Tuning the L series Diesel Freelander

[TinyXEDI]

Hi Folks. I was wondering if anyone (other than myself) had done any performance tuning on the L series Freelander?

[Frieslander]

Hi Folks. I was wondering if anyone (other than myself) had done any performance tuning on the L series Freelander?

I've installed a power module some months ago. Bought it on E-Bay , make is D-Chip from Germany.You've to make some soldering connections in the harness (connector) at the engine management computer.
The change is remarkable , I had some minor tune-ups to do , but I've got a different car now. Picks up much better on low revs , and when the turbo comes in, it really goes.
When you keep on driving like you did before the chip was installed , your mpg is going down as well.
Lifetime of the engine may go down a little, but these engines can take a lot of miles.

[TinyXEDI]

So you are happy with your chip then? I use a "Tunit" ECU chip on Tiny. It also solders onto the ECU pins and is not bad.
I can get 450 miles out of a full tank so economy is quite respectable. I have also blanked off the EGR valve with a £4 blanking plate off ebay which made a subtle but worthwhile difference to mid range torque, de-catted her by removing the cat and chiseling out the innards before replacing it (I STRONGLY reccomend doing this as the power gained is amazing). I have cranked up the turbo by a few PSI which has made overtaking on the motorway much more fun and installed a K&N air filter (more for reduced long term maintainence charges than power). All said and done Tiny can now quite comfortably put a lot of petrol cars to shame. I estimate I have clawed back about 30BHP She has done 145k so far and with no smoke or funny rattles at present she doesnt seem too bothered by the increase in power. I was wondering if anyone knew of any other power mods for the L Series as I am now scratching my head for ideas...

[s.stirley]

Supercharger ? Seriously, you're probably close to what the drivetrain will like anyway. Sounds like some nice mods already, swap for a V6 if you want more performance ! :)

[TinyXEDI]

Supercharger...hmmmm.....
I saw these things in the states which sit inside your air intake past the turbo and create a cyclone effect but a bit dubious as to their power claims. As far as I can work out - anything which sits in your intake is an obstruction to power and airflow. I was toying with the idea of a bigger intercooler but after market coolers are rather pricey. Do you know of any interchangeable Landy/Rover units which could offer more cooling?

[Frieslander]

Did you clean the intake manifold after shutting down the EGR valve?
I took off the manifold and was amazed how much oil mud had gathered in there.
Also the inlet ports of the cylinder head had a thick layer (5-6 mm) of sludge inside.
I cleaned up everything , closed down the EGR and after 30.000 km everything stays clean now.
Think cleaning will give you some extra power.
By the way, my LR dealer told me the sludge causes the valves to rotate on their seatings, causing them to wear out .

[verdemar]

I took off the manifold and was amazed how much oil mud had gathered in there.
Also the inlet ports of the cylinder head had a thick layer (5-6 mm) of sludge inside.

Yep, about a year ago I blanked off my EGR and was also absolutely amazed at the thickness of the sludge in there, I tried my best to get as much as possible out but felt there was still a lot I couldn't get at. Not been in there since to check.

It also passed the MOT emissions test with the blanking plate in place, I was tempted to remove it temporarily for the MOT but decided to chance it.


I have also blanked off the EGR valve with a £4 blanking plate off ebay which made a subtle but worthwhile difference to mid range torque, de-catted her by removing the cat and chiseling out the innards before replacing it (I STRONGLY reccomend doing this as the power gained is amazing).

Did yours pass the MOT OK with the EGR mod and the Cat guts removed?

Also I'm intrigued by your comment that you "cranked up the turbo by a few PSI", how did you achieve this?

Cheers
Mike

[TinyXEDI]

To be honest I put my blanking plate in at the exhaust end as opposed to the inlet so didnt get to see the sludge. Blanking off the EGR will assist with the MOT as it stops a lot of that nasty black smoke especially when the turbo kicks in. As Diesels do not have any test done on the Cat during the MOT then removing the innards is a great mod. As long as the tester can see there is a cat fitted he knows no different. The innards are a honeycomb of exotic metals and equally exotic ehaust deposits. Get a mask on and smash the internals out with a pry bar or chisel. Be prepared though, your first 5 or so miles without the cat will scare you with the amount of black smoke you get from the exhaust as it clears out. Have a god blast down the motorway and it runs clear as a whistle from then on. With regards to the turbo, all you do is ajust the actuator rod via the locknut to effectively make the rod shorter. This makes it hold on to more boost before it dumps it. 3 or 4 turns should be enough. At mid - high revs you really feel the turbo pushing you into your seat, especially on the motorway. You also get a nice "whistle" around town. With the EGR blanked off you can also be sure that all the boost is actually going into the inlet as opposed to out of your exhaust too!

[verdemar]

Thanks for your reply on the turbo mod, now I understand what you've done.


Blanking off the EGR will assist with the MOT as it stops a lot of that nasty black smoke especially when the turbo kicks in. As Diesels do not have any test done on the Cat during the MOT then removing the innards is a great mod. As long as the tester can see there is a cat fitted he knows no different.

I must admit I'm not well up on the gases measured on the MOT emissions check but I thought the purpose of the EGR was to recycle some of the exhaust gases back into the inlet to reduce the overall vehicle emissions. You say blanking it off stops some of the nasties getting out, how can that be as you've removed thier escape route back into the inlet ?

Also, the CAT is designed to extract some of the nasties and clean up the exhaust, are you saying the nasties in this case are not the ones measured in the MOT emissions measurement ?

Maybe Chris (TEMPL4R) can shed some light being an MOT tester.

Mike

[TEMPL4R]

By the way, my LR dealer told me the sludge causes the valves to rotate on their seatings, causing them to wear out .
Quite a few engine designs rotate the valves when they work.

It can be the cause of an intermitant misfire if a valve has a burnt patch.

Chris

[TEMPL4R]

The Diesel test is basically a light shining through a tunnel. It measures the amount of soot/particulate in the chamber that the exhaust gases pas through.

It doesn't measure CO, CO2 or Lambda, etc.

It can be fiddled quite easily, it all depends on how you press the pedal. I can test your vehicle and either Pass or Fail it at will. It is open to abuse. A Garage can talk you out of a lot of money for new pump and injectors, if they need the trade.

When they eventually get the Brake Testing and Emissions machines to talk to our cards, we won't decide anything, we'll just press the pedals.

Chris

[verdemar]

The Diesel test is basically a light shining through a tunnel. It measures the amount of soot/particulate in the chamber that the exhaust gases pas through.

Chris, Thanks for your comments re the MOT diesel emissions test.

Therefore what do you think about TinyXEDI's mods ie. blanking off the EGR and gutting the CAT. Do you think this will worsen its chance of passing the emissions check or not?

Mike

[TEMPL4R]

The Cat isn't a part of the Diesel test, unlike the Petrol. They usually clog up because they don't get hot enough. We can recognise if the Cat has been gutted, but it is nothing to do with us, so should why I worry?;) If it blocks, take it out and fit a pipe.

The EGR is a different matter on Petrol Emissions. I think it is 50/50 on here as to whether blanking it off is a good idea. When they go wrong, the engine won't work. They belch out soot. I'm from the " If it isn't broken, don't fix it" school. If it was faulty, I would blank it.

Chris

[verdemar]

OK, so basically I think your saying neither the CAT gutting or the EGR blanking will reduce the chances of passing the diesel MOT emissions test - right?

Mike

[TEMPL4R]

No, it shouldn't make any difference for the MOT. It doesn't for other makes of engine without them.

Chris

[TinyXEDI]

Indeed. best bit is I slipped my local (brand named chain) MOT tester a tenner to gut my CAT as the bolts were rusted and his oxy torch did the job! NAUGHTY NAUGHTY! Hey ho, live and let live- even MOT testers have souls...well, some of them! With regards to the EGR they tend to soot up after a wile and the flap does not completely seal. This causes the turbo to throw boost into the exhaust as well as the inlet. Once blanked you can assure ALL the boost ends up where intended. You notice a subtle difference in the acceleration..nothing amazing but easily a fivers worth!;)