Advice on buying a Land Rover Freelander

Common People

Hi All,

I wonder does anyone have any experience with Land Rover Freelanders ?

The wife is dead set on getting one (threatened withdrawal of conjugal visits etc. if she doesn't get one).

If I'm buying I'd be looking to buy one in the UK (after reading the excellent walk through about it in this forum) and bring it in - even after VRT and associated costs it looks like I could save 3 or 4 grand.

I'd be looking to buy a 02 Freelander 1.8 S or GS (Petrol) - What should I be looking out for ?

I've seen some of the negative stuff about Freelanders on the web and was wondering were they still as bad in '02 as they were originally ?

I know that they may not be the best ride or fuel efficient etc but she still wants one.

Any help would be appreciated

Common People

Johnny Storm

I'm not sure if this is helpful or not...
There was an article on very serious build quality problems with Freelanders a few years ago in "Car" magazine. (eg the back windscreen blowing out when driving at motorway speed etc..). I dont know what the current situation is.

Ratchet

the car is death trap but is hard to see it where looks blind Common People minor problems but niggling. unsafe as Chrysler voyager.

so if you love your wife,then buy something else as she just may not make this conjugal visits.

i think safety would be my concern over mechanical problems

Borzoi

Common People wrote:

Hi All,

I wonder does anyone have any experience with Land Rover Freelanders ?

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/index.php?url=/carbycar/index.htm

Looking it up

What's Bad
Based on much modified old Rover 200 floorpan. Nissan's X-Trail 2.2DI Sport 6-speed is better in every respect. TD4s initially hard to get hold of due to supply problems with BMW engines. Initial promise of high quality build not met. Lots of niggly failures. Main failure on 1.8s is the engine through head gasket failure. By 1994 second failures of previously repaired 1.8s on 1997 - 2000 Freelanders due to bore liners dropping and a shortage of used replacement engines was putting a lot of them off the road (website link www.shame.4mg.com). Also failures of hill descent control, driveshafts and gearboxes, transfer cases and blocked ventilation slots (Sunday Times 6/3/99). Original Rover engined DI model failed miserably in police use. More ponderous than Honda CRV, Toyota RAV-4 and X-Trail and more expensive than CRV. Not as economical as expected, but Rover diesel can average 35 mpg at a 70 mph cruise. Became increasingly expensive with Freelander 50th 5-door diesel listed at £24,995. Several recalls. Many owners taking a hit, getting out and getting into fault-free Honda CRVs, RAV-4s and X-Trails. Low profile tyres fitted to 'Millennium' model Freelanders are't up to suburban kerb mounting, which is the main off road activity of these vehicles. S and T platers 16th from bottom in 2001 Top Gear / J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Survey. In June 2001 Land Rover was rated by Motor Warranty Direct as Britain's 2nd worst out of 22 marques for warranty claims (www.warrantydirect.co.uk)1.8 K Series head gasket failures website link www.shame.4mg.com By July 2003 several reports of head gasket failure of the KV6. One report of failure of rear axle at 47k miles; another at 76k miles: apparently by no means unique. Several reports of Steptronic gearbox problems on the KV6. No brake pad wear warning system, so pads must be physically inspected. Loss of power of TS4 may be due to failure of mass airflow sensor which costs £250 to replace.

2nd bottom of 100 models for reliability in Auto Express 2002 survey. 7th from Bottom in 144 car 2002 JD Power / What Car? Customer Satisfaction Survey of V and W reg cars. LandRover had joint highest average cost in warranty claims for cars up to 10 years old in 2002 Warranty Direct index. Joint third bottom in 2002 Which reliability survey of cars up to 2 years old; 106 cars surveyed. Land Rover 3rd least reliable of 31 makes of car in 2002 'Which?' reliability survey cars 2000 - 2002; least reliable of 32 makes built 1997 - 1999. Only three stars in 2003 NCAP crash test ratings. Land Rovers had third highest warranty repair costs in 2003 Warranty Direct Reliability index (index 167.53 v/s lowest 31.93). 1998-2002 petrol rated poor for breakdowns and problems, average for faults; 1998-2000 diesel rated average for breakdowns and faults, poor for problems; 2001-2003 petrol rated average for breakdowns and problems, poor for faults in 2003 Which survey. 8th from bottom out of 137 models in 2003 Top Gear survey. Freelander 9th bottom model in 2004 JD Power Customer Satisfaction Survey. Only 89% of cars up to 2 years old breakdown-free over previous 12 months in 2004 Which? survey, yet gasket problem was supposed to have been fixed from 2001 production. Land Rover 4th bottom of Reliability Index for 2004 combining average cost of repair of £367.03 with highest 46.23 failures per 100 Warranty Direct policies. Link:- www.reliabilityindex.co.uk

EXCEPT FOR TD4 NOT RECOMMENDED. ESPECIALLY AVOID EARLY 1.8s.

K-Series engine failure class action solicitors www.irwinmitchell.com/groupaction/our_work/defective_products/other_products/rover_k-series_engine.asp

What to Watch Out For
Signs of severe usage. Tow hooks (what's it been towing? Neither the 1.8 nor the diesel is really powerful enough). Underside damage. Drivetrain leaks. Make sure everything works, especially the 'hill descent control', if fitted. Main problem area is drivetrain: gearbox, transfer box and rear diff. Reports of accelerator of 1.8 petrol models sticking and leading to accidents. Quite common for 1.8 to lose its coolant through inlet manifold gasket failure and small coolant capacity of engine leads to severe overheating. Reports of gearbox failures. Check clutch operation carefully as off road driving can lead them to fail in as little as 20,000 miles due to lack of a low range first gear. Severe shortage of spare parts for accident repairs in late 2002 to early 2003 led to many Freelanders off the road for months. AVOID EARLY 1.8s.

bp_me

If memory serves the 1.8 k series engines have a habit of blowing the head gasket. Maybe that was fixed but, I believe sniff petrol said it best:

ambro25

Advice on buying a Land Rover Freelander: don't.

Interceptor

Here are two recent threads on this subject:

Here and here. I despise them and have driven both diesel and petrol versions - I really hate the diesel. If your wife has driven one and also driven a Honda CR-v but still wants the Freelander, get a new wife. '02 CR-v's can be had for 22k and are far superior IMO.

Nuff said?

'c

KoNiT

crv is a way better suv, I'm getting one later this year.

CRV v's freelander

crv better economy
Way, way bigger boot,
free table... (seriously!)
part time 4x4 - easier on the tyres & economy.

Interceptor > find me one for 22k 'n I'll be happy !

$lash

Freelander's are badly built .. unreliable and terrible to drive .. AVOID - If you are looking for a small SUV get a Toyota RAV4...

mackerski

Common People wrote:

I wonder does anyone have any experience with Land Rover Freelanders ?

A friend used to have one - I drove it once and was a passenger in it frequently. Heap of junk. Some of this is me not "getting" the whole point of SUV's, but even to be objective, I found it noisy, plasticky, uncomfortable and inverse-tardis (giant on the outside, damn-all room inside). You can see lots from the high driving position, of course, but the advantage is offset by the feeling of insecurity you get from the, um, high driving position.

It also had a few poor design choices - there's a wee cast stalk that holds the third brake-light in such a position as not to be obscured by the spare wheel. Trouble is, it's delicate, and can snap off. Not the vehicle I'd be looking to take with me to the wilds (but then, who does?).

FWIW, the family for which this Freelander was purchased subsequently chose a Focus C-Max, which appears to be going down a treat. It sits a bit higher than average and has decent luggage capacity, but it's still more car than truck.

Dermot

unklerosco

I used to work in a well known land rover dealership in the service dept. We had a pile of freelander engines lying at the side of the garage that had blown. I was only there for about 4 months but we got at least 2-3 freelanders in in a week. We had on guy with a diesel one that was in for 5 weeks in a row with a different prob each time. The thing is a disaster, i cant describe how useless they are, pure muck....

As mackerski says try the C-max, worked on the promotion for them and drove one around ireland for 2 months... Fantastic car, really n truly loved it. Great comfy cruiser, stick it on a back road and its a riot. If i was looking for something like this(scenic/suv type) id go for the C-MAX..

stratos

Agree with all the above. It's a shame really they are good vehicles, just badly built. I had a Freelander for a while I found it ok to live with. Unfortunatly it just fell apart in front of me.

bazz26

The Freelander like the Discovery are infamous for going through gear boxes and head gaskets.

Better off getting a Toyota Rav4, Honda CRV or Nissan X-Trail.

unkel

Time for a mistress. I don't like 4WDs being used as urban tractors, but the CRV and the X-trail are much better cars. In Diesel and 2WD variety, they are no worse than a family saloon in the energy use department. Safety for other roadusers is a different matter though :rolleyes:

The Freelander would be odds on for worst car of the last 10 years

unklerosco

X-trail is good, my dad has one at the mo... Loads of gear as standard. Panoramic sunroof, alloys, air con, 6 disc in dash changer, drink coolers up front, electronic climate control... His was the older spec, as far as i know the newer ones even better. He loves it, V comfy. Hundred Million times better than the freelander.

Common People

Well Guys,

Thanks for scaring the bejaysus out of me ! - It looks like it's a no for the Freelander then.

Thanks for the replies and apologies for missing the previous threads on the same subject

Common People