Hi,
i'm currently retired and bored. I've owned 2 freebies in past from new from 98-04 1st 1.8 petrol which had 2 new engines under warranty with the original only having 9k on the dash. Original blew an oil seal and cooked the engine, got replaced under warranty picked up on day xmas holiday closing, drove home 2miles parked up for an hour and went to lift brother in law to go for a few xmas beer { he was home from Manchester for the hols } after 5 miles noticed temp gauge had went out the side of the dash and stalled waiting at a junction. When it was my turn to exit junction switched back on and wouldn't start got moving on starter and 1st gear and almost got wiped out by an articulated truck. after an hour waiting at side of road and temp gauge dropping back eventually started and drove to in laws let cool again lifted cap of and topped with luke warm water only for it to p155 out at my feet. with a torch looked under to see that the bottom rad hose clip was up the pipe not on the end. Pulled back down, tightened filled with water and all seemed ok. Drove home , parked up for xmas and went into town for a few well earned scoops. Boxing day went to go to shoot clays and dam thing wouldn't start and when eventually did temp gauge thought it was a rocket going skywards. Anyhow eventually got sorted with another new engine and had another 2yrs trouble free. Don't know what happened between the main garage and landrover but no doubt some poor lad got the alex ferguson treatment. Despite this I bought another 1 a diesel serengetti limited edit 5dr with I think a ford engine? this 1 ran great but then front drivers drive shaft failed, again fixed under warranty and ran ok for the rest of the time I owned it . Despite these hiccups I really would like another to play with as they were the best driving vehicles I've owned apart from a mk11 escort rs1800. My dilemma is which model, a face lift 3dr v6 or diesel/ petrol or the 5dr { can you change the f1 part with the face lift bits without much butchering } would really love to do a blog on the project like alibros as I go along and completely trick it out. Would love some ideas from seasoned pros on which model would be best and what toys bearing in mind this vehicle will prob only be off road when launching a couple of jetskis or a RIB for scuba diving from a beach or a slipway or parked up on the grass in a forest park on a day out { yeah really hardcore } Any how could all you good folk give me some prompts and put some bad thoughts in my head. When I take the plunge in autumn I will most likely be a regular pain looking advice on this that or the other but a least i'll get answers from folk who have experienced the problems and sorted. Thanks in advance for your help and apologies for being a complete pain in the rse.

the bull

As you've already owned 2, you have a bit of a head start. But as with any car, buy the one you really want, and get the best for your budget.
Standard problems on all models,
Door locks/central locking
Window regulator's
Rear door glass mechanism
VCU
Prop shaft bearings

L- series engine is bomb proof if looked after
TD4 will behave well if you keep an eye on it and do the mods that are talked about on here.
1.8 K-series if you like a challenge. But are more than respectable if well looked after.
V6 K-series the best driving experience, but make sure you make friends with @Nodge68 and his mates, you'll need them.

Plenty of different body styles and spec levels to choose from to suit your needs.
Get digging through the local ads, Autotrader, and look in the for sale section on here. The people who list them on this site will do you the favour of telling you whats wrong and what needs doing/has been done.

Look forward seeing you around.

Mike

Welcome!

There's lots of threads on here comparing the different engines, I won't say which is the obvious 'best' as your 'project' may be an engine that needs lots of 'love'. Similarly various threads about bolting facelift parts onto earlier cars - although Freelanders aren't generally as heavily 'modded' as other Landies, there are some great examples.

I don't think people can really tell you what's the best model to start with, you'll just have to have a bit of fun looking at the different ones to pick your 'starting point'. Basically the 3 & 5 doors all have the same mechanicals underneath so there's no differences there - just which one suits what you want. Similarly, the facelift is just panel work and interior trim - which impacts wiring. There's various different specs of car (eg XE,XEI, S, SE, HSE, Sport) that have different bells an whistles.

If you're launching, an auto may be an advantage - so that means a TD4 or V6. Having said that my L Series manual launches fine and has towed highly illegal weights. Top tip (and there's a current thread about it), don't leave the hand brake for any length of time for at least 24 hours after launching/retrieving or the brake's will sieze!

Which ever you buy - just make sure it has 4 identical tyres on it and it had the prop shafts underneath running front to back. Budget on a replacement VCU when you buy it. If you don't fully understand the importance of matching tyres and a healthy VCU to the Freelander's transmission - read up on it - it will save you heaps and make owning it much more pleasurable.

Good luck

Sounds like you are looking for a hobby that will fill your days - in that case dont go looking for a reliable one

go for the V6 or the 1.8 and dont watch the coolant level........................you could happily spend the next 10 years rebuilding engines after the head gaskets blow.

Alternatively, and especially if you like welding, get a Disco

digby said:

Alternatively, and especially if you like welding, get a Disco

Click to expand...

Get up every morning and sweep the bits of chassis off the drive.

Unless you are good at spannering? I'd avoid the petrol Freelander altogether. Did I really just say that?
The early L series is bomb proof except for the clutch operation mechanism. However they are getting old now, the youngest will be 16+ years.
The 3 door facelift basic TD4s are cheap but spartan.
I spent some months looking for my current Freelander as I had a "wants" list to for fill.
GG has given you the models available although he missed the range topping Sport model, the Sport Premium. Be aware that the Sport models have lowered suspension and 18" rims with low profile tyres. All terrain tyres are hard to come by in 18" but it has better road manors than the normal hight Freelander.
The other thing to be aware with Sport Freelanders is the seats. They aren't leather covered like the HSE. The sport Premium's have a synthetic leather material that isn't as durable as cloth or proper leather.
My favourite trim spec is the HSE, seconded by the SE (my current Freelander, brought up to HSE with full leather seats).
However for me, the interior must be black as it's more practical.
If you get a pre facelift (before 53) then you can fit the facelift bumpers and lights easily but be aware that the front bumper is no longer available and so prices are high. Headlights are also thin on the ground, again commanding silly second hand prices. Also the interior of the facelift is more modern, less utilitarian and generally a more pleasant place to be.
There's a pile of options available, however some options can only be fitted to certain models. Things like cruise control is only available with auto transmission. Automatic transmission is only available with a V6 petrol or TD4 diesel (It's a BMW engine, not Ford )
If you want a heated front screen then you can't have the 1.8 Petrol engine.
There's a huge number of Freelanders about so you can be choosy, but if you want an auto, they are far less common and generally more expensive to buy.
Good luck

Hi Bull, thanks for the mention. Shuks, infamous at last
When I look for a car I try to keep the mileage below 120k. Especially with a TD4 as I hear they can have issues with injectors which are very expensive, but any car with very high miles will need shockers and bushes all round and the interior will be tired. I try to buy them as young as possible too for the same reason, not to mention rot which is a problem for any car when they get over 14 years old.
As with all things you have to decide what your priorities are and compromise accordingly.
what is more important to you? Age, Diesel/Petrol, Condition, Spec, Price, 2 door or 4 etc etc
What is your budget?
Are you happy spannering or will you be paying someone?
If you want it young and cheap it will be a 1.8 petrol, bomb proof engine it will be L series or more refined will be TD4.
The older L series engine will go forever but it is sluggish as standard. There were lots of upgrades when the TD4 was introduced so it drives better and stops better.

Whatever you decide any of them will do your job, good luck with it and keep us updated.

Lots of good advice above. I'm running a 1.8 XEI - love it! Parts are cheap and seem readily available. Yes I'm fairly handy with the tools too. It's an easy engine bay to work in. To recap', things to bear in mind: matching tyres, prop shaft in place [=still 4WD capable], one wheel up test to check VCU condition, clutch and gear change smooth, carefully check for coolant leaks - petrol models! Good luck with your quest - theres already plenty of info' on here to guide you.

Thanks lads for the replies.
As I said I've had 2 earlier versions and apart from the mentioned probs loved them and the missus loved driving them too which helps.@ present toying with the idea and dreaming of what I cud do with a v6 only for the hp. Just watched a complete rerun of a 4x4 is born and thought what evans did with that was awesome, although I wouldn't just go that extreme with the suspension even if was possible to do. Or what big edd me old china did to the engine on theirs with the extra bhp looked fun. As a wise man said to me previous uv all the gear but no idea, but with a mech mainta nance back ground and pretty much tools for most jobs elec/mech/hydraul would have no hesitation getting stuck in and having read through a lot of posts here looks like i'd need most of them. By the way just finished putting a full front ns suspension from strut top down in sons merc e320 v6 auto and could n't walk for 3days after { retired due to fracturing 6 vertebrae In a crush acc at work in 98 said I caught the devil unawares that morning or he had no room for me } enjoyed it at the time so think i'm a bit of a masochist or just fukn nutts so most jobs could take a while and could lay unfished for a while. Anyway my ideal would be to have 1 finished for june for my 50th birthday pres to myself but that's prob only wishful thinking. Any how been on auto trader and seen a few that could be a possibility and fairly cheap but having to fly over to englnd and boat back if bought would only add a cupl hundrd££s. Any advice to look for underneath if runs ok I know bodywork shouldn't be a prob so any advice on under body chassis etc' would be vmuch appreciated. Has any one took 1 right back for a complete nut and bolt rebuild, or galvanised the chassis? If I start this and invest time and money in it I'd want it to last which maybe a contradiction. Any way thanks for your comments so far reading other comments on other posts on here and its like every other forum on any topic regardless it's like a55h0l35 everybody has one and some are used more often so you need to be just thick or thick skinned to partake and some of the scary experiences on here i'm beginning to think I;m losing the plot or as my youngest said " da your havin a mid life crisis and looking for a pen15 extension"
So for now it's of to the conservatory with a stack of lrm mags and the laptop to browse the lr forums and watch the auto trader site. Any other good site for searching.
Cheers guys

Are you wanting a Freelander or Defender?
There's no chassis on a Freelander, it's a monocoque body, just like every other normal car today. So while they don't rust as bad as the Defender. Repairs to a rusty shell are harder to repair.
The monocoque gives the Freelander enormous structural rigidity which helps the handling. However it's more fragile underneath than a chassis vehicle, so off road protection is important.
However if you are wanting a Defender? You're better off posting your initial post again on the Defender page of Landyzone

Hello Bull and welcome to the madhouse
Firstly, I wish you a great deal of joy that hopefully will outweigh the pain .... I am sure it will be worth it. !
There are many old freelanders around that have been looked after and suffer little rot - if any. Trouble is finding one !. If you can then that that is a major buying point.
Should be no needs for a bare metal nuts and bolts rebuild at all. Still plenty of fun though.
I personally prefer the non facelift models, just something about them that I really like. Also, I think the best engine (apart from the KV6) fitted to the freelander 1 series was definitely the L series unit. Hands down.
Negatives for L series - no Auto option. however, many prefer manual.
KV6 - never driven one myself but can imagine it is a peach - Nodge here is gold mine of info on those and if well looked after could be a real asset - negatives are parts availability and a different IRD from all the rest of the models. These IRD's are getting rarer than hen's teeth. whereas the IRD for all other model are identical so a 1.8 K, 2.0 L series or 2.0 TD4 (BMW (Beware ! Mucho Work!) of any year are all the same.
I personally think the TD4 was probably the worst engine fitted to the series. (but I am bias lol ) - just peruse the forum.
As for tuning potential on the L series. then one can indeed hit 135 BHP and 225 Foot lbs torque easily. Potentially even close to 160 bhp and 260 Foot lbs torque with little more than an EGR removal - DE-CAT a good remap and making sure you have the appropriate turbo - you probably would have already - (then upping the boost only slightly) - the middle range is the best to aim for me thinks.
The L series mostly have the exact same turbo as the MGZR (contrary to most info published ! !) - I have this 100% proven by Garret themselves and also I have a brand new ZR turbo for comparison) - some very early freelanders have a slightly less spec unit. If the turbo has 100400 on it then the unit spec and performance is exactly the same as the ZR 100500 unit apart from the exhaust elbow - some also quote the 1549'S' version as being the turbo to go for - this is nonsense as ALL the turbos are 'S' units - the 'S' suffix - often not even printed on the turbo but IS on the Garret website simply means 'internal wastegate'. - many 'tuners' seem to think the 1549 's' is a 'special' unit - it is not Also contrary to popular belief the L series Freelander also has virtually identical spec injectors to the oft' quoted 'magical' SDi units.
Huge tuning potential if you wanted it and easy to do with little work (apart from the remap!) - however I can recommend a guy to do that who is probably the best in the UK)
I would avoid personally 'ronboxes' etc that you may have read of The 'ronbox' is a fairly crude (but indeed effective!) method of increasing fuelling by fudging info to the ecu. It cannot alter injection timing at all. A remap can and will.

Anyway, I am off on a tangent (nothing unusual for me) regarding one model only ..... they are all great in their own way. I am 59 now and like you - retired - My L series I absolutely love. I intend to keep it for the rest of my time here on this globe and there is no reason why that is not achievable. Th head start I have is that it is a Portuguese car - absolutely utterly no rot of any kind anywhere. Mechanically - well that's another story but all sorted out now. Whatever you get - especially if it is a V6 ! it is worth squirrelling parts away if you intend to keep the car as you say !. Another negative for the V6 is that there is quite a following for a rally type use which is eating the already limited supply of parts.

Also, I am well chuffed that you actually owned a production RS 1800 Escort Mk2 - ! a Cosworth BDA Escort ! (well ok - officially a BDE version of the BDA to be pedantic) but utter Kudos - what a bloody beauty of a car !.
I had the pleasure to drive one - but never owned one. The fastest Mk2 escort ever produced. And be gads, if breathed on - utterly and truly incredible !.
I bet you wish you had it now eh ? , it would be worth an absolute fortune in totally original condition - maybe 30 to 40 grand ??.

/Ramble off

Regards mate
Joe

Nodge68 said:

Are you wanting a Freelander or Defender?
There's no chassis on a Freelander, it's a monocoque body, just like every other normal car today. So while they don't rust as bad as the Defender. Repairs to a rusty shell are harder to repair.
The monocoque gives the Freelander enormous structural rigidity which helps the handling. However it's more fragile underneath than a chassis vehicle, so off road protection is important.
However if you are wanting a Defender? You're better off posting your initial post again on the Defender page of Landyzone

Click to expand...

Good point Nodge !
+1

A wee bit of patience is all you need, no point in flying to England to buy one as plenty here. The last one I bought is a 2002 TD4 with 115k miles I got for £950 from a guy in Coleraine. The VCU was seized solid, it had a crunch in 3rd gear (which I didn't spot until driving it home ) and it was in dire need of some TLC but the engine was good and the tyres almost new so I'm happy with it.
Not many V6's over here but plenty of TD4's and 1.8's. If your really adventurous one of the guys on LZ put a 1.8T into his Freelander and it's a flying machine.
Check out Gumtree and Usedcarsni, autotrader is useless now.

Joe_H said:

Hello Bull and welcome to the madhouse
Firstly, I wish you a great deal of joy that hopefully will outweigh the pain .... I am sure it will be worth it. !
There are many old freelanders around that have been looked after and suffer little rot - if any. Trouble is finding one !. If you can then that that is a major buying point.
Should be no needs for a bare metal nuts and bolts rebuild at all. Still plenty of fun though.
I personally prefer the non facelift models, just something about them that I really like. Also, I think the best engine (apart from the KV6) fitted to the freelander 1 series was definitely the L series unit. Hands down.
Negatives for L series - no Auto option. however, many prefer manual.
KV6 - never driven one myself but can imagine it is a peach - Nodge here is gold mine of info on those and if well looked after could be a real asset - negatives are parts availability and a different IRD from all the rest of the models. These IRD's are getting rarer than hen's teeth. whereas the IRD for all other model are identical so a 1.8 L series or TD4 of any year are all the same.
I personally think the TD4 was probably the worst engine fitted to the series. (but I am bias lol ) - just peruse the forum.
As for tuning potential on the L series. then one can indeed hit 135 BHP and 225 Foot lbs torque easily. Potentially even close to 160 bhp and 260 Foot lbs torque with little more than an EGR removal - DE-CAT a good remap and making sure you have the appropriate turbo - you probably would have already - (then upping the boost only slightly) - the middle range is the best to aim for me thinks.
The L series mostly have the exact same turbo as the MGZR (contrary to most info publish !) - I have this 100% proven by Garret themselves and also I have a brand new ZR turbo for comparison) - some very early freelanders have a slightly less spec unit. If the turbo has 100400 on it then the unit spec and performance is exactly the same as the ZR 100500 unit apart from the exhaust elbow - some also quote the 1549'S' version as being the turbo to go for - this is nonsense as ALL the turbos are 'S' units - the 'S' suffix - often not even printed on the turbo but IS on the Garret website simply means 'internal wastegate'. - many 'tuners' seem to think the 1549 's' is a 'special' unit - it is not Also contrary to popular belief the L series Freelander also has virtually identical spec injectors to the oft' quoted 'magical' SDi units.
Huge tuning potential if you wanted it and easy to do with little work (apart from the remap!) - however I can recommend a guy to do that who is probably the best in the UK)
I would avoid personally 'ronboxes' etc that you may have read of The 'ronbox' is a fairly crude (but indeed effective!) method of increasing fuelling by fudging info to the ecu. It cannot alter injection timing at all. A remap can and will.

Anyway, I am off on a tangent (nothing unusual for me) regarding one model only ..... they are all great in their own way. I am 59 now and like you - retired - My L series I absolutely love. I intend to keep it for the rest of my time here on this globe and there is no reason why that is not achievable. Th head start I have is that it is a Portuguese car - absolutely utterly no rot of any kind anywhere. Mechanically - well that's another story but all sorted out now. Whatever you get - especially if it is a V6 ! it is worth squirrelling parts away if you intend to keep the car as you say !. Another negative for the V6 is that there is quite a following for a rally type use which is eating the already limited supply of parts.

Also, I am well chuffed that you actually owned a production RS 1800 Escort Mk2 - ! a Cosworth BDA Escort ! (well ok - officially a BDE version of the BDA to be pedantic) but utter Kudos - what a bloody beauty of a car !.
I had the pleasure to drive one - but never owned one. The fastest Mk2 escort ever produced. And be gads, if breathed on - utterly and truly incredible !.
I bet you wish you had it now eh ? , it would be worth an absolute fortune in totally original condition - maybe 30 to 40 grand ??.

/Ramble off

Regards mate
Joe

Click to expand...

Very interesting read, the only reason I steered more towards a TD4 was because they are younger and a wee bit nicer inside. Also the first Freelander I had was an L series and the brakes were totally rubbish.

Here's a project for ya.
https://www.gumtree.com/p/car-replacement-parts/landrover-freelander-spares-or-repair-/1179363617

Alibro said:

Very interesting read, the only reason I steered more towards a TD4 was because they are younger and a wee bit nicer inside. Also the first Freelander I had was an L series and the brakes were totally rubbish.

Click to expand...

They are very good points Alibro mate.
I also had crap brakes on the L series when I first got it. A big clue that something isn't right is if the handbrake is sh!te !.. if so, then usually the fault is that wither the adjustment has seized, or - quite likely, that the incorrect rear brake cylinders are fitted !. . we found several sites selling cylinders that were actually nearly half an inch SHORTER than the real McCoy. (also many garages ordering from their parts supplier get the wrong ones - this has been going on for years)
The hand brake is now exceptional !.. it really is. I still agree the brakes are not the sharpest though (even with repaired half working rears lol) - the hand brake is the best now of any car I have ever had ! - We have a hell of a steep hill with T junction at the top of the road from the farm (I would guess it as at least 1 in 3 !! - I holds effortlessly on the steepest pint - up or down - when at the top of the T junction, I am 6 foot and have to lean forward to see properly and the bonnet looks like it is in the air !
It needs a fairly hefty pedal compared to a modern vehicle. I keep contemplating fitting an even larger servo drum to mine (however - I have got used to the extra pedal pressure needed). Of course it also relies on a vacuum pump fitted to the front of the alternator and this needs to be checked if brakes feel poor. This is also teed into the EGR vacuum circuit so needs to be checked for leaks there also. Removing the EGR is simple - the solenoid / actuator can then be removed and binned - as can the MAF completely as it does absolutely beggar all on an L series apart from assist with the EGR and also restrict slightly the intake path. Neither part removal will cause a money light issue.
All in all, yes,. I would agree the later slightly larger front brakes are better (the rears remained the same size). It is not a huge difference though. - to reiterate - many many issues with fl brakes are down to incorrectly functioning rears !.
Also to add - a VERY VERY VERYcommon issue is a faulty servo drum !!!!. most freelanders here have had the drum replaced due to leakage - usually at the rear. of the 'drum'. As well as making the brakes pretty cr&ppy it also affects the EGR circuit if in place.
My local mate who has a freelander only service station has replaced around 200 units - he considers them a a greater failure rate than the drivers door lock (the second highest failure (correction - third - sunroof is first but they are best sealed shut anyway lol). maybe it is something peculiar to Portugal -I dont know.. Mine as it happens is fine..... but...
I did buy a Vacuum gauge that I need to fit at some point !. this would help identify issues. - it can go next to the boost gauge that I also need to fit ho hum - at some time....... ho hum - I need my 'round tooit' ......

Joe

I owned the L Series before I started fixing cars for myself and i knew nothing about them. If I had one now I'd be tempted to buy a couple of complete front struts from a scrappy to upgrade to the newer disks and calipers.

Alibro said:

I owned the L Series before I started fixing cars for myself and i knew nothing about them. If I had one now I'd be tempted to buy a couple of complete front struts from a scrappy to upgrade to the newer disks and calipers.

Click to expand...

Just remembered the strut is seperate from the hub and disks so I guess you'd only need hub assembly.

Alibro said:

I owned the L Series before I started fixing cars for myself and i knew nothing about them. If I had one now I'd be tempted to buy a couple of complete front struts from a scrappy to upgrade to the newer disks and calipers.

Click to expand...

Only issue there mate is the wheels - I 'believe' you might be able to get away with a spacer ? - Although I am pretty sure , I really don't know exactly as never tried. (that is with the standard 15" wheels).
I am sure a larger brake servo would be an easier swap ??? .. hmmmm.. I actually am ok with the brakes as they are - but yes, they could need a slight update.
The clue to the servo being larger is simply that the brakes are SH!T HOT at any sort of speed, it is only at slow speed that you need a bit of 'JESUS CRIZE !' pedal .......
So, it would certainly appear to be a vacuum / assist issue rather than brake size themselves. Braking on a motorway for example is effortless.. even at 30 / 40 KPH is also effortless, in slow traffic ........................... gotta remember to use your foot.!
Again, all the above points to an assist issue not a physical size issue.
The worst is if you swap cars - I drive my brides Panda and nearly go through the windscreen on first brake application - then the opposite when in the freeby.
Deep joy...

I have swapped 15" and 16" wheels on my 04 K Series no bother so not sure it's an issue. Can't be too hard to pull all the bits you need off a dead K Series. There's plenty of them around.