An internal combustion engine for a motor vehicle. In the internal combustion engine, fuel is injected directly into a combustion chamber and is burned during an intake phase in a first mode of operation and during a compression phase in a second mode of operation. Exhaust gas formed by combustion may be sent to a catalytic converter. A controller may cause additional fuel to be injected following combustion in the second mode of operation. The controller may also cause the temperature of the exhaust gas to be measured in or downstream from the catalytic converter and compared with a threshold value.