How To: Bypass EGR without getting a CEL

I have seen too many threads asking how to do this lately. So here you go. Now I don't have egr on my B2 and I had it deleted from my ecu on the Focus when I installed the supercharger so I couldn't take pictures for you. I Googled a bit and found a couple to help me illustrate.

First, I will not be responsible for anything you do or screw up on your vehicle. Second, if you live in a state that requires inspections, then you probably won't pass if you do this mod. Before you start, be sure to unhook your battery.

Here is a complete egr system illustration I found:


Now the egr system is for one thing and one thing only, emissions. And yes it DOES hurt performance. What the EGR or Exhaust Gas Recirculation, does is let some of your hot exhaust gas back into your intake to be reburned which in turn deprives your motor of clean air. It does this by the DPFE (pictured below) gets pressurized by the exhaust gas and tells the ECU this. Then the ECU tells the actuator to open the valve and let the exhaust back through. The reference port on the actuator tells how much gas is going through.


Now how to bypass it. Refer to the edited picture below. First take the hoses off the DPFE sensor. One of them you need to loop on the exhaust tube to block it off. you only need to do this if you are keeping the EGR system installed. The second you need to run from the left or rear tube (depending on which sensor you have) to the actuator. I am not sure if all these sensors are the same, but it should be the top hose that goes to the actual EGR valve. If your DPFE sensor is bad, then you get a CEL anyway (thanks to holyford86 for reminding me of this).


Now what this does is give a high vacuum to the reference port of the DPFE causing it to never want to open. From this point you can remove the EGR system and block it off or leave it on if you don't mind it. If you decide to remove it, then I suggest going to the junkyard and seeing if you can find a block-off plate from a newer 2.9 like mine. That would be the cheap way or they can be ordered online.


As for the end that goes into the exhaust manifold, I would go down to O'rielly and pick up an oil drain plug. O'rielly has these out in the isle, where Autozone has them behind the counter. Now I don't know what size you will need, but the one I used on my Focus was M22x1.50. Thats should give you a good starting point. And don't mess it up if it doesn't fit. They are expensive and you will want to return it.

Hook your battery back up and you are good to go. And if anyone finds the correct size, PM me and I'll edit my post with the correct info.

Thanks for looking. I don't normally ask for rep, but if this helped you at all, it will be appreciated.

whats the benefit of doing this

stegomon said:

whats the benefit of doing this

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I have a friend that tried this, it did not work, CEL stayed illuminated and the fuel mileage was absolutely horrible.

holyford86 said:

I have a friend that tried this, it did not work, CEL stayed illuminated and the fuel mileage was absolutely horrible.

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Then it was not hooked up correctly. Or the DPFE sensor was bad.

disciplerocks said:

Then it was not hooked up correctly. Or the DPFE sensor was bad.

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DPFE was good, almost brand new, and it was hooked up exactly as described in your instructions. once egr got reinstalled the CEL went away and fuel mileage got better. Egr is more than just emissions in some cases, it will help prevent detonation (pinging) at mid rpms.

EGR also helps to reduce fuel use at cruising speed. That hot exhaust displaces clean air, which means less fuel needs to go in to maintain the optimum air/fuel ratio. Because it's already hot though it takes less energy to get it expanding. Less energy needed directly translates into less fuel needed.

Dude, there is no benefit to going this. NO power gains, NO MPG gains. It's work and time into nothing. If an EGR is clogged or bad, just replace it.

Ranger44 said:

Dude, there is no benefit to going this. NO power gains, NO MPG gains. It's work and time into nothing. If an EGR is clogged or bad, just replace it.

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I am just providing info since there a dozen threads asking how to do it everytime I get on here. I don't care if you do it or not, thats your choice.

88+ computer swap on the 86-87 2.9Ls is probably the route I would go, since they did not have EGR from the factory.

^Unless you have a 3.0 or 4.0

how about a 302 from a sploder. my egr valve is bad and my tube is broken. local part store wants around 150 for the valve and the tube

Should be the same on any Ford motor as long as it has a DPFE sensor.

So what do you do with the DPFE downstream side, just leave it open?

Yup.

this is also something to think about doing in a state where you have emissions testing like ca. Since my stock DPFE went out, i've probably been through 6 or 7. and that's just in 2 years. They don't last very long, and they are expensive. next time i get a new one i'll just hook it up this way and save it from the exhaust heat until it's smog time. this is a really bad design flaw by ford. ugh.

For now i've just gotten used to seeing a CEL on constantly.