2018 Land Rover Discovery Sport Engine Problems

Ever since I bought the car back in April 2022, it has been in the dealer for intermittent check engine lights due to problems with the engine and transmission. The car would go on a limp mode especially when driving on a highway at steady speed. It would rattle, slow down or will not accelerate even when pressing the gas. This happened to me multiple times and it’s a major safety concern. After multiple attempts at repairing and installing a new engine and transmission, the issue has not been fixed. This is the only car I have and I am not able to drive it reliably and at full capacity due to fear of malfunction again. The incident report date is only the latest date of the repair. The repairs have started back in 2023.

NHTSA ID

11693500

Incident

Aug 7, 2025

while driving the vehicle goes from drive to neutural or D to N... without me changing it

NHTSA ID

11662461

Incident

May 16, 2025

Vehicle was driving down the highway in early April of 2025 when the engine showed a sudden loss of power and diminished performance with misfires and rough running. Thankfully I was able to pull to the side of the highway before automobiles behind me rear-ended the vehicle after such a sudden loss in driving speed. it was later determined that at roughly 56,000 miles, the automobile suffered a cracked intake valve on cylinder 2, which fell into the engine. The recommendation was a complete engine replacement after the diagnosis was done by an authorized Land Rover service center. This occurred roughly 13k miles after the vehicle was serviced for persistent misfires and rough idling. The CVVL unit and PCV Assembly parts were replaced at that time.

NHTSA ID

11657232

Incident

Apr 6, 2025

My car suddenly idles low and stops when foot was not on gas which cause the car to suddenly stops. It is unsafe to drive it now until it is fixed. It is 2018 and I bought this as used car at a Land Rover dealership 2/27/2022.

NHTSA ID

11596939

Incident

Jun 24, 2024

About a year and a half ago the vehicles warning lights started show thing like check engine, coolant low, battery low, engine overheating and the fan would start running very loudly and thw start stop feature stoped workong even though it indicated it was working. I took it to the dealership and they said they had fix whatever was wrong. A few months later it started up again but this time while going up a busy hill the vehicle started making a loud whining sound, was loosing power and eventually died completely. No lights no starter no nothing. Very dangerous for me and other drivers because it was a sudden stop.I had it towed to my home and the next day to the dealership. After a few days they called me and told me that the vehicle had experienced a "mechanical failure" and that Land Rover decided to ship a new engine to be installed. After a week I had what felt like a brand new car. Now a little over a year later the vehicle is doing the exact same thing with the warning lights, the fan, the loss of power, the stop start function not working, and this time it's no longer under warranty according to the dealership. I've decided to stop driving it because I'm afraid it may cut off during my drive to or from work in the freeway and get myself and or someone else killed.

NHTSA ID

11556553

Incident

Aug 24, 2023

The vehicle has a terrible delay when accelerating from a rolling stop between 8-11 mph. If you try to accelerate and the vehicle is at this speed, the delay is about 2-3 seconds before the transmission gets it into gear.

NHTSA ID

11542733

Incident

Jul 1, 2020

1) Acceleration lags 1-2 seconds when you step on the gas pedal - have been almost hit many times when taking off at a stop light or changing lanes - very dangerous on streets, but also on the freeway. 2) Issue with electrical since the day I purchased it brand new in 2018 - auto stop-start only worked one time - dealer checked the vehicle out, declared the feature requires a fully charged battery to work but did not investigate why the battery is not fully charging; over the past 2 years I noticed the radio often continues to play even when I push the off button, headlights have burnt out 3 times, radio changed from Satellite to AM automatically last week, and it sometimes smells like burned wires. The car was recently at the dealer for service and their inspection found no issues. I did not take it there specifically for the issues noted here, however would expect their 16-point inspection to pick up these types of issues. Possibly, I'm mistaken and the inspection is not that comprehensive.

NHTSA ID

11441877

Incident

Jul 6, 2018

1: GEARBOX FAULT.. UNABLE TO MOVE GEARBOX FROM PARK TO REVERSE OR DRIVE 2" PARK BRAKE FAULT. *TR

NHTSA ID

11330800

Incident

Jun 21, 2020

Mileage

31,000 mi