New(to me!) Freelander - advice sought

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1

1800xi

New Member
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hello fellas - following a few faithful years with a RAV4 that was just getting a bit long in the tooth - I've just bought a '99 Freelander 1.8 as a local runabout and the occasional load lugger. I'm familiar with all the horror stories about the 1.8 petrol HGF but I'm handy with the spanners and this car was cheap but in really excellent condition bodywork wise. It also came with lots and lots of lovely paperwork from the last 14yrs....... it's certainly had a lot of love but there was no mention of any head gasket work .............

The car has done 101k and runs like a dream ...........temp gauge goes straight to the centre and stays there - coolant seems to stay put too - it all seems good.

What I would like to know is ......... since the car appears to still be on it's original head gasket - is there anything I should do to help it stay that way? I've heard mention of a remote thermostat mod. that is supposed to help? and a modified expansion tank? - and a one way valve somewhere too?? I don't want to go changing the head gasket when there's no need but I'm keen to give the lump a spot of help in the cooling dept. Do the mods I've just mentioned help much?

What would you recommend? .............or would you just leave it be as it all seems fine right now!......appreciate all the advice I can get.....
thanks all....

Graeme
 
1800xi said:
hello fellas - following a few faithful years with a RAV4 that was just getting a bit long in the tooth - I've just bought a '99 Freelander 1.8 as a local runabout and the occasional load lugger. I'm familiar with all the horror stories about the 1.8 petrol HGF but I'm handy with the spanners and this car was cheap but in really excellent condition bodywork wise. It also came with lots and lots of lovely paperwork from the last 14yrs....... it's certainly had a lot of love but there was no mention of any head gasket work .............

The car has done 101k and runs like a dream ...........temp gauge goes straight to the centre and stays there - coolant seems to stay put too - it all seems good.

What I would like to know is ......... since the car appears to still be on it's original head gasket - is there anything I should do to help it stay that way? I've heard mention of a remote thermostat mod. that is supposed to help? and a modified expansion tank? - and a one way valve somewhere too?? I don't want to go changing the head gasket when there's no need but I'm keen to give the lump a spot of help in the cooling dept. Do the mods I've just mentioned help much?

What would you recommend? .............or would you just leave it be as it all seems fine right now!......appreciate all the advice I can get.....
thanks all....

Graeme
Click to expand...

Yo Graeme,
Like you I've recently picked up a 99'er with good bodywork and a full service log book etc. Straight off the bat I had a water issue-she lost 3.5 litres over two days- which transpired to be a split hose coming out from the heater.
I've heard of the modifications you mention, but due to the truly expansive replies you've received from the hard bitten saddle sore 'ole Freelanders (apart from Nath' who seemingly IS a saddle sore) on this site, I'm none the soddin' wiser for it.:confused:
 
Well I did compose a good long reply .....with links n'stuff ......but the moderators have decided on a go-slow ............

so while I'm waiting ............. the 2 PRT kits that exist on the Rimmer site, seem similar ...but also look to me to be different ....the grey one, that most folk seem to think is just an updated version of the cream one ............looks to have an extra hose coupling that the cream one doesn't have .....it's a small dia thing .......... so, are they actually designed for 2 different years of K series???

bottom line is .....which do I want? ......the grey or the cream?!?

in any event I presume I need the thermostat blank and the seal too?

thanks all
 
there is an extra connection on the elbow of the grey one, i don't know what it's for, but this is the one you want just blank the elbow peice.

don't buy a thermostat blank make one out of the existing one by snapping the gubbins out of it.
 
Surely if there is an extra hose connection on the grey one .....then it's designed for a different model than the cream one! - it wouldn't have been manufactured like that if there was nothing to go on there.

If there is nothing on my car that fits on that connection ..........then how do I go about 'blanking' it?

Presumably there are plenty of folk who have fitted these kits over the years .......if so, which of the 2 kits get fitted to which models?

Anyone?
 
If you can't find the advice on here that your looking for Rover Rons website is full of useful info. There must be so much info relating to the K series engines and all the various modifications under the search button on this site that I'm pretty sure that you won't need to look elsewhere.
 
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