Clean paving stones

Hi everyone.I became a newbie last week. I have spent many hours reading lots of posts since!! I am delighted to see how friendly everyone is and the trouble members will go to in helping each other. We bought our Duetto in October 2010 and are delighted with it. It fits perfectly on our 19 and half foot driveway,(which we regarded as a must) However Sandra noticed the big smear of diesel gunge which was spit onto the paved drive every time I started the vehicle. Not easy to clean up especially as the van sits in the same place every time I park. A solution had to be found quickly!! I toyed with the idea of placing a plastic pipe over the exhaust, but that would still neccesitate cleaning the pipe on a regular basis. While mulling over the problem (daydreaming Sandra calls it) I spotted some plastic red clips 2 for a pound at all pound shops. I then re-cycled an ASDA bag over the exhaust pipe clipped on with red clip. I have not had any staining since. I usually re-use the bag 3 times. On one occasion I forgot to remove the bag and drove 40 miles. The bag melted away but left the plastic clip unaffected!! I can heartily reccomend this to other members. Happy camping, Jim and Sandra.

Hi there,

I would be more worried about the "diesel gunge" that is being spit out than the fact that the drive needs cleaning! (To solve the drive problem try "Sandra, clean that muck off the drive for me darling whilst I do manly things under the bonnet." It might work!!)

Now, back to the gunge. It shouldn't happen!! "Petal" has 68,500 miles on the clock and neither leaks nor produces one drop of gunge.

I suggest that as a start you get some Redex Injector Cleaner additive and give her a good dose for a couple of tanks-full to see if that cures the problem. Also, you might try running at relatively high revs for a few miles to see what, if any, smoke she produces.

If, like me, you just doddle along then soot particles can accumulate in the exhaust and a mile or so on high revs can clear them out. (DO NOT REV THE ENGINE WHEN IT IS NOT IN GEAR AND RUNNING!! Diesels just hate being run without a load on them!)

If neither of these ploys cure the gunge problem then the ASDA plastic bag seems a very good idea.


Oh, one other thought. Does the engine temperature come up to "Normal" when running. If the thermostat is faulty then the engine stays cold, the diesel doesn't get properly burned and can then go into the exhaust.

Best regards,

Hi Dutto. Thanks for your comments. Perhaps the word gunge overstated our problem. the problem only occurs on cold start-up. The engine had 58,000 miles on the clock when we bought her. She runs like a dream as soon as she is started and everything works as it should. It really is a watery vapour with soot from the exhaust. The *Sandra clean that gunge up* method doesn't work as well after 47 years married. When parking on the drive after a run there in no vapour, so no staining. Regards, Jim.

Sometimes, AND under certain conditions, a diesel engine will chuck out wet-sooty deposits on startup, this is usually due to a soot build up internally mixed with the cold-condensate produced from a cold engine, revving & 'blipping' it for a bit for a few seconds will usually clear it as it heats up.

Try staring WITHOUT toutching the throttle, then, usually no 'goo' comes out, tootle out on to the road, then 'blap' the throttle a couple of times, it should clear in a second or two, if it keeps chucking muck out constantly, then as Dutto states, it needs looking into.

Although we don't like the thought of our engines being 'revved-up' they CAN (read should ) take it, try standing by your van during the MOT, you will cringe in the corner as the tester takes the poor girl to max revs (no load) for 5 second bursts several times to check emissions, real scary that!!
Is it possible that you can mark out a 'zone' on the ground where the exhaust hits, & some how cover that instead? A bit of thin ply maybe or even polythene taped down, at least it should stay there & you won't cart it off with you.

Hi modelman. Thanks for the feedback. I had the MOT in October and it passed without any comments or recommendations. As mentioned she drives beautifully with no signs of smoke. Temperature gauge is normal and on outing to Devon last year no smoke or problem. I did consider your board idea but realised the wheels would run over the board and leave another splat. If ASDA stop supplying bags I may have to have a re-think!! Regards, Jim.

I've been driving diesel vehicles for over 25 yrs and I've never found a diesel vehicle yet that doesn't leave some kind of soot deposit at start up, moisture from combustion condenses on the cold exhaust pipe, mixes with the soot and comes out the exhaust Diesels IMO like to be driven hard.. they like long runs and frequent opening up to give them a blast through, if it's just soot (which I think is what you are trying to say anyway) I really wouldn't worry....

CruizingComet wrote:I've been driving diesel vehicles for over 25 yrs and I've never found a diesel vehicle yet that doesn't leave some kind of soot deposit at start up, moisture from combustion condenses on the cold exhaust pipe, mixes with the soot and comes out the exhaust Diesels IMO like to be driven hard.. they like long runs and frequent opening up to give them a blast through, if it's just soot (which I think is what you are trying to say anyway) I really wouldn't worry....

Thanks Cruizing Comet. Never had a diesel before so i'm glad to hear its a normal feature. Regards. Jim