# How to bulletproof the 2.0 VCDI in the Chevy Cruze?



## machusenpai (Jun 24, 2021)

Alright guys, I just bought a 2.0 VCDI Cruze with less than 100 000 miles for 4 grand (from a dealership with the timing belt done 13 000 miles ago) and I was wondering how to bulletproof this engine. I really like it and I don't really want it to throw a rod or have the high pressure fuel pump explode like the VW TDI 2009-2015 does. What can I do to make this engine almost immortal? I've heard in europe that these engines are really good when well maintained. I also plan on doing a DPF/EGR delete and a tune for longevity and performance.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

The 2.0 has had a very good record as far as HPFP with next to no reported failures on here. Good luck with delete since EPA basically put a stop to that here.

trifecta makes a emissions legal tune that wakes the engine way up.


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## boraz (Aug 29, 2013)

delete

oil pump seal

dunno if yours has the plastic intake or not


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## kelaog (Aug 1, 2019)

machusenpai said:


> Alright guys, I just bought a 2.0 VCDI Cruze with less than 100 000 miles for 4 grand (from a dealership with the timing belt done 13 000 miles ago) and I was wondering how to bulletproof this engine. I really like it and I don't really want it to throw a rod or have the high pressure fuel pump explode like the VW TDI 2009-2015 does. What can I do to make this engine almost immortal? I've heard in europe that these engines are really good when well maintained. I also plan on doing a DPF/EGR delete and a tune for longevity and performance.


Looks like you got a really good deal for that car... wow.

Don't bother deleting the DPF/SCR. Just have a tuner zero out the EGR map. The other components are reliable and if you put a cleaner tune on there with the EGR being absent then it will regen significantly less and you'll gain that power back without having a stinky and loud car. I was just asked if I'd ever delete a car again and I said not a chance unless all of the components were failing consistently. The only part of that system subject to failure is a DEF pump but that's not a major expense or anything. 

This car for me has been pretty reliable. If you want to make sure it's really reliable come winter consider swapping out some glow plugs. Most people on here will say they've never seen them fail and they don't ever need replacing. I had mine get too weak to start in -15C around 190,000 km.

I'm about to sell it mind you, but it's not because I don't like it or anything. It's just now that we've changed the dynamic of our garage around and I'm working from home 4 days a week I don't need the commuter to travel to my work place which is 110 km each way anymore. Come september I will but with carpooling and whatnot I'll just take my truck which leaves the majority of my girlfriends driving to be like 3-5 minute drives around town (we live in a small one). Having a diesel car for that just doesn't make sense.


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

That's really the only thing I'd be interested in deleting: the EGR. You can more than makeup for the increase in NOx related to inactivating the EGR via the SCR and DEF. I'm not really sure why they thought EGR was a good idea...I suppose to lower DEF usage? I'll gladly fill up the DEF tank slightly more often if I don't have to pull the EGR valve every 40k miles to clean it, and don't have to worry about it coking up the entire inside of the engine.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

MP81 said:


> That's really the only thing I'd be interested in deleting: the EGR. You can more than makeup for the increase in NOx related to inactivating the EGR via the SCR and DEF. I'm not really sure why they thought EGR was a good idea...I suppose to lower DEF usage? I'll gladly fill up the DEF tank slightly more often if I don't have to pull the EGR valve every 40k miles to clean it, and don't have to worry about it coking up the entire inside of the engine.


agreed, he’ll even at 2x the current usage rate id still do it vs EGR.


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## kelaog (Aug 1, 2019)

MP81 said:


> That's really the only thing I'd be interested in deleting: the EGR. You can more than makeup for the increase in NOx related to inactivating the EGR via the SCR and DEF. I'm not really sure why they thought EGR was a good idea...I suppose to lower DEF usage? I'll gladly fill up the DEF tank slightly more often if I don't have to pull the EGR valve every 40k miles to clean it, and don't have to worry about it coking up the entire inside of the engine.


Snipsey and I were discussing this one day. Basically the majority of the NOX reduction takes place with the EGR and the rest is taken place in the SCR. You would need a huge SCR to meet all the NOX limits or you would need to supplement the EGR with water injection or with some sort of emulsified fuel. I would still favour this over a full delete.

The primary benefit to removing the EGR is decreased soot, fuel consumption, and regeneration. The downside is higher NOX and DEF consumption and higher levels of NOX.

Earlier 5.9 cummins models used valve overlap to recycle exhaust gases to meet emissions (Miller cycle). The downside is that you're unable to cool it hence more recent EGR's recycle through a cooler and then into the intake. This is likely due to increasing NOX regulations.

95_pdf.pdf (rationalpublication.com)
This also demonstrates how much NOX EGR actually reduces. One thing I find particularly interesting is that it is dependent upon load of the engine. At low loads the EGR is only taking up to 40% of the NOX but at higher loads it's taking 90%. Intuitively, you could conclude that at lower loads you're producing low levels of NOX to begin with which makes sense considering your cylinder pressures and combustion temps are lower which reduces the formation of NOX on its own. In contrast to high loads you're cylinder pressures are extremely high and so are your temperatures so the effects of EGR are dramatic with even modest reductions in combustion temperature.

Impact of Combination of EGR, SCR, and DPF Technologies for the Low-Emission Rail Diesel Engines | SpringerLink
Take a look at this. Really the conclusion is the only part you'd need to read


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## MP81 (Jul 20, 2015)

kelaog said:


> Snipsey and I were discussing this one day. Basically the majority of the NOX reduction takes place with the EGR and the rest is taken place in the SCR. You would need a huge SCR to meet all the NOX limits or you would need to supplement the EGR with water injection or with some sort of emulsified fuel with a catalyst. I would still favour this over a full delete.
> 
> The primary benefit to removing the EGR is decreased soot, fuel consumption, and regeneration. The downside is higher NOX and DEF consumption and higher levels of NOX.
> 
> ...


I mean...I'm a mechanical engineer, so the article is plenty easy to understand...just...that's a lot of time to read all that, haha.

Interesting, I didn't expect the EGR to have _that_ big of an impact...but given the downsides to EGR in a diesel...I'd absolutely have preferred the other options presented. I don't like to think about what the inside of my intake manifold looks like, knowing what the throttle plate and EGR valve look like after 40k miles.


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## kelaog (Aug 1, 2019)

MP81 said:


> I mean...I'm a mechanical engineer, so the article is plenty easy to understand...just...that's a lot of time to read all that, haha.
> 
> Interesting, I didn't expect the EGR to have _that_ big of an impact...but given the downsides to EGR in a diesel...I'd absolutely have preferred the other options presented. I don't like to think about what the inside of my intake manifold looks like, knowing what the throttle plate and EGR valve look like after 40k miles.


I'm also a mechanical engineer. My comment was not directed at lack of understanding but rather time like you say .

One benefit to the miller cycle is that you do not have to pass back through the intake but rather the exhaust gas is partially contained inside of the cylinder for the next combustion stroke.

I too think EGR is the one component in a diesel engine that needs to be reengineered and replaced with something else. The downsides of its use in a diesel engine are too great to ignore. 

That being said, I was talking to a guy on the cummins forum who had 500k miles on his 6.7L with the factory emissions system and he only had to replace the SCR once and has never cleaned the intake manifold. The 6.7L is a different beast for a number of reasons including a higher compression ratio. It seems to burn much cleaner than my car.


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## kelaog (Aug 1, 2019)

All this considered. I think the glory days of diesels are soon coming to an end for road vehicles at least. Commercial applications will have a future for a while yet. That being said, I dont' think we'll see much improvement before they're phased out all together. The writing is on the wall so to speak.

Even the HD truck application I think is going to be hybrid electrics with either a small diesel or gas engine powering it. Inevitably it will be replaced entirely with a hydrogen fuel cell which will provide massive amounts of torque, quick refueling, and good range.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

MP81 said:


> I mean...I'm a mechanical engineer, so the article is plenty easy to understand...just...that's a lot of time to read all that, haha.
> 
> Interesting, I didn't expect the EGR to have _that_ big of an impact...but given the downsides to EGR in a diesel...I'd absolutely have preferred the other options presented. I don't like to think about what the inside of my intake manifold looks like, knowing what the throttle plate and EGR valve look like after 40k miles.


I’m at 45k and I definitely don’t want to take the intake off.


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## machusenpai (Jun 24, 2021)

pandrad61 said:


> The 2.0 has had a very good record as far as HPFP with next to no reported failures on here. Good luck with delete since EPA basically put a stop to that here.
> 
> trifecta makes a emissions legal tune that wakes the engine way up.


I do not live in USA and where I live everyone have deleted diesels.


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## kelaog (Aug 1, 2019)

machusenpai said:


> I do not live in USA and where I live everyone have deleted diesels.


Likewise, but it's an industry that seems to benefit the people selling the goods more than those consuming them.

I can guarantee you within 5 years we'll see the same level of crackdown that the USA just did.


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## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

kelaog said:


> All this considered. I think the glory days of diesels are soon coming to an end for road vehicles at least. Commercial applications will have a future for a while yet. That being said, I dont' think we'll see much improvement before they're phased out all together. The writing is on the wall so to speak.
> 
> Even the HD truck application I think is going to be hybrid electrics with either a small diesel or gas engine powering it. Inevitably it will be replaced entirely with a hydrogen fuel cell which will provide massive amounts of torque, quick refueling, and good range.


The marine market is going to be running diesels for a long…. Long time. Well after EVs take over.

And that’s a problem when they make a good chunk of emissions.

Unfortunately these vessels are legally untouchable. The easy answer is to just add tariffs to the non complaint countries (Panama, Cayman Islands, Liberia, etc). And anything imported using vessels from them are subject to it.

But of course you even mention this idea and lobbyist shut it down.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

machusenpai said:


> I do not live in USA and where I live everyone have deleted diesels.


Must be nice. Wish I got it done before the EPA crack down.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

kelaog said:


> Likewise, but it's an industry that seems to benefit the people selling the goods more than those consuming them.
> 
> I can guarantee you within 5 years we'll see the same level of crackdown that the USA just did.


Agreed. Hell Europe basically is outlawing diesels besides commercial


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## JLL (Sep 12, 2017)

Do Chevy Cruze and Bulletproof even belong in the same sentence?


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## machusenpai (Jun 24, 2021)

JLL said:


> Do Chevy Cruze and Bulletproof even belong in the same sentence?


The Diesel version is not the gas engine. Its an European engine that seems to be quite reliable.


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## BDCCruze (Jul 12, 2017)

machusenpai said:


> Alright guys, I just bought a 2.0 VCDI Cruze with less than 100 000 miles for 4 grand (from a dealership with the timing belt done 13 000 miles ago) and I was wondering how to bulletproof this engine. I really like it and I don't really want it to throw a rod or have the high pressure fuel pump explode like the VW TDI 2009-2015 does. What can I do to make this engine almost immortal? I've heard in europe that these engines are really good when well maintained. I also plan on doing a DPF/EGR delete and a tune for longevity and performance.


Man, you are way overthinking this. "Tuning" the car (pushing it beyond the stock specifications) is not a way to increase longevity _and_ performance. In fact, longevity and performance are at opposite ends of the same spectrum -you can't have both. You have to pick one, and GM has already picked longevity for you with the stock configuration.

Change the oil in this car on the schedule and replace the oilpump pickup seal - that's the only thing you have to do to keep it running. If you want to go a step further, clean the EGR, replace the oil cooler intake hoses, replace the oil filter drain trough... and that's about it.


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## machusenpai (Jun 24, 2021)

BDCCruze said:


> Man, you are way overthinking this. "Tuning" the car (pushing it beyond the stock specifications) is not a way to increase longevity _and_ performance. In fact, longevity and performance are at opposite ends of the same spectrum -you can't have both. You have to pick one, and GM has already picked longevity for you with the stock configuration.
> 
> Change the oil in this car on the schedule and replace the oilpump pickup seal - that's the only thing you have to do to keep it running. If you want to go a step further, clean the EGR, replace the oil cooler intake hoses, replace the oil filter drain trough... and that's about it.


I meant tuning because I want to get rid of the weird transmission problems and get rid of the DPF because having a diesel for economy and spending money for regen kinda offset each other. I drive like an old man tbh. Sometimes I like to accelerate in second/third gear for 2-3 seconds but thats about it. I don't need 300hp otherwise I would have bought a race car but I didn't. But you are right, the more you push it, the more likely you're going to end up hurting yourself in the process. 

Btw, what is the oil pickup seal part number? I can't find it on rockauto.


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## boraz (Aug 29, 2013)

machusenpai said:


> I meant tuning because I want to get rid of the weird transmission problems and get rid of the DPF because having a diesel for economy and spending money for regen kinda offset each other. I drive like an old man tbh. Sometimes I like to accelerate in second/third gear for 2-3 seconds but thats about it. I don't need 300hp otherwise I would have bought a race car but I didn't. But you are right, the more you push it, the more likely you're going to end up hurting yourself in the process.
> 
> Btw, what is the oil pickup seal part number? I can't find it on rockauto.











Oil Pump Pick Up Seal


This is to create a stickied thread dedicated to the rubber seal that rests between the metal oil pump mounted on the engine block and the plastic pick up tube that descends into the oil pan. This seal hardens with time and use. Loosing its pliability and causing the oil pump to draw small...




www.cruzetalk.com





55589549


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

There has been two 2.0L diesel engines used in the Australian Cruze. The one on the left is a single belt driven cam with 4 valves per cylinder, 110kw and 320nm of torque. That was first used in 2008 till 2011. The one on the right was used from 2011-2014, that one is in my 2012 model, it has duel chain driven cams with 120kw and 360nm of torque. Both have DPF, but no DEF. I have owned mine from new and it has been completely reliable so far. I should add mine is used mainly for short shopping trips and has only 86K km on the clock, so short trips are OK if you take it for a run to clear the DPF light when it comes on.


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## machusenpai (Jun 24, 2021)

Aussie said:


> There has been two 2.0L diesel engines used in the Australian Cruze. The one on the left is a single belt driven cam with 4 valves per cylinder, 110kw and 320nm of torque. That was first used in 2008 till 2011. The one on the right was used from 2011-2014, that one is in my 2012 model, it has duel chain driven cams with 120kw and 360nm of torque. Both have DPF, but no DEF. I have owned mine from new and it has been completely reliable so far. I should add mine is used mainly for short shopping trips and has only 86K km on the clock, so short trips are OK if you take it for a run to clear the DPF light when it comes on.
> 
> View attachment 293120


I just use BIScan and I am now manually doing DPF because sometimes I shut it off before it finish and ruin everything.


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## grs1961 (Oct 23, 2012)

I have a 2009 Aussie JG Cruze - that's the one on the left - I modified my driving behaviour to try and always get it to operating temperature.
FREX, when I drop the wain off at school in the morning, which is 5-15 minutes away depending on traffic, I take the scenic route home to be certain it gets hot enough.
Since I've started doing that, I get the flashing "DPF" light (which NAmerican Cruzen *don't* have) much less often, maybe once or twice a year, previously I'd say it was every couple of months.


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