Modern diesels are supposed to have particulate filters installed.
Yet just yesterday, in “ultra low emission zone” Central London, I saw a Ford diesel van with a 16 plate (meaning, it’s a late-2015 Model at the earliest) spewing a cloud of black soot every time it pulled away at an intersection.
It’s clear that there are still too many DPF removals going on, and lax controls about monitoring emissions from supposedly-compliant vehicles.
(Motorcycles are another huge issue. They may be compliant with noise and emissions regs at the factory gate, but too many people swap the exhaust for a loud, polluting, illegal one.)
> Cars/trucks that have been modded this way ought to have a mandatory crush penalty. Complete forfeiture of the asset, zero compensation.
I feel like you might get a wee bit of pushback on the idea of crushing people's modes of transport because they stuck a non-regulation exhaust on there. All-or-nothing regulations such as the one you propose are rarely sustainable. Even CARB (the California Air Resources Board), the bane of California automotive enthusiasts, isn't that draconian.
>I feel like you might get a wee bit of pushback on the idea of crushing people's modes of transport
This is England we're talking about. American respect for individuals and their private property does not apply and Europe tends to come down hard at anyone that dares thumb their nose at authority by intentionally breaking the law.
Why should people be allowed to act so selfishly? It would stop the practice dead in its tracks, and from then a non issue. I dare say that makes it worth it.
Furthermore making it strictly illegal to perform the work would assist.
Because the few people who would have their cars crushed vote. They are not a large group, but small groups voting as a block are enough to change an election. If a politician wants to keep her job she will be careful angering groups like this.
Also, in the US the 8th amendment prohibits excessive fines. It is likely that courts will look on crushing a nearly new car as an excessive fine.
Seems a bit like the ol' "cut off someone's hand for stealing" punishment, doesn't it? IMHO the punishment should fit the crime, in this case a fine commensurate with the estimated carbon impact of the illegal modification.
Societies that have draconian punishment for minor infractions tend to take the view that their punishment is fitting and proportional because it's much harder to steal stuff without hands.
Where is gets interesting is when they take a hard-line stance on some things but not on others. Like you get a slap on the wrist for theft from another commoner but if you're caught stealing fish from the lord's stream without the proper license you're strung up by your thumbs in some castle dungeon for a month.
It's highly uneducated (or dare I say cheapskate) move on the part of the keeper of that vehicle. EU6 rated diesels are supposed to do self maintenance on DPF ie they start burning rich mixture to bring the temperature up (and this is observed in cold weather)
From what I personally observed on my EU6 Diesel (a very common VAG 2 litre diesel... sadly ?) that, the net effect of that comes out as approx 50-100 mile reduction in the range. The reason being more fuel being used to up keep the DPF.
In summer (June till October) I observed about 600 mile range from a full tank. Between November and up until February I observed 500 mile from a full tank (between 62 to 64 litres)
I was alarmed by the difference and then tried the "Economy" mode. I guess it detunes the peak output to 150ps (from 190ps) and also disengages the engine from the gearbox i.e. the car seems to be coasting in neutral when the accelerator pedal is not pressed.
With that, I was able to get 550 miles from a tank so far and recently the weather has warmed up again and the on board computer shows a potential range of about 600 miles.
I do make sure to never drive with a heavy foot and even on motor way try to stick below 70mph limit as long as it is safe. However, most of the miles done in that car are strictly urban (max speed not exceeding 50mph)
The cost of ownership of electric car didn't quite work out for us as a family when we downsized from two cars to just the one (keeping in mind the cost of public transport in UK)
I still somehow think that Diesel is the lesser evil compared to Petrol. It has (hopefully) lower CO2 emission. The problem is NOx which is (hopefully) neutralised by SCR and Particulate which is neutralised by DPF. And you need to burn less of it over the same distance.
But sadly it is hard to conclude what's what when the governments and industry keep showing different facets of their relationship every half a decade or so.
AIUI DPF regenerates naturally if the engine is loaded enough and automatic regeneration with extra fuel use is only necessary when that doesn't happen enough. 70 mph (~110 km/h) is only slightly faster than regular rural roads (though many are limited to 70 km/h), maybe average Autobahn trips at comfortable speeds (130-170 km/h [80-105 mph]) do make a difference here. I'm pretty sure I don't reach similar constantly high rpms (e.g. on my car 160 km/h in sixth is a bit above 2000 rpm) and loads on the engine in other driving situations.
Your description matches up with my experience. I think I am wasting fuel in cold weather. IIRC I haven't been in a situation where I drove over 2k rpm constantly.
In the Economy mode, the ECU decides to shift into 5th gear at about 31mph and then I let the car coast.
I would think 2k at 160kph is where this engine would be too if ever I drove at that speed. 99% of the times the max I have done is about 110kph where it is in 7th gear at under 2k rpm (having read about the engine and the owner's manual, that 7th gear is out of power band and is effectively overdrive, not possible to accelerate in 7th even gently)
Proudly professing their removal service, and with a caveat at the end to say that it makes the vehicle illegal for road use and is for off-road use only.
I don't think it should be allowed, personally, but I'm sure there are libertarians who think they have a right to pollute...
Yet just yesterday, in “ultra low emission zone” Central London, I saw a Ford diesel van with a 16 plate (meaning, it’s a late-2015 Model at the earliest) spewing a cloud of black soot every time it pulled away at an intersection.
It’s clear that there are still too many DPF removals going on, and lax controls about monitoring emissions from supposedly-compliant vehicles.
(Motorcycles are another huge issue. They may be compliant with noise and emissions regs at the factory gate, but too many people swap the exhaust for a loud, polluting, illegal one.)