Freelander 1 The Project

phoebecp · Oct 19, 2016

I've gone and done it and bought one, been looking around for months, then managed to strike gold (in my eyes anyway)...
3dr 2003 Freelander 2.0L TD4, 135k miles, MOT till next June, in decent condition all round really

THE PLAN (not necessarily in this order...)

EGR bypass,
All new silicon hoses,
Clean intake manifold,
Full service (all new filters and fluids),
New brake drums,
New silencer (the one on it is pretty haggard, or do i just go for a straight pipe....? ),

AT tyres, possibly steel wheels (would take it from 17" to 16")
New spare wheel holder, or at least have a bit of a fight with this one to replace a sheared stud
Tuning box (eventually)
Have a look into ARB - some knocking noises coming from passenger side front, and one of the advisories on the previous MOT was corrosion on the ARB link
Refitting the front light guards (and a bit of repair on the rear ones)
Check the VCU (it had all different tyres when i bought it, which doesn't bode well..)
Cruise control kit (saw one from Bearmach) - planning on driving this to France next year so it would be a great help

towsey956 · Oct 19, 2016

Sounds like a plan mate

I do like those fancy number plates that can only be read in the reflections of puddles hehe

Have they got the filter in the top of the motor like the bmw have

Towsey

phoebecp · Oct 19, 2016

towsey956 said:
Sounds like a plan mate

I do like those fancy number plates that can only be read in the reflections of puddles hehe

Have they got the filter in the top of the motor like the bmw have

Towsey

That's what I get for trying to be artsy

towsey956 · Oct 19, 2016

Sorry mate, it's the puddles fault really for giving the game away

Towsey

GrumpyGel · Oct 19, 2016

Nice looking motor

rob_bell · Oct 19, 2016

Nice car!

Nodge68 · Oct 19, 2016

towsey956 said:
Sounds like a plan mate

Have they got the filter in the top of the motor like the bmw have

Towsey

Yes it does.

phoebecp · Nov 1, 2016

*UPDATE*
After dismantling some of the engine I was delighted to find that pretty much the whole intake manifold, cylinder head ports and EGR valve very clogged - an absolute bugger to clean!

And after quite a bit of cleaning (Used a screwdriver to scrape it all out - whilst also trying to prevent too much of it to fall in!)

EGR bypass and K&N air filter are now fitted, still waiting for new silicone hoses to come to be able to fit those.
Sprayed EGR cleaner into the intake, and after quite a bit of coughing and spluttering it idles and revs so much smoother than it used to.
New steel wheels and AT tyres have been ordered (went for 215/65/16 Maxxis AT-771 Bravo All Terrain 102S).
Also gone for new brake shoes and drums - the shoes already fitted weren't too bad, but i just went the whole hog.
Hoping to give it an oil change this weekend.

Nodge68 · Nov 1, 2016

Looking good although you could have fitted larger tyres. I've got Maxxis 771s on my SE auto, sized at 225/60/17. However when I replace them, I'm going to increase the size to 225/65/17.

phoebecp · Nov 1, 2016

Nodge68 said:
Looking good although you could have fitted larger tyres. I've got Maxxis 771s on my SE auto, sized at 225/60/17. However when I replace them, I'm going to increase the size to 225/65/17.

I wanted to downsize to 16" wheels so I had more choice of AT tyres, and I'm a bit limited on funds at the minute so trying to keep the cost down, I might switch to 17" in the future

Nodge68 · Nov 1, 2016

phoebecp said:
I wanted to downsize to 16" wheels so I had more choice of AT tyres, and I'm a bit limited on funds at the minute so trying to keep the cost down, I might switch to 17" in the future

17" rims do reduce the AT choice and up the cost a bit. However the Freelander is much more responsive on the road running 17" rims, even when shod with AT tread patterns. This is why I chose to use 17" rims. It just so happens that Maxxis 771s come in 17" sizes to suit the Freelander.

phoebecp · Nov 7, 2016

*UPDATE*
The engine seems to be running smoother after the cleaning out of the intake and bypassing EGR, picks up much better at low revs. In the process of replacing the engine hoses with the silicon equivalent as well.
With the arrival of new brake shoes and drums I had a go at fitting them at the weekend. Was a much easier job than I was expecting really, I mean the springs were a bit of a bvgger and years of rust don't help, but didn't take too long. In all it cost around £30 for the new shoes and £40 for the hubs (+£3.50 on some brake cleaner).
Here's some pictures.
Before

After

Next to do -

New wheels should be arriving this week so they'll be fitted.
Bought a thermostat because I suspect that the existing one is a bit knackered - doing the mod with a Rover 75/MG ZT CDT/CDTi Inline thermostat to avoid having to have too much of a fight with the engine to replace the original

phoebecp · Nov 11, 2016

*UPDATE*
So this weekend I'm planing on doing an oil change (weather permitting...) and fitting the new thermostat.
Some new bits delivered:
The Inline thermostat from Discount MG Rover Spares:

New ARB drop-links arrived as well, so I'll have a stab at fitting those too, had a quick snoop around at people who have written up changing theirs and it doesn't look like a difficult job so (hopefully) wont take too long.

Will post pictures of all these items in situe when they've been fitted

phoebecp · Nov 12, 2016

*UPDATE*
Bit of rain, but as promised...
Battery had gone flat so had to jump start it and let it run
Before and after of the ARB drop-link, was a really quick job to do, main issue was trying to undo the old nuts on the existing links, they were solid

All the new hoses are now fitted in the engine bay, except I'm also getting a new radiator top hose because the existing one is a tad corroded...

AND by far my favourite part of today...the wheels came and they're beautiful...make it look quite mean

Hoping to get an oil change done tomorrow if the weather clears up

JC600 · Nov 13, 2016

Looking good mate, nice project you have. Wheels make it look so much better.

phoebecp · Nov 14, 2016

*UPDATE*
Oil change done, I don't think the stuff that came out of could be described as oil anymore, was just sludge

But seems to be running smoother now. And discovered that one of the bolts holding the under tray on was completely rounded off and would not budge, seems to have been this way for at least a little while because a previous owner has cut a hole to gain access to the sump plug, which was helpful for now but it's not exactly the neatest of work

.

Front headlight guards are now back on, I just put an M5 hex head bolt through with a spacer inbetween the guard and the bodywork, then a nyloc nut to hold it on the other side. seemed like an overly complicated sytem when i first took them off

There used to be a knocking noise from the front passenger side suspension, that seems to have been cured by the new ARB drop links.

New issue - the rear brake on the passenger side seems to judder under heavy braking, slightly concerning so will have to check that one out...
And the wing mirrors push themselves in when going above about 70mph due to the wind

rob_bell · Nov 14, 2016

Loving the wheels too! They're modulars aren't they? Where did you get them? What spec (size/offset) are they?

phoebecp · Nov 14, 2016

Yeah they're modulars - 16"x7" 35mm offset, got them from 4x4 tyres online, set of 5 with tyres fitted and balanced came to just over £500, which i thought was a pretty good deal

rob_bell · Nov 14, 2016

That is very tempting indeed! How are you finding the tyres on the road? The guys here mention that AT tyres with more aggressive grip patterns generate an unpleasant amount of noise...

Paulontour · Nov 14, 2016

phoebecp said:
And the wing mirrors push themselves in when going above about 70mph due to the wind

Do you have folding mirrors on yours. Maybe they are not locked in place. Mine did that so I pressed the folding mirror switch a couple of times and found they hadn't locked in place. It went through the open/close sequence a couple of times and they are fine now.

Freelander 1 The Project

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