DEF usage question

[Bmoore2]

Hey Guys,

I ended up making the deal on the 2014 Ram 2500 6.7 with the auto transmission 49,500 miles on February 7th. When I picked up the truck it had a full tank of fuel and DEF. I have put just over 1k miles on the truck. Mostly highway miles with some city. 80/20 highway to city I would say. My DEF gauge is still pegged on full. Is this something that I should be concerned about? Thanks in advance for any help.

Bobby

 

[apgambino]

If you have not been doing any towing that sounds normal. I only see my DEF tank drop noticeably when I've got my fifth wheel hitched up. If I am just driving to and from work (40 miles almost all highway) I can go well over 1k miles before my needle seems to move.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but DEF usage increases with how hard the engine is working (light use =less nox to neutralize) whereas your DPF will need to be regened more often because the exhaust is not getting hot enough to burn deposits off. From what I've read on here Regens only seem to need to happen if you are driving mostly in the city.

Hope that helps.

 

[Bmoore2]

Thank you very much.... New to the whole diesel game.

 

[kthaxton]

Someone posted a video recently that showed how the level sensor works in a DEF tank, I don't recall which thread. It is not like a gas tank sensor. If I understand it correctly, it recognizes "full", but there is an area between full and roughly 2/3's where it is not measuring the level in real time. Once the level gets down to that point where the "real time" sensor is functional, you'll notice it have a more consistent drop with usage.
So basically, that is normal. It will stay at full for a long time, then after a while it will start to drop consistently.

 

[Ram4Sam]

Hey Guys,

I ended up making the deal on the 2014 Ram 2500 6.7 with the auto transmission 49,500 miles on February 7th. When I picked up the truck it had a full tank of fuel and DEF. I have put just over 1k miles on the truck. Mostly highway miles with some city. 80/20 highway to city I would say. My DEF gauge is still pegged on full. Is this something that I should be concerned about? Thanks in advance for any help.

Bobby

..................

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czJZuc8ThhI

 

[kthaxton]

Yeah, that.

 

[Bmoore2]

Sam is the man. Thank you so much.