Freelander 1.8 K series hgf - more data

Listening to all this about the Freelander 1.8.


Without wanting to tie this thread up, what are the basic mods I should be looking out for to see if they have been done?

StefanA

the 1.8 is, potentially, a nightmare engine. it suffers from hot spots and cavitation in the cooling system, particularly if it hasnt had the remote thermostat mod (placed in front coolant pipe). Unfortunately LPG does not have the same cooling effect as petrol, so the burn temp is hotter still, making it more likely to suffer HGF and sequential HGF. Personally I wouldnt touch it, but if it has the remote thermostat, has a VCU that works properly, has good rear diff mounts, hasnt got a cracked chassis or broken rear sub frame, then it might be worth a punt, particularly if yu can get replacement engines or a 220Turbo lump cheap.

Thanks for the info Mad Hat Man.

I'll look at the points you've mentioned. I suppose it all depends how much this chappies going to ask for it.

Didn't know abow the lpg running hotter, it was the 57p a ltr fuel that was kinda overshadowing the issue.

Stefan

Just filched from the MG-Rover forum....

---Quote---
Technicians tasked with replacing head gaskets on MG Rover K-series engines now have access to the new Multi-Layer Steel (MLS) Gasket Kit from XPart, designed to be the most efficient and durable solution to date for MG Rover K-series engine repair. XPart has developed the kit utilising the engineering expertise at Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), which employs many former MG Rover engineers at Longbridge. The company will distribute the kit via its nationwide network of wholesalers and AutoService centres.

“After a period of thorough testing we are convinced that the latest MLS Gasket Kit offers technicians the best known fix for head gasket replacement,” comments Don Lindsay, Service Marketing Manager, XPart. “It should prove popular among MG Rover, Caterham and Lotus owners using K-series engines, and offers a sophisticated, reliable option for the replacement of head gaskets.”

In designing the new kit, XPart and SAIC have used a combination of the revised lower oil rail designed by MG Rover engineers, higher tensile 10.9 grade long stretch bolts and a new single piece multi-layer steel gasket engineered by SAIC for its new N-series engine. The gasket should not be fitted in isolation and it is the kit together with revised torque settings that provides the best known repair. The XPart parts warranty only applies when the full kit has been used.

“The Rover 25 we used to trial the latest MLS gasket has now covered many miles as a heavy use courtesy car and I have complete confidence that in line with all of our other MLS gasket equipped cars, it will continue to give reliable service for the remainder of its life”, explains Patrick Warner, Managing Director, Sterling Automotive. “We have been using MLS head gaskets for over two years with a 100 percent success rate. The latest kit from XPart helps make this even more affordable for customers. We would recommend fitting the MLS gasket set which comes with a strengthened lower oil rail and new head bolts, as well as a water pump.”

XPart will continue to offer the original K-series components as part of its MG Rover original parts range and envisages this kit as being particularly popular among enthusiast and car restorers.

For further information on XPart and its worldwide network of MG Rover AutoService centres and parts wholesalers, please visit XPart - Home.
---End Quote---

Also discussed in this thread:

For completeness:

MLS removed after 30k miles (3 1/2 yrs) not for hgf but for a burnt valve issue.

There are 5 layers in the base layer, plus the shim on top

When the head is removed, the shim is stuck to the head face, leaving the 5 base layers on the block.
The shim peels off easy enough, sort of a light 'tack'
At first glance to the upper part (black side) on the shim there is distinct blistering, where the coolant cavity sits above (kidney shaped casting hole in the head)

For sometime I have noticed a very slight seepage of oil from the block/head area, front and back.
This was marginal, nothing strange for a k-series, as they leak from the sump and cam carrier.

I would say the MLS is good in principal but it's just not there yet! Far from it.

The base layer and it's 5 layer sandwich, hadn't completely bonded to each other, or to the block face. as I would have expected.

Attachment 2 (pic not the best), shows the uppermost layer sitting well above the other layers of the sandwich. (hacksaw blade used as scaler object)

That's not me splitting the layers, they do this themselves, esp at the far ends of the gasket. A **** poor inherent weakness, by anyones standards.

The bottom layer does the same, see attachment 3 of the 5 steel layers....separated

I suspect oil seepage is a result of the 5 layers not bonding fully.
This oil seepage has also been confirmed by another k-series user with slightly higher miles on a MLS gasket

It's a step in the right direction but I don't think it was fully researched. Bodged by LR and all involved

It's not the Gawd send that peeps had anticipated (including myself)
I will be posting this info on MG-Rover.org when I get a chance, it will not be warmly received.

With the increasing price of MLS starting £28 plus VAT and the above 'delamination'

For those reasons.........I'm going back to the original design with slightly more elastomeric compound.


The hgf in a k-series, is far from terminal, tell tale signs are documented at the start of this thread.
From what I've read on LZ, hgf in some of the diesel engines means end of the engine.

don't bother 1.8 is terminal pile of ****

burn it

fanatic said:

don't bother 1.8 is terminal pile of ****

Click to expand...

Td5, now there's a pile of ****

All it takes is 1 hgf in Td5 and it's game over.

The k-series kept plodding on with hgf for many many miles, months of driving.

northern irelander, surely if mls gasket had lasted 30k miles, it has certainly proved its worth over original, especially if there was no coolant loss,if that could stretch to 45-50k it could be a service item along with the timing belt at the same interval.

freelance said:

northern irelander, surely if mls gasket had lasted 30k miles, it has certainly proved its worth over original, especially if there was no coolant loss,if that could stretch to 45-50k it could be a service item along with the timing belt at the same interval.

Click to expand...

The MLS would have kept going, good seal around the fire rings.

The OEM lasted me 56k

Slight worry was the layers not bonding, that's a big issue that has been overlooked.

I liked the idea of a protective shim, it does spread the load directly over the fire rings, less likely to bury into the head face.

It needs the OEM, with just a shim on top IMHO

You do lose compression with the 0.1mm shim, less power!

will get some close ups of the black laminate which came off the underside, all shiney metal = no sealing properties

Will be cutting away some of the standard gasket to enable better coolant flow between head and block. Highly restricted in both gasket types.

Oh great. Just bought a 2001 5dr Freelander ES 1.8 on Saturday :/ My grandma's 2001 freelander now has a 1.8 rover k series in it after her original freelander engine blew up for the final time last summer :] is it the same engine in the lotus elise and freelander then?

They are the same engine, Lotus took it a step further, some may be tuned with different cams and lightweight components like crank pulley.
IIRC the later VVC engines used by Lotus got their very own Lotus ECU, taking the 600kg Elise to 60 in a very respectable 5.5secs

In Rover the peak torque is 3000rpm
LR lowered peak torque in the FL1 to 2750rpm, TBH I'm not sure if they did this by tweaking the ECU at the factory or a different cam profile?

Northern Irelander said:

They are the same engine, Lotus took it a step further, some may be tuned with different cams and lightweight components like crank pulley.
IIRC the later VVC engines used by Lotus got their very own Lotus ECU, taking the 600kg Elise to 60 in a very respectable 5.5secs

In Rover the peak torque is 3000rpm
LR lowered peak torque in the FL1 to 2750rpm, TBH I'm not sure if they did this by tweaking the ECU at the factory or a different cam profile?

Click to expand...

Sorry what I meant was my grandmas engine is from a lotus elise, but it is the 1.7 k rover engine, the same as a freelander.

JackClay said:

Sorry what I meant was my grandmas engine is from a lotus elise, but it is the 1.7 k rover engine, the same as a freelander.

Click to expand...

That's one quick granny.

They are all the same engine.

1.7???? You mean 1796cc / 1.8

i woz sure he sed his grannies motor had a 3.5 Litre lump in it - now THAT wud have been interesting


ooops not his granny

The Mad Hat Man said:

i woz sure he sed his grannies motor had a 2.7 Litre lump in it - now THAT wud have been interesting


ooops not his granny

Click to expand...

Haha yeh she told me it was 3.5: but I checked wikipedia and she was wrong lol.

Here's the oil leaks from the head/block (red arrows), by comparison the sump join which doesn't even have a preformed gasket, has far less (yellow)

I dont mean this as any offence to K series owners, but does this effectively make the K version of the FL worthless ??

Only reason I asked was that I did at one point consider going crazy with a cheap K version of the FL for an offroader project one day ? simply because they are cheaper to pick up ???

Anybody done a successful and worthwhile engine transplant on an old K version out of interest ??

Phantom_Mark said:

I dont mean this as any offence to K series owners, but does this effectively make the K version of the FL worthless ??

Only reason I asked was that I did at one point consider going crazy with a cheap K version of the FL for an offroader project one day ? simply because they are cheaper to pick up ???

Anybody done a successful and worthwhile engine transplant on an old K version out of interest ??

Click to expand...

I'm keeping a eye out for an cheap one to use as a parts donor for a XEDI. I can't be the only one. If it's got a functional VCU, prop, drive shafts etc. I'm sure people like me will keep propping the value up.

I gotta stick up for my 1.8 k series
When I bought it last year it had done 73000 miles
It has now done 125000 miles
I tow a caravan with it and use it for work every day
It's never missed a beat and never lost a drop of water

For two weeks now i've owned a 2001 3 door 1.8 GS brought from a local land rover specalist and so far i'm chuffed to bits with it - the dealer says it has had the head done verified when he did the 71000 mile service. After reading the advice in this thread I've brought the remote thermostst kit PCH001190 slipping it on looks straight forward but is there anything else that needs doing ie remove the old thermostat? i have searched but i cant see a 'how i done it' from anyone that has. Any advice or pointers would be great
Thanks Bill