did he also mention that the word "gullible" has been taken out of the dictionary
so the answer is No then i guess. does it not need to be removed for head gasket change?
Darmain
Well-Known Member
Yes the timing belt has to be removed before the head can be separated from the block, however, if a mark is made on the belt and pulley such that it returns to the exact position it came from then it can be put back on. In practice this is false economy but I wouldn't rely on the garage to have changed the belt, especially if they are working on a fixed price.
Be safe, change it. Its gonna cost you a hell of a lot more if it was to break.....
Be safe, change it. Its gonna cost you a hell of a lot more if it was to break.....
probally will change anyway, but at 82000 its either been changed or about to snap i guess
Why? I do 4,000 miles a year and the car has 1 years warrently. Jeez, this place can be bloody negative, supprise anybody every buys a landy of any kind after reading some of the coments posted on here.
howardo
New Member
Ok then go ahead and buy the damn thing, just don't come back on here asking for help when its ****ed.
Jeez, I've been a member of a 300zx club for years, they are expensive to maintain and i was constantly doing something or other on the thing. One thing i did know though, that the other members were excellent with advice and help.
Are members here not enthusiasts?
I cant beleive I have come on a forum for what i thought was for people who enjoyed Land Rovers even with their negatives and in a single post have had several silly comments.
Are members here not enthusiasts?
I cant beleive I have come on a forum for what i thought was for people who enjoyed Land Rovers even with their negatives and in a single post have had several silly comments.
howardo
New Member
Not wasting money on a petrol freelander is sound advise. Its your choice.
I have a diesel freelander and I would recommend one to anyone.
the 1.8 petrol engine is a liability-people have had several head gaskets on the damn things.
Part of the issue I believe is the plastic dowels and long bolts combined with a laminated metal gasket and a ridiculous mastic type water seal on head gasket.
It should be noted that the head-gaskets eat into the heads-that's why a fire shim is now supplied.
Buy a freelander if you wish, just buy a diesel.
Lastly most warranty policies exclude overheating and head gasket.
YOU HAVE BEEN TOLD
Part of the issue I believe is the plastic dowels and long bolts combined with a laminated metal gasket and a ridiculous mastic type water seal on head gasket.
It should be noted that the head-gaskets eat into the heads-that's why a fire shim is now supplied.
Buy a freelander if you wish, just buy a diesel.
Lastly most warranty policies exclude overheating and head gasket.
YOU HAVE BEEN TOLD
50cc
Member
:doh:
I was thinking the same. OK, the k-series has problems but who cares? It's still a Land Rover and a great car!
As far as I can tell if you fit the new gasket, oil rail and dowels it should be OK! People tend to blame the Freelander and the K-series for just about anything, with proper maintenance and usage things will be alright.
But, on the other side maybe I'm just completely blinded by the Land Rover virus
Anyhow, respect for all Land Rovers! Great cars!
On topic:
The Haynes manual stats that you should always change the timing belt when removing the head. But indeed who knows what the previous owner has done.
I just replaced the timing belt on my Freelander this week, it's pretty easy get a Haynes manual this will pay itself back easily.
Good Luck!
Northern Irelander
Well-Known Member
half the tractor boys don't even know what a twin cam 16v engine looks like, the same power output as a defender, only weighing half as much.
I remember seeing a Tdi in the disco forum with hgf, all engines suffer problems, the diesel heads are made from the same alum
the issue with the k-series is the bodge repairs out there, with sunken liners and warped heads, all because of overheating.
Original hg are crap. mls is more robust.
If the price is less than £1k go for it, but not before a compression test in all 4 cylinders.
Belt should have been changed with hg repair, its an easy job, I have pics of the home made tools needed for the job in the common faults and Questions Section
I remember seeing a Tdi in the disco forum with hgf, all engines suffer problems, the diesel heads are made from the same alum
the issue with the k-series is the bodge repairs out there, with sunken liners and warped heads, all because of overheating.
Original hg are crap. mls is more robust.
If the price is less than £1k go for it, but not before a compression test in all 4 cylinders.
Belt should have been changed with hg repair, its an easy job, I have pics of the home made tools needed for the job in the common faults and Questions Section
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not a compression test - get a leak-down test done - its more accurate and shows up more faults.
Northern Irelander
Well-Known Member
I beg to differ, esp for sunken liner (s)
Bollix!
The new gasket etc is better than the old one, but sequential HGF is still to be found on peeps cars that have been done properly.
Proper maintenance does NOT reduce the risk of HGF. Poor maintenance just increases it. I (and yu too NI) know of several peeps on here that know their stuff, religiously and scrupulously maintained their vehicles and still suffered HGF. I think Trewy and Widget - to name two.
I still maintain that the petrol freelanders and (to a lesser extent the doozil ones) were atrociously designed, poorly built and susceptable to a host of problems which any modern car should not have to suffer. That said there are good ones out there. Some peeps have been lucky. Its like playing russian roulette with your wallet.
howardo
New Member
The petrol engines were the mistake that landrover made with the freelander. For the money though they got the rest of it right.
Rangerover classics fall over when going round corners, Discoverys rust very badly, Rangerover P38s are just crap etc. There will always be issues with a landrover product, but for value for money the diesel freelander is the best of the bunch.
mad mechanic
Active Member
The rather large company i work for as a techie will not sell the petrol freelander and our own warranty company will not cover headgasket failure at all. If we get a petrol in px it's sent to the block for auction. The diesel has a much better engine but the car as a whole is pretty dire for what it is supposed to do, much as hate to say it the slitties have the compact 4x4 market sewn up. The k series engine is rubbish it was from day one, it was designed as a throw away engine when it blew up you just popped in a new unit. the modifications that were done made some slight improvements to the engine but on the whole they are ****e wether they are in a freelander or the rover cars they all suffer HGF. No amount of cleaning and being careful will stop it.
As for the **** taking..lol thats the Landy zone way mate, its part of the charm of the site:hysterically_laughing dont take it personally.
As for the **** taking..lol thats the Landy zone way mate, its part of the charm of the site:hysterically_laughing dont take it personally.
howardo
New Member
The diesel engines are excellent engines.
The freelander is more versitile and capable than any comparison slitty.
I refer you to the freelander camel trophy article in the lastest issue of LRO. The L-series doesn't even need a snorkel in that river, no the doors didn't fall off and it didn't even cause any rust.
So the chassis cracking, rear subframe attachment failing, VCU causing IRD failure, rather than fail-safe design, ana uto gearbox where the drain plug is so close to a critical bolt that several peeps have ruined a gearbox, a gearbox top-up system that needs to be connected to the stealers testbox, to ensure correct temoerature - thats all good design is it?
Mind you - a Vauxhall transverse V6 that needs an engine out to replace the rear bank spark plugs, a Renault that needs a wing removal to change a side light bulb are equally dire, but that dont make the Hippoo a good motor.
It is current practice by manufacturers to ensure that you have to return to them for the simplest of jobs. Not good
