Freelander banging nose from rear

Hi all

I have reposted this in the right forum (hopefully) on the advice of senior member Hippo

I have been reading through the the majority of posts and replys about noises coming from the rear of freelanders. It is actually quite mind boggling.

My problem is when I go from forward to reverse or visa versa I get a noticable thud from the rear, more like a bang.

I have read the numorous causes from chassis mouting bolt to diff mounts prop joints, to the diff Its sef.

But most frightening of all is the IRD especially the cost.

What i would like to know if the IRD was shot and causing the noise would not this be heard from the front of the car or at least by the gear stick.

I only ask this because reading through the forums about testing the VCU which I found very helpful ( tipex / insulation tape one ) I found the link
freelanderspecialist.com which sells reconditioned VCUs / IRDs etc it describes my syptoms partly for a faulty IRD.

Where should I start first?

Oh my model is a 2000 xdi and I intend to carry out the VCU test the weekend when I purchace a 600mm breaker bar.

Thanks all great forum

Hi, your first port of call should be the rear diff, the front bush is the one that usually goes and will cause a knock under acceleration when setting off.

unlikely to be ird if the noise is from the back. maybe rear diff mount / bush ?

Ere it is. Front mount on the rear diff. You don't need to remove the prop to see if the mount is ****ed. I did for the vdieo.

[nomedia="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoHMz2ItMLE"]YouTube - Land Rover Freelander 1 2001 v6 Centre Diff Mount Fail[/nomedia]

Rear diff mount for sure I reckon.

Thanks all for your replies it is the diff mount. Going to change all three as a matter of course.

Also if I could pick members brains again.

I performed the VCU test as described in videos. I performed the tests with success and proved that the VCU is not seized.

But my freelander has done 78000 miles is it time to change the VCU or just check it at regular intervals.

Again many thanks.

If it were mine I'd keep checking it at regular intervals. Not worth replacing unless it's failed. Record the time and compare this with future tests.