often is not really an issue, but wanted to let others know that probably not going to get 10K miles on 5 gallons of DEF.
 

Gorilla57

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Mileage has been very good overall. First 1K mile trip hauling trailer from AZ to CO with several high passes to get over, got just over 20 MPG. On another trip of 1.7k miles with maybe 60% towing, averaged around 23 MPG. Normal mixed travel still have been getting around 25 MPG so my mileage is as good as thought it could be, but DEF just seems much more than expected.
As I said, refilling DEF more often is not really an issue, but wanted to let others know that probably not going to get 10K miles on 5 gallons of DEF.
Gotcha. My wife’s diesel Touareg would go 10k miles on 5gal of DEF and we all know how well that scenario went down. :facepalm:

I’m at 2500 miles on my Ram and I topped off the DEF tank at 1000 miles. The gauge reads just below full, so I’m gonna top it off again when it reads 1/2 tank. The truck is very consistent at 24mpg per tank since I bought it. I’ll report on here when I get some figures since it would be a good comparison between the 2 different tunes on the same motor.

Just calculated it out for ya, you are getting around 3.5% DEF usage. Pretty much right on target. Did a little searching and 2-3% is the "usual" rate that I can find. But the rate in these new motors may be higher in order to meet the most recent emissions requirements. Like you, I really don't care if I need to fill up the DEF tank more often. Been using the Walmart SuperTech stuff ever since I bought my 2015 Cummins Ram. It costs less that $8 for the 2.5 gal jug. NEVER had a problem with that stuff, especially if you pay attention to the date code, make sure the seal under the cap is intact and don't leave it sitting in a hot garage for months prior to use.
 
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AZ-Chris

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I just put in about 4 gallons of DEF with 3500 miles on the odometer. I didn't wait for any messages, but the DEF gage showed 1/4 full before topping it off. My experience seems consistent with those above, and I'm still bone stock.

My question is, is this going to be the normal DEF usage rate, or will consumption taper off or increase with use? Perhaps the initial high DEF usage rate is part of a break-in process and that is why Jeep states 5 gallons of consumption per 10K miles.

In any event, I just purchased 4, 2.5 gallon jugs of Peak Blue DEF at my local O'Reilly's for $13.99/jug
 

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Gorilla57

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In any event, I just purchased 4, 2.5 gallon jugs of Peak Blue DEF at my local O'Reilly's for $13.99/jug
Why would you buy 4? DEF does have a shelf life and you’d better keep those inside your house to keep the temp down. Plus, $14 a jug isn’t a great price. Walmart SuperTech is less than $8 a jug and meets specs.
 

AZ-Chris

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I always keep a small supply on hand, and I've already used nearly 2 jugs today alone. At the rate I'm going through the stuff, I'll use up this supply in another month.

Thanks for the head's-up on Walmart's price, but this was a convenience purchase today . . . I was there, I saw it, I needed it, I purchased it . . . a couple of bucks isn't going to break the bank.
 

Gorilla57

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I always keep a small supply on hand, and I've already used nearly 2 jugs today alone. At the rate I'm going through the stuff, I'll use up this supply in another month.

Thanks for the head's-up on Walmart's price, but this was a convenience purchase today . . . I was there, I saw it, I needed it, I purchased it . . . a couple of bucks isn't going to break the bank.
Just keep your spares in the house, that's what I do. :like: A garage in AZ isn't the nicest place to keep them. I'm thinking FCA had to bump up the DEF use in order to meet emissions requirements.:no:
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