Forgot to add my belts would have been mucky due to going off road through water.

choo

Did you find out what the noise is?

I may have the same noise. Mine started 50 miles after the auto gearbox was replaced. 2001 v6 model. Have a look under your Freelander and see how clean it is. Can you tell if either the ird, engine or auto gearbox have been replaced? Is any of them cleaner than the others?

Will record the sound on mine to compare.