A vehicle comprising: an internal combustion engine configured to generate an engine torque using high-gasoline content fuel; at least one fuel injector configured to deliver the high-gasoline content fuel to a cylinder of the engine; at least one heating element configured to heat the high-gasoline content fuel prior to it being delivered to the cylinder by the fuel injector; a fuel pump connected to the heating element to supply high-gasoline to the heating element, the fuel pump being configured to pressurise the high-gasoline content fuel; and an engine controller configured to control the engine torque generated by the engine and control the fuel pressure generated by the fuel pump, the engine controller using a heated-fuel behaviour model of the engine, when the fuel is being heated by the heating element(s), to: (i) control an amount of fuel delivered by the fuel injector, the heated-fuel behaviour model causing a reduced fuel injection amount for a given engine torque relative to unheated high-gasoline content fuel; and (ii) cause a higher fuel pressure to be generated by the fuel pump relative to unheated high-gasoline content fuel.

Controllers and methods for managing transitions into and/or out of a cylinder cut off mode are described. In some embodiments, a skip fire based transition into a cylinder cut off mode is used in which the fraction of working cycles that are fired is gradually reduced to a threshold firing fraction. Once the threshold firing fraction has been reached, all of the working chambers are deactivated.

A method for operating an internal combustion engine with an exhaust gas aftertreatment device has a control system that determines a vector field of corresponding engine operating points (n.sub.Eng.sup.i, M.sub.Eng.sup.i) depending on a predetermined reducing agent-fuel consumption weighting q.sub.FD to be maintained during the operation of the internal combustion engine in order to derive a specific DEF-fuel consumption BSFC.sup.i for each of the engine operating points (n.sub.Eng.sup.i, M.sub.Eng.sup.i). The control system selects the element i.sup.Set from the identified vector field to which a minimum specific DEF-fuel consumption BSFC.sup.Set corresponds as the setpoint engine operating point (n.sub.Eng.sup.Set, M.sub.Eng.sup.Set), wherein the control system specifies a setpoint engine speed n.sub.Eng.sup.Set according to the selected element i.sup.Set and specifies therefrom a setpoint gear ratio r.sup.Set, taking into account a current gearbox output speed n.sub.out.

A hybrid electric vehicle and a catalyst heating control method are configured to select a point in time at which catalyst heating control is performed and to perform a follow-up measure based on the selected point in time. The catalyst heating control method includes performing mode switching from a first mode in which only a drive motor is used as a driving source to a second mode in which an engine is driven in a state in which a drive shaft and the engine are disconnected from each other to start heating of a catalyst of the engine. When demand torque higher than a maximum output of the drive motor occurs before the catalyst heating is completed, the second mode is maintained until the demand torque is greater than the sum of the maximum output and a predetermined margin.

A system for particulate filter regeneration includes a pre-converter universal heated exhaust gas oxygen (UHEGO) sensor disposed upstream from a three-way catalytic (TWC) converter and a particulate filter (PF), and a post-converter UHEGO sensor disposed downstream from the TWC converter and upstream from the PF. An engine controller for an internal combustion engine (ICE) and in communication with the pre-converter UHEGO sensor and the post-converter UHEGO sensor is included. The engine controller is configured to determine an amount of particulate mass accumulated in the PF during operation of the ICE and deactivate at least one of a plurality of cylinders of the ICE such that a deactivated cylinder intake air (DCIA) pass-through volume flows through the at least one deactivated cylinder and into the TWC converter and the PF. The DCIA pass-through volume is a function of the determined amount of particulate mass accumulated in the PF.

Methods and apparatus for conducting engine related diagnostics during cylinder cutoff (DCCO) operation of an engine are described. In one aspect, changes in the amount of oxygen in the exhaust system are monitored while the engine is operating in the DCCO mode. Changes in the oxygen level are then analyzed to determine various faults. Some of the faults that can be detected using this approach include cylinder deactivation faults and exhaust system leak faults. In another aspect, the rate of change of manifold pressure within the air intake manifold is monitored while operating the engine in a DCCO mode with the throttle closed. A fault indicative of potential air leakage into the air intake manifold is indicated when it is determined that the rate of change of the manifold pressure exceeds a designated threshold.

The preferred invention is directed to a controller for a vehicle exhaust valve. The controller comprises a vehicle interface for determining a live value for an operating parameter of a vehicle, a recording module being configured to, upon activation, instantaneously record the live value of the operating parameter, and a programming module for determining a value range based on the recorded live value and allowing a desired position of the valve to be set such that during operation, the control system automatically moves the valve to the desired position when the operating parameter is within the value range.

A reductant delivery system for an internal combustion engine is arranged to inject a reductant into the exhaust aftertreatment system upstream of a catalytic device. A method for controlling the reductant delivery system includes operating the fluidic pump at a preset state, operating the injector at a zero-flow state, and monitoring, via a pressure sensor, a pressure in the reductant delivery system upstream of the injector to determine a zero-flow pressure. The injector is activated under a preset condition and an actual pressure drop upstream of the injector is monitored. A pressure drop deviation is determined based upon the actual pressure drop upstream of the injector and an expected pressure drop upstream of the injector. An adjustment to the activation of the injector is determined based upon the pressure drop deviation, and the injector is controlled based upon the adjustment.

A method for regenerating an exhaust gas filter for a vehicle includes the steps of confirming and monitoring the current remaining amount of soot based on information on the initial amount of soot and information on the removal amount of soot during the execution of the service regeneration control mode, comparing the current remaining amount of soot with a predetermined target remaining amount in the condition in which the time accumulated and counted after the execution of the service regeneration control mode does not reach a predetermined first allowable time, and maintaining the execution of the service regeneration control mode until the remaining amount of soot reaches the target remaining amount in the condition that the accumulated and counted time does not reach the first allowable time when the current remaining amount of soot exceeds the target remaining amount.

System and methods for detecting NH.sub.3 slip using cross-sensitivity of an NO.sub.x sensor may include accessing a temperature value for a catalyst and determining the temperature value for the catalyst exceeds a predetermined value. If the temperature exceeds the predetermined value, a system-out NO.sub.x measurement signal from the system-out NO.sub.x sensor and an estimated system-out NO.sub.x value are used to calculate a delta value. A flag is set indicative of NH.sub.3 slip for an exhaust system responsive to an average of delta values for a predetermined period of time exceeding a predetermined value. If the temperature does not exceed the predetermined value, then an average of a plurality of system-out NO.sub.x measurement signals can be calculated and a flag is set indicative of NH.sub.3 slip responsive to the calculated average for a predetermined period of time exceeding a predetermined value.