Freelander circulation problem

hi everyone im new to landyzone but not new to landrovers however i am new to freelanders

Iv just brought a 2002 freelander 1.8 es with the head gasket gone iv done the headgasket brilliant runs fine however i am having some problems withthe cooling system it all gets warm inside heaters temp gauge stays spot on where it should be all the time but i have a problem withthe bottom half of the rad staying cold if not most of the rad and i mean its bone cold and the bottom hose that gose on to the inline thermostat the stat and pipes before it are red hot as they should be the pipe in to the bottom of the rad and the bottom 3/4 of the rad are cold.

I have changed the stat and made sure the dummy stat is fitted on the back of the water pump the waterpump is brand new the only thing i can think of is if the rad is blocked has any one else had this problem iv blead the system 5 or 6 times and got no air out.

The top hose after a 30 min drive are quite pressured up not solid still squeezable but u can feel there is pressure there.


any help would be most appreciated many thanks dale

take the rad out and connect a garden hose to it, let water run,
bet you it comes out filty

Hi and welcome. Don't forget to introduce yourself in the new members section

What stat does it have? If it's by the pump it could have failed and might have been the initial cause of the HGF? If it's the PRT type stat try revving the engine above 4.5k rpm a couple of times once it's hot, this should open the PR valve which should flow water to the rad. If that fails then I'd replace the stat and flush the rad then refill correctly making sure the bleed pipe between the header tank and inlet manifold is clear as there is a ball valve in there that often blocks after a HGF.

hi i will try that babtista.

nodge68 it has the prt type stat which i have just replaced i have also blown threw the bleed valve when i done the headgasket its all clear i took the car out for a drive for around 40 mins to an hour and took it way up past 4.5 k at times going up hils ect and still the hose stayed cold when i had the car ticking over on my drive the hose did get slighlty warm after about 30 40 mins but not as warm as the top hose also the fans do eventually start to turn but but not on full speed they kinda go on for a min or 2 then stop

many thanks dale

It sounds like it's not at stat temp. Don't forget that the 1.8 and 2.5 V6 use the same rad the stat will only bleed a tiny amount of water into the system as and when it's needed but often when the outside temp is low the rad cools the water so well the bottom hose feels cool as the heat has been removed before the water gets to the bottom.
I tested my V6 the other day which showed a bottom hose temp of 18°C even when the OBD live data showed an engine temp of 99°C after a 7 mile commute. A rad clean is a wise precaution though

i have put the hose threw the rad its all flowing brilliantly it just dosnt seem right every car iv worked on the bottom hose always gets hot / warm once the stat opens i still get quite alot of pressure in the header tank to if i unscrew the cap with the engine running its not to bad the water rises then gose back down and is fine but if i turn the car off when warm and undo it i get loads or air coming up in to the header tank u have to wait a few mins for it all to come threw before the cap can be removed

i dunno it just seems odd iv used the car a few times not and has been pretty good not over heated or anything its just on my mind

cheers dale

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You must remember that ALL landy's are designed to be able to tow a trailer across the Gobi (so to speak.) That's what seperates them from the "big car" 4x4's made by bimmer and others that are **** off road and not all that good on it. The 1.8 doesn't generate much heat really and that huuuge radiator gets rid of almost all of it. The head gasket problem was never attributed to a poor radiator!

notsofreelander said:

i have put the hose threw the rad its all flowing brilliantly it just dosnt seem right every car iv worked on the bottom hose always gets hot / warm once the stat opens i still get quite alot of pressure in the header tank to if i unscrew the cap with the engine running its not to bad the water rises then gose back down and is fine but if i turn the car off when warm and undo it i get loads or air coming up in to the header tank u have to wait a few mins for it all to come threw before the cap can be removed

i dunno it just seems odd iv used the car a few times not and has been pretty good not over heated or anything its just on my mind

cheers dale

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What you are describing is normal
The cooling system will pressurize even when the bottom rad hose is cool as the engine is up to temp.
The bubbles you are seeing is most likely localized boiling of the coolant due to the fact that removing the pressure cap drops the hot 100°C + coolant to atmospheric pressure. You see and hear this effect if you boil a kettle. As Will said the Freelander's cooling system is designed to cool the engine in the hottest places on the planet so in the UK at winter time it's hardly stressed particularly as the 1.8 uses the rad from the 2.5!! The bottom hose is often cold on systems where the stat is on the return

When you installed the prt

Did you remove the old stat in the back of the engine?

If its running at the correct temp I suspect you have no problem! It is a huge rad and tends to do what your describing. Mines the same. Heater works brill but you struggle to get the rad hot

Im wondering if i may still have a headgasket problem / cracked head or liner the header tank gets very pressured up to apoint where after a good drive i have to keep slowly winding the cap of abit then close it for about 5 mins before i can open it without it spewing out everywhere also getting white steam / condence out of the exhaust all the time even when hot more so on idle and when it is reved up

I've had this prblem on a number of rover cars when i have replaced the head gasket after is has failed.
Normally you struggle to get any heat out of the heater and get all the symptoms that you are saying.
I have given the car back to them and advised them that they may have cooked the engine and have seen a few come back when the gasket has failed again.
Changed the engine for a good one and it's run perfect.
I always advsie people now before i work on an engine that has been over heated that this may happen and that it's up to them what they want me to do.
The problem with the K series engine is that if it has been run hot it can cause a problem with the liners moving and they never seal again.
It doesn't take long for this to happen as there is so little water in the system.
A friend of mine has put K seal in his mgf which had the same and other problems and this kept his car going ( The block had a 20mm crack on the waterway on the outside face, hasn't leaked a drop since).
It might be worth trying this?

notsofreelander said:

Im wondering if i may still have a headgasket problem / cracked head or liner the header tank gets very pressured up to apoint where after a good drive i have to keep slowly winding the cap of abit then close it for about 5 mins before i can open it without it spewing out everywhere also getting white steam / condence out of the exhaust all the time even when hot more so on idle and when it is reved up

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Don't worry about steam from the tail pipe as it's quite normal at this time of year
Does the system pressurize before the engine is hot? If not then I'd say the HG is fine!! Don't put K seal or any other sealer in the cooling system unless you want to change the engine, rad and heater matrix

as i feared iv had a block test done and it shows that exhaust gasses are still entering the water system so its either got a cracked head damaged liner or the head gasket has not sealed properly has any one else had one of these 3 problems before

thanks dale

Head gasket is the most likely cause. What gasket was fitted? If the MLS gasket was fitted was all the other bits that go with it done? The head can crack but it's not that common nor is a cracked liner tbh.

Had a head go porous on my Rover 400 1.6 K series. Had new MLS head gaskets, pressure tests the works. Took ages to find but a new (S/H) head cleaned up and skimmed cured that problem.
You can get a bit of leakage if one of the water ways on the head to block joint leaks and erodes the block, can be seen as pitting around the waterway, makes a weak spot where the HG will blow first. These can be fixed using plastic metal and care in flatting off before fitting the new H/G (it's only holding the water back not the detonation pressure).
A couple of ideas to consider?