Engine misfiring

Hi,

I've recently bought a 99 1.8 petrol Freelander and the snags are lining up already. My primary concern right now is that my engine is misfiring. It seems okay initially after starting but when it warms up (10-15 mins) it misfires like its only running on three cylinders. This occurs below 2500rpm and clears above this rpm. The plugs and leads seem okay and it has a tank full of fresh fuel. Does the petrol engine have a MAF sensor? If so, whereabouts is it located? All my research online seems to pull up TD4 MAF sensors and the ones for sale on ebay are all TD4 or 2.0L sensors. I've done a search on here but can't find a problem that is the same as mine.

Any ideas appreciated,

Toffeeman

Don't think the 1.8 has one from what i recall....?

Download a copy of landrover rave program (do a search) and you'll have loads of info, technical diagrams, etc etc...

land rover service factory manual RAVE download land rover resource, service manual, workshop factory manual, download, rave, vehicles including discovery, series, defender, range rover, freelander, LR3, Handbooks, Catalog, Catalogue, Land Rover Inte

A petrol Freelander of this age doesn't have an engine management fault light, to obtain any faults stored in the memory it will need to be connected to either the dealers system or garage with suitable T4 or equivalent diagnostic software.

Check the simple stuff first like secure connections to the various sensors on the engine, any presence of air leaks to the air intake system (split hose for example) also check that the IACV (idle air control valve) is working correctly, this allows extra air into the engine when cold but can stick on and allow extra air in when the engine is hot leading to running problems.

Otherwise possibly a faulty oxygen sensor or maybe a burnt valve (do a compression check for this)

I Would look at the coils first,mine had the same faults and it only happens when the motor is hot.
Try taking off the cover above the coils to allow a bit more cooling air to flow across and see if the time from cold to missfire increases.
But its only a temp bodge new coils are the only answer (but they arn't cheap)
you could try a breakers as Rover 214 /MG s have the same set up

dazjam said:

Don't think the 1.8 has one from what i recall....?

Download a copy of landrover rave program (do a search) and you'll have loads of info, technical diagrams, etc etc...

land rover service factory manual RAVE download land rover resource, service manual, workshop factory manual, download, rave, vehicles including discovery, series, defender, range rover, freelander, LR3, Handbooks, Catalog, Catalogue, Land Rover Inte

Click to expand...

dazjam,

I've already got it but the earliest Freelander referenced is a MY01 which I assume is the Mk2 version. I'm not sure how applicable it would be to my Mk1.

Mantamad said:

A petrol Freelander of this age doesn't have an engine management fault light, to obtain any faults stored in the memory it will need to be connected to either the dealers system or garage with suitable T4 or equivalent diagnostic software.

Check the simple stuff first like secure connections to the various sensors on the engine, any presence of air leaks to the air intake system (split hose for example) also check that the IACV (idle air control valve) is working correctly, this allows extra air into the engine when cold but can stick on and allow extra air in when the engine is hot leading to running problems.

Otherwise possibly a faulty oxygen sensor or maybe a burnt valve (do a compression check for this)

Click to expand...

I looked for split hoses but they seem in good nick. I will look at the IACV tomorrow. I hope it isn't a valve issue because the problem clears above 2500rpm. I'm assuming it isn't as it would get worse the quicker the valves move.

edge said:

I Would look at the coils first,mine had the same faults and it only happens when the motor is hot.
Try taking off the cover above the coils to allow a bit more cooling air to flow across and see if the time from cold to missfire increases.
But its only a temp bodge new coils are the only answer (but they arn't cheap)
you could try a breakers as Rover 214 /MG s have the same set up

Click to expand...

edge,

Does the Mk1 Freelander have coils in the individual leads or is that the Mk2? As far as I can see they are conventional leads available on eBay for around £20 or so. The cables could still breakdown when warmed up causing a similar misfire so it may be worth a punt for £20.

Toffeeman said:

edge,

Does the Mk1 Freelander have coils in the individual leads or is that the Mk2? As far as I can see they are conventional leads available on eBay for around £20 or so. The cables could still breakdown when warmed up causing a similar misfire so it may be worth a punt for £20.

Click to expand...

A 1999 Freelander will have conventional plug leads and a single coil (MEMS 1.9 engine management system IIRC)

It appears my problem has intensified as my Freelander will now not start. It will turn over on the starter motor and occasionally try to fire but it will not start. I'm wondering if the coil has now totally failed and was maybe failing beforehand with my earlier issues.

Any ideas??

Toffeeman said:

It appears my problem has intensified as my Freelander will now not start. It will turn over on the starter motor and occasionally try to fire but it will not start. I'm wondering if the coil has now totally failed and was maybe failing beforehand with my earlier issues.

Any ideas??

Click to expand...

Probably easier to diagnose now!

Are you getting a spark as this will confirm or rule out the coil.

Mantamad said:

Probably easier to diagnose now!

Are you getting a spark as this will confirm or rule out the coil.

Click to expand...

Mantamad,

It only just happened before it went dark so I'll have a good check tomorrow in the light. Totally agree that it should hopefully be easier to find now that whatever was slowly failing has now given up the ghost. It must be ignition or fuel related as the engine turns over fine so the immobiliser must be disarming okay.

Cheers,

Craig.

Okay update for those following this thread...

My Freelander started first time this morning confused so I'm beginning to think that maybe I flooded the engine last night hence it not starting. It still has the rough running where it's misfiring every now and then. I got a spare spark plug and connected each HT lead to it in turn to see if I could see a spark. I couldn't really see a spark on any lead although I could hear the crack of a spark coming from the lead. I also tried another plug incase the first was knackered...same results. This hopefully points me to my original idea that the coil pack is maybe failing and its only producing a weak spark. The coil looks like an old Delco unit and hasn't been changed recently. Another thing that lends credence to my thinking is that interestingly the Freelander started on all four occassions on three cylinders and it was much rougher than when it runs (and misfires) normally. This proves that it never did run on three cylinders like I first though and that it was misfiring across all four cylinders. This means it's something common to all four cylinder as opposed to a single failure of a plug or lead.

I'll try to source a coil tomorrow when the shops open and see how I get on.

Does anybody have anything else to add to my line of thought? Do you reckon I'm on the right track?

Okay....It looks like I've sorted my misfiring engine out so I'll provide some closure to this thread for people searching in the future with similar issues.

To save fannying around I went out and spent around £110 on a complete ignition system buying a new ignition coil (NEC100800), HT ignition leads, Bosch spark plugs, distributor cap and a rotor arm. I fitted them and took the Freelander out for a 20 minute spin and it ran like a dream. The rough lumpy idle was gone and it idled rock steady just below 1000rpm. When I blip the throttle it revs nice and clean whereas before it misfired.

I'm not sure which component was the issue as I replaced the whole lot in one go. The coil looked old and tired so may have been on its way out. The original ignition leads were plastic and the tubes clipped together in two halves. This meant that there were gaps along their length so I wondered whether one or more tubes were arcing off the rocker cover meaning a weak or non-existent spark at the plug. I guess I'll never know. The new leads are rubber insulated with no gaps.

Hopefully, finger's crossed the issue is now sorted although I know it will take more time and running before I breathe easy on the ignition system.

hi i've got 2001 1.8 freelander and it is vey sluggish and has not got very good fuel economy anyone got any suggestions to help ????Cheers Greg.

op2:

hi i've got 2001 1.8 freelander and it is vey sluggish and has not got very good fuel economy anyone got any suggestions to help ????Cheers Greg.

gregtheplumber said:

hi i've got 2001 1.8 freelander and it is vey sluggish and has not got very good fuel economy anyone got any suggestions to help ????Cheers Greg.

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:flame:

gregtheplumber said:

hi i've got 2001 1.8 freelander and it is vey sluggish and has not got very good fuel economy anyone got any suggestions to help ????Cheers Greg.

Click to expand...

Has it got more sluggish or has it always been the same? The 1.8 is'nt exactly fast which means they often get driven hard which makes them bad on fuel!!