I recorded over 200 trips on my 2017 Discovery Sport to find out if its DPF is fit for purpose

The DPF on my Land Rover Discovery Sport 2017 got blocked and had to be replaced (£2000+), a problem that seems to be affecting many of us.

I found out there was a class action lawsuit against Land Rover for faulty DPF construction, and I wanted to get proof of whether my car was also affected. (Further information about the issue is presented in this document: D8 Dilution Explained)

Using the Car Scanner app for iOS, I recorded over 200 trips in and outside of the UK and put all the recordings up on a website: https://sootscout.com

It is still a work in progress (I need to do further detailed analysis on my trips); however, I believe it already provides valuable insights for anyone who wants to understand how the DPF works.

I've attached a photo of the first recorded trip, which immediately showed that the DPF could not passively regenerate itself during normal driving conditions on the motorway. Notice how the soot mass keeps increasing despite driving on the motorway at speeds above 50 mph. Only an active regeneration at the end of the trip could clear the soot.



In contrast, here is another trip recorded on the German Autobahn with speeds well exceeding 80 mph. Interestingly, the DPF is working as designed here. Notice how the increase in speed can continuously spike the exhaust gas temperature to above 500ºC.



Could this mean that the "faulty" DPFs were designed to be used outside the UK, where speed limits are higher...?

The data can be explored further on the website. If you are affected by the same issue, I hope you find the information useful.

Even if you've never had an issue with your DPF before, I strongly recommend you start monitoring it, as it will be blocked sooner or later. Information about how to start monitoring is available on the website. It should also help with the oil dilution problem, as you will no longer turn off the engine at the end of your trip if you see that a regen is in progress.

PS: If you send me your recorded trips from Car Scanner (CSV format #2), I would be happy to convert them to a chart similar to what I have done with my trips. Then, we could compare how the DPF functions on various Land Rover models.

Cheers!

Go away spammer

Thanks for your feedback. What makes you classify my research into the DPF issue as "spam"?

Thank you both for your valuable and constructive feedback.

I can see that neither of you is affected by the DPF issues present on D8 vehicles, which is excellent!

If that is the case, please look away and leave some free space on this forum for those who are (un)fortunate enough to own such vehicles.

After all, it is no accident that Land Rover has multiple class-action lawsuits going against them.

If you have anything else to share, may I suggest you first look at the website and the charts to understand what this thread is about?

Thanks!

No.


Have you done a search on the forum, to see if anyone else has had this issue?
If there are no other threads on your issue, then I suggest it's just you.


The multiple class action lawsuits is just you, isn't it.

Have you had any problem with freelanders not having permanent 4wd?

Searching for "dpf blocked" returns over 100 results on this forum alone, so I do believe that many people are affected by this issue.

Googling for "land rover dpf class action" also brought up quite a few results:

- https://jlryouoweus.co.uk/
- https://www.leighday.co.uk/our-services/group-claims/jaguar-land-rover-dpf-claim/

I'm sorry. I still don't understand why you're spending time on this forum thread trying to prove that my analysis of the D8's DPF behaviour is wrong. You don't own such a car, so you are unaffected. Then why be sensitive about this topic? Do you perhaps work for Land Rover...?

Anyone who visits my website and dedicates some time to reading the information presented on the site will have a much better chance at combating DPF-related issues on their vehicle, especially if they own a car with the DPF installed far away from the engine (like on my Discovery Sport 2017).

100 results out of 154,955 members is negligible.

Google found two results? Gosh.

I'm not trying to prove anything. You are.
I'm not sensitive about this topic. You are.

I don't wish to visit your website. Spamming twunt.

DPF issues are usually down to how they are driven.

DPF issues are usually down to how they are driven.

Click to expand...

Except when they are not.

As you can clearly see from either the document I linked above (D8 Dilution Explained) or the recordings I have made, no matter how long you drive on the motorway at 70 mph, the DPF will not perform passive regeneration due to the exhaust gas temperature not being high enough entering the DPF. Soot will keep on increasing, and when it reaches a limit, the car will perform an active regeneration.

However, as soon as you drive faster (80-90 mph, outside of the UK), passive regeneration suddenly starts to work like a charm. Higher speed = higher exhaust temperature = soot burns without the need for active regeneration.

What is this if not a design failure by Land Rover?

SootScout said:

The DPF on my Land Rover Discovery Sport 2017 got blocked and had to be replaced (£2000+), a problem that seems to be affecting many of us.

I found out there was a class action lawsuit against Land Rover for faulty DPF construction, and I wanted to get proof of whether my car was also affected. (Further information about the issue is presented in this document: D8 Dilution Explained)

Using the Car Scanner app for iOS, I recorded over 200 trips in and outside of the UK and put all the recordings up on a website: https://sootscout.com

It is still a work in progress (I need to do further detailed analysis on my trips); however, I believe it already provides valuable insights for anyone who wants to understand how the DPF works.

I've attached a photo of the first recorded trip, which immediately showed that the DPF could not passively regenerate itself during normal driving conditions on the motorway. Notice how the soot mass keeps increasing despite driving on the motorway at speeds above 50 mph. Only an active regeneration at the end of the trip could clear the soot.

View attachment 327952

In contrast, here is another trip recorded on the German Autobahn with speeds well exceeding 80 mph. Interestingly, the DPF is working as designed here. Notice how the increase in speed can continuously spike the exhaust gas temperature to above 500ºC.

View attachment 327953

Could this mean that the "faulty" DPFs were designed to be used outside the UK, where speed limits are higher...?

The data can be explored further on the website. If you are affected by the same issue, I hope you find the information useful.

Even if you've never had an issue with your DPF before, I strongly recommend you start monitoring it, as it will be blocked sooner or later. Information about how to start monitoring is available on the website. It should also help with the oil dilution problem, as you will no longer turn off the engine at the end of your trip if you see that a regen is in progress.

PS: If you send me your recorded trips from Car Scanner (CSV format #2), I would be happy to convert them to a chart similar to what I have done with my trips. Then, we could compare how the DPF functions on various Land Rover models.

Cheers!

Click to expand...

EGR & DPF delete or drive it like you stole it. BTW I had fried spam with our breakfast this morning which was
really nice.

EGR & DPF delete or drive it like you stole it.

Click to expand...

Are you suggesting that the only solution to fix the problem with my Land Rover's DPF is to commit a criminal offence?

SootScout said:

Are you suggesting that the only solution to fix the problem with my Land Rover's DPF is to commit a criminal offence?

Click to expand...

When I started reading this thread I thought it might be of some interest.
But I do suffer with the naive idea that people come on here to help others or to find help.
But coming on here to puff up your own website, and then to make snooty remarks to others really isn't how it works.
Best of luck with your class action, as your's isn't a class act!

Stanleysteamer said:

When I started reading this thread I thought it might be of some interest.
But I do suffer with the naive idea that people come on here to help others or to find help.
But coming on here to puff up your own website, and then to make snooty remarks to others really isn't how it works.
Best of luck with your class action, as your's isn't a class act!

Click to expand...

Thanks for the constructive feedback!

I needed to create a website based on my research because it is difficult to summarise over 200 trips in a forum post. It is much easier to present recorded trip data on an interactive chart.

If you visit my site, you will find all the information I provide is free.

Therefore, I do not understand the remarks in my post being spammy or the advice I give being unsolicited.

The website is basically a blog with an interactive chart allowing people to explore my drives in detail. There is no catch.

First I have not taken the time to look at your website or the class action.

But from your charts above, I would say its doing what it is supposed to do.

The problem with block DPFs (IMO) is mostly down to peoples driving style/habits. Running a big car for the school run and to the supermarket will not do it much good, Even the small cars will suffer.

We have owned our 2011 L322 for 10yrs now and have never seen any message on the dash DPF related. I suppose I could check how many and the last active regen was done, but I don't need to waste my time.
Our short runs are very small and regularly get it on a reasonable run, so for our driving Passive regen would probably be happening most of the time.

The oil dilution is a known problem (by JLR) and this is all also explained. The car knows how many Active regens and takes this into account, It will throw the "service" light up early if it calculates dilution is at a level because of the quantity of Active regens. This however is probably often ignored by owners who would say to themselves " its not due a service for 5months" and would either just ignore it or get their mate to just come round with his gadget and reset it " Its fine he knows all about JLR cars he always tells me this in the pub"

No I don't known what the amount of fuel in the oil actually makes it useless as oil and starts to cause damage.
For the L322 they mention 7%, So I am sure that JLR have done a fair bit of research and have picked a number well below the point the oil is useless.

So that's my 2p worth.

J

kevstar said:

You could..............

Click to expand...

They are doing it internally now.
Its called Adblue.

J

marjon said:

First I have not taken the time to look at your website or the class action.

But from your charts above, I would say its doing what it is supposed to do.

The problem with block DPFs (IMO) is mostly down to peoples driving style/habits. Running a big car for the school run and to the supermarket will not do it much good, Even the small cars will suffer.

We have owned our 2011 L322 for 10yrs now and have never seen any message on the dash DPF related. I suppose I could check how many and the last active regen was done, but I don't need to waste my time.
Our short runs are very small and regularly get it on a reasonable run, so for our driving Passive regen would probably be happening most of the time.

The oil dilution is a known problem (by JLR) and this is all also explained. The car knows how many Active regens and takes this into account, It will throw the "service" light up early if it calculates dilution is at a level because of the quantity of Active regens. This however is probably often ignored by owners who would say to themselves " its not due a service for 5months" and would either just ignore it or get their mate to just come round with his gadget and reset it " Its fine he knows all about JLR cars he always tells me this in the pub"

No I don't known what the amount of fuel in the oil actually makes it useless as oil and starts to cause damage.
For the L322 they mention 7%, So I am sure that JLR have done a fair bit of research and have picked a number well below the point the oil is useless.

So that's my 2p worth.

J

Click to expand...

His whole point is even longer runs 50 plus aren't clearing it.

This isn't anything goes.

No harm reading someone else's viewpoint

As above, this isn't AG

Hi @marjon,

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

I don't see how the driver is at fault when the car is driven on a motorway for over an hour, yet passive regeneration does nothing to the increasing soot level.

Here, I present three more examples of my car not being able to perform an effective passive generation despite me driving at speeds above 70 mph.

Drive #1:



Drive #2 (the soot level slightly dips halfway through, thanks to the exhaust gas temperature spiking above 500ºC), but only the active regeneration at the end of the trip clears the soot.



Drive #3 (continuously driving at 80 mph, yet not a single dip in the soot level, despite the continuous passive regeneration):



How else is a car supposed to be driven, if not for over an hour at speeds above 70 mph? The DPF is clearly unable to do its job, thanks to the car's faulty design. Land Rover mounted the DPF way too far from the engine, and thus, the hot exhaust gas cools down just too much as it enters the DPF.

ER1C said:

His whole point is even longer runs 50 plus aren't clearing it.

This isn't anything goes.

No harm reading someone else's viewpoint

Click to expand...

Since when was my own experience, which I gave, not another valid viewpoint?
I have no problem with others views but I said what I saw from his posts and my understanding/reading of how the system works, and our 2011 works fine.

So what’s your views on it? Got any real world experience?

What do you drive?

J

SootScout said:

Hi @marjon,

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

I don't see how the driver is at fault when the car is driven on a motorway for over an hour, yet passive regeneration does nothing to the increasing soot level.

Here, I present three more examples of my car not being able to perform an effective passive generation despite me driving at speeds above 70 mph.

Drive #1:

View attachment 328015

Drive #2 (the soot level slightly dips halfway through, thanks to the exhaust gas temperature spiking above 500ºC), but only the active regeneration at the end of the trip clears the soot.

View attachment 328016

Drive #3 (continuously driving at 80 mph, yet not a single dip in the soot level, despite the continuous passive regeneration):

View attachment 328018

How else is a car supposed to be driven, if not for over an hour at speeds above 70 mph? The DPF is clearly unable to do its job, thanks to the car's faulty design. Land Rover mounted the DPF way too far from the engine, and thus, the hot exhaust gas cools down just too much as it enters the DPF.

Click to expand...

I can only tell you I have never had any issue.
And again the car system is only doing what it is supposed to. Maybe your soot level didn’t go up as much because you were doing lots of passive regen.
The position of the dpf (on yours I don’t know) ours is pretty much as close as it could be. The system raises the exhaust gas temps as required for active regen, which yours does when required, does it not?

J

marjon said:

I can only tell you I have never had any issue.
And again the car system is only doing what it is supposed to. Maybe your soot level didn’t go up as much because you were doing lots of passive regen.
The position of the dpf (on yours I don’t know) ours is pretty much as close as it could be. The system raises the exhaust gas temps as required for active regen, which yours does when required, does it not?

J

Click to expand...

My understanding is that if I were to drive my car exclusively on the motorway, at 70 mph for 1 hour every single day, and provided I never encountered any traffic, not a single active regeneration would be necessary to stop the soot from increasing, as the car would be able to clear any accumulated soot through passive regeneration.

Is my understanding not correct?

---

From D8 Dilution Explained (page 9):

1. There is no passive regeneration during normal driving.

The first reason for lack of passive regeneration is the physical architecture of the exhaust after-treatment system. As shown by the photographs above (Fig 2), on the Discovery Sport L550 the DPF is separated from the turbo outlet by two lengths of pipework (total distance 70 cm) which creates an effective heat sink. The SCRF therefore operates at a much cooler temperature than a close-coupled CSF-type DPF attached to the turbo outlet, as on the Jaguar XE X760.

Click to expand...