Freelander 1 Check Engine Light

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michael_v

Member
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45
Location
South Africa
So now that I have the landy running I get a very strange issue. When I drive the vehicle it is going very well, but I have noticed that the check engine light will come on randomly. This happens when the engine is at or below 2000 rpm, when I release the accelerator pedal it goes out again and I can continue in the same gear.

There is no loss of power it is just randomly when driving in a specific gear for a while.
 
MAP sensor is my guess. It's used as part of the EGR monitoring system. It sounds like the MIL is lit during the EGR cycle.
Hence my thoughts on the MAP being at fault.
 
Last edited:
Good morning all. The issue is resolved. When I changed the FIP I did not ensure that the round connector was properly inserted. That was self educed error there as it vibrated loose and left me stranded next to the road again.
 
Just to give some feedback on the old lady, I have now done close to 1000km's on her and she is still going strong, she is struggling to start now that it is getting colder, will see if advancing the pump slightly will resolve the issue. I must admit that after all her issues was resolved she is actually a very nice vehicle to drive, I am just in the process of sourcing shocks for her and will then replace as required.

Michael
 
Great that she's been doing well for you. I love driving my L Series Freelander - I think its the satisfaction of catching the 18 wheelers, push bikes and road sweepers back up after they've out-accelerated me off the lights :)

Accurate timing of the pump does play a big part in how well the L Series starts. Touch wood, mine has always started on the button even when the car's caked in ice. Have you considered replacing the glow plugs? The one behind the pump if a bugger to replace and most people don't seem to bother changing it. There have also been stories of them snapping trying to get the old ones out - which causes all sorts of grief.
 
I have recently picked up a bit of white smoke, I changed the thermostat on her as I though that there was an issue, however she still use a bit of water. My concern was head gasket, but there is no water in the oil, and there is no oil in the coolant water, I have now checked everywhere for a leak and cannot find any. My gut tells me that it might be the EGR valve leaking water into the exhaust but not sure if this could be it?

Any ideas?

Michael
 
I'm pretty sure the oil and water do not need to mix for the HG to go - eg if its just gone between cylinder and water passage. I'm not saying that's what's happened - just sayin.
 
michael_v said:
I have recently picked up a bit of white smoke, I changed the thermostat on her as I though that there was an issue, however she still use a bit of water. My concern was head gasket, but there is no water in the oil, and there is no oil in the coolant water, I have now checked everywhere for a leak and cannot find any. My gut tells me that it might be the EGR valve leaking water into the exhaust but not sure if this could be it?

Any ideas?

Michael
Click to expand...

How's the expansion tank, any splits around the cap?
A small amount of white smoke (steam) is no cause for concern when cold. This is simply water vapour condensing in the cold exhaust.

The coolant will continue to drop slightly for some time after a thermostat change. There are lots of small air pockets in the cooling system, that seem to take ages to clear.

If the coolant continues to drop steadily. Then check the top hose outlet on the head. I changed mine recently as I was losing coolant from an unseen location.
20170502_103109.jpg

Turned out to be a broken piece of plastic seal retainer, on the top hose outlet.
20170502_103023.jpg
 
Thank you for the replies, I must add that mine is a L series diesel, It only seems to puff out a small bit of white smoke, after being driven and the temp gauge is halfway, it only lasts for about a minute or so then it is gone.

I will check the top hose to see if there is an issue.
 
michael_v said:
Thank you for the replies, I must add that mine is a L series diesel, It only seems to puff out a small bit of white smoke, after being driven and the temp gauge is halfway, it only lasts for about a minute or so then it is gone.

I will check the top hose to see if there is an issue.
Click to expand...

If it's an L series. It won't have plastic cooling system parts. Those were mostly introduced with the BMW engine.
Do check the coolant expansion tank for cracking though.
It's also unlikely to the HG. The L is a strong, reliable engine and generally doesn't get HG problems.
 
I think HG failure in L Series is probably a bit more common than people in the Freelander fraternity believe. Definitely on the MG forums it happens reasonably frequently. That's probably due to the way the engines are driven, but it does show that just because its an L Series does not mean that HGF is not going to happen. Coming to think of it, it may manifest itself like this as well where there is coolant loss but no coolant/oil mix - or am I making that up - my mind is not sure! @MacGyver may know more about this.

Still though, I think you should consider it lower on the list of probabilities on Freelander. As Nodge says, the coolant bottle is a main culprit for coolant loss (simple and cheap fix), as is the heater matrix (not so simple fix).
 
Thank you for the replies, I have managed to track down the leak to faulty heater core. A new issue that has arised is that the two fans on the radiator does not switch on when the engine is hot, I tested the probe that sends the signal by heating it until the fans start to work on the low setting, if I remove the connection to the same probe it starts the fans on high and it stays there, I have replaced the probe with a new one and the thermostat is new and working.

Is there another probe I should check or replace? Any Ideas welcome.

Michael
 
I'm not sure if the fans ever come on with my L Series, it tends to run warm not to hot. Definitely the gauge has never gone up past the middle where it sits when in its operating range. I've climbed over 3,000 ft passed with 5 on board in 30 degrees with the AC running and it stayed in its normal pos. Similarly when I've towed the boat over ranges laden with camping gear and 5 on board. The only problem I have with the cooling system is getting it hot quick enough to warm the cabin and clear the screen.

So it sounds like the ECT you've been testing is working properly. The fans are controlled by the engine's ECU. That uses the ECU to know the engine temp and whether to turn the fans on. If there is no signal (ie you remove the plug), it will put the fans on high as a safety measure.
 
Hi

Thank you, I was just a bit worried but everything seems to be working fine, The fans do kick in when there is no signal from the ECT and when the aircon is switched on. Is there a a specific ECT for the L series, the replacement one I got has a black connector and the one I removed was blue?
 
The different Rover engines do use different ECTs. I got one from a K Series for my son's T Series and it wasn't the right fit even though they look very similar - not sure on what's the right one for the L Series. It will be listed as the L Series part when ordering though.
 
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