Buying Advice

Hi to all - first post. (sorry if in wrong section)

Im considering buying a Freelander, diesel, td4, around 2003, and was wondering about the difference between models such as GS, S, ES, ES PREMIUM, and if they are all the same underneath. Also wondering if its better to get an auto or a manual. Im looking to keep the vehicle for around 3yrs or so, so getting in it and being happy with it is quite important.

Thanx for any replies.(even if its a 'No, save ur money, get a shogun')

The difference between models is pretty much the spec that they carry ......heated seats...reversing sensors that sort of stuff.
Mechanicaly I dont THINK theres a lot of difference between them.
Personaly I prefer a manual. But thats a personal choice.
What you will need to do is make sure your not buying a pig in a poke.
An extensive test drive is a must. Ensure theres no odd noises. Test everything. Every button. Every switch. Especially the downhill controlled descent. Ensure its still 4 wheel drive (some have been bastardised because the VCU has failed and they have removed the prop shaft to the rear wheels).
Ensure it has a good service history.
Land Rovers take a bit more maintenance than "normal" cars but the rewards are in my opinion worth it.

Most of all good luck

Buy Japanese or German, the cost of repair to Freelanders if the electronic go wrong is outragous
£60 just to plug it in only to be told they don't know whats wrong with it
Having said that you can usually find the answer to problems on this site

Manoftin said:

Buy Japanese or German, the cost of repair to Freelanders if the electronic go wrong is outragous
£60 just to plug it in only to be told they don't know whats wrong with it
Having said that you can usually find the answer to problems on this site

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^don't get put off by this, why would you suggest not buying a Land Rover in a Land Rover specific forum ??!!:boom:And anyway the TD4 is a german built engine so there.

Ben13 said:

even if its a 'No, save ur money, get a shogun')

Click to expand...

Why would anyone say that in a Land Rover forum?

:doh:

If you buy Japanese they are great until they go wrong and then you'll find the parts cost a fortune. I've had several and speak from experience.

Have a read of this page in the link below, it contains lots of useful stuff when looking to buy your first Freelander.

Buying a Land Rover Freelander? What should you look out for? |

Things to consider;

-Look to get a TD4 or possibly older L series Diesel (avoid petrol engines if you're looking at older Freelanders unless it's been carefully looked after and has had a recent head gasket change)
-Check for VCU/ drive/ transmission issues (loads of threads on this). If someone's selling one saying "we've removed the prop shaft to make it 2WD as it drives so much better" don't belive them. They've removed the prop shaft as the VCU is old and knackered and so probably the IRD and gear box is on its way out too (expensive to fix).
-Check for knocking from rear end (common fault, probably diff mounts or sub frame (cheap/ simple fix) but could be the rear diff itself is knackered (quite a bit more expensive))
- Check for any fault lights coming up on the dash (search in the forum for "3 amigos").

Ignore anyone that says "don't get a Freelander they're crap". They're not crap, it's the same as any other used vehicle you just need to know what to look for and get a decent one.

Manoftin said:

Buy Japanese or German, the cost of repair to Freelanders if the electronic go wrong is outragous
£60 just to plug it in only to be told they don't know whats wrong with it
Having said that you can usually find the answer to problems on this site

Click to expand...

LOL bit odd to say on a landrover forum i must admit.

don't get a Freelander they're crap












or more presisely the petrols are crap - the doozils still can suffer from lots of design problems - the TD4 is the best - lots of what to look for guides on here.

I too have had bad experiences with products from the land of the rising sun. I've had 2 Toyotas a Mazda and a Datsun over the years.

Rust, quirky electronics and very expensive parts - sometimes difficult to find the right bits for a RHD if your not in a RHD country - too many country specific bits for me. French spec alternator wont fit a UK spec car etc.!!??

Mainwaring is right to point out that for a while at least LR was owned by Germans - BMW, which is to no small degree why the TD4 is the best of the bunch.

However one little correction - the engine is Austrian built in Steyr - interesting factory tours every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Intensive quality inspection and the whole place is more like a hospital with the air filtration and cleanliness of the workstations.

Singvogel - a happy Freelander owner -

Buy the td4, best engine.
Auto/manual is down to personal choice, try and drive both and see which one you like better. Auto gives 3-4mpg less than manual but is better for off road/towing.

Spec is as follows, S is basic, steel wheels etc. GS comes with air con and 15 inch alloys, cd player etc. ES, comes with full leather, heated front seats, 16s etc.

If you can stretch you're budget then the 04 facelift models would be a better buy, get an SE spec for heated front screen, parking sensor's etc. £5-6k will get a good one.

Check everything works and there are no noises from underneigh, also make sure it's got a full service history and if not then budget for a full service to change every filter and fluid, better safe than sorry imo.

Then you can mod it, basic mods are to remove the egr, change the engine hoses for silicone ones and buy the BMW vortex to remove the crankcase filter.

Manoftin said:

Buy Japanese or German, the cost of repair to Freelanders if the electronic go wrong is outragous
£60 just to plug it in only to be told they don't know whats wrong with it
Having said that you can usually find the answer to problems on this site

Click to expand...

And you think BMW won't shaft you for a failed check - Just £60 would be a pleasure to pay.

And they would probably need it for 3 days to look at it.

£60 must be a discounted price - main stealer in Aberscotlandshire charges £80 to couple to their magic box of tricks.

That's why I have a Scanguage2 permanently connected to the OBD port.

The model/spec affects the insurance group also !

Having run both Jap and LR, I must say, to work on, I've so far enjoyed the FL more. And with the wealth of knowledge here, you can't go wrong if you know what you're looking for. Be wise, be careful, and be picky, because there are quite a few to choose from. Diesels seem to be popular choice, I have a TD4, so if you like the look, have a go.

davidlscott said:

And you think BMW won't shaft you for a failed check - Just £60 would be a pleasure to pay.

And they would probably need it for 3 days to look at it.

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I have no problem with paying £60 for diagnostics if they are able to tell me what the problem is. Not tell me they don't know and would I like to book the gaylander in for one hour and another go on the diagnostic machine, £50 per hour + £60 This is a so called Land Rover specalist. As you can imagine I am totally p****d off with everything land rover.
For some reason land rover has its own diagnostic software so my machine will not read it.
As for anything German I can plug it in to my machine and diagonse the fault.
As it happened someone on this site pointed me in the right direction to the fault on the gaylander and I managed to sort the problem without replacing any parts.
The land rover so called specalist was talking telphone numbers and on about replacing the ECU and the ABS module, Rip off Tossers.
Jap and German parts my be expensive but they aint half the trouble.
I had at one point thought that it made more ecconmic sense to break my gaylander for spares rather than pay for it to be sorted

Which specialist was this mate?