Life with my Landy (Platty's Project Thread)

[PlattyR56]

So my relationship with Land Rover has just begun.

I was (mis?)fortunate enough to pick up an 04 Freelander TDI from a dealer fairly local to me a couple of weeks back.





She's an S with 2 previous owners, full LR service history and 109k on the clock.

This Freelander replaces my daily driver which was a 2002 Audi A3 1.9 TDI Quattro. I also have a MINI Cooper S that I've spent far too much time and money on and which seems to have developed agoraphobia recently.

I'm not shy with a spanner as you'll see. Looking forward to getting greasy under the Hippo.

First plan is to give her a service (tomorrows task weather permitting)



I snapped the bonnet release cable, so headed out to LR and picked up a new one.



I believe in dealing with issues before they become problems. So with that in mind, new silicon hoses and T clamps.



Allisport EGR blanking kit has been ordered.



What's wrong with this picture? (Other than the questionable focus)



I've ordered a Gates Renault 5 89 degree Thermostat to push in the top hose as that's as high as the gauge gets.

She needs a good clean, and I'll be fitting a pair of front ARB bushes and drop links soon as they're knackered.

I plan to lift her 2" then fit some modular wheels with AT tyres. I'll also be looking into upgrading the speakers/headunit to keep me amused on my commute to work, along with some kind of lighting upgrade as I drive mainly on unlit B roads.

The VCU is good, but I may replace it with a reconditioned one with new GKN bearings just to give peace of mind.

 

[fishlander]

Look's a very nice hippo and you've done your Homework!!lol.Keep up the great work and keep us updated,we like pics!!!!

 

[SES88]

Looks nice, as said, you've done your homework, if only others would!

 

[JC600]

Nice little write up, and good plans......that's exactly what I did first, good service, silicone hoses and a lot of research.

 

[Kizzeh]

Looks nice. I look forward to seeing more

 

[silkwood]

Nice write up and good to see you did a full service and good research.

Was your engine still warming up when you took the pic? Or was it warm already?

My tempgauge looks like this when engine is warmed up after few kilometers.

 

[DanW84]

Very nice mate, looks like you know what your going to do with it I look forward to seeing it progress.
My temp gauge also sits just under half way most of the time but does tend to fluctuate a bit.

 

[PlattyR56]

Thanks y'all.

Bar the coolant, the service was carried out today.







EGR looks dirty....(and the air fliter is upside down!)



I fitted the new silicon hoses too



The fit of the intercooler hose was a little off



So I cut 25mm off, making the bend closer to 90 degrees.



I also got round to fitting the new bonnet cable. I've read you need to drop the rad to allow access. I left it in place, cutting the old cable in half, taping the new cable to it, then pulling it through the slam panel.





Never got round to cleaning her, but a successful day nonetheless. I was a little disappointed the new stat and EGR blank hadn't arrived. Hopefully I'll get them on next weekend.

Was your engine still warming up when you took the pic? Or was it warm already?

Yep, I'd just returned from a 60+ mile drive around the Southdowns.

 

[Spacemonkey...]

Looks like a good 'un. As far as the lights are concerned, I have Phillips +100% Extreme Visons in the dipped and Osram Rallye 65w in the main beam and it's MUCH better- very good on dark country roads. I also have good LED sidelights which are normally sufficient for daytime use.

Have you read up on the Ronbox/Synergy tuning box and MAF sensors and sorting the injectors? read my sags here:

http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f9/finally-got-another-freelander-237094.html

 

[pardec]

I have the same brand /quantity of anti-freeze waiting to go in since december.

 

[baptista]

good job!!!
I wish I had done my homework before having bought mine...

 

[Epicuser]

Good job done there.

 

[PlattyR56]

Scangauge E

I miss not having a realtime MPG indicator in the hippo so I ordered a Scangauge E. It arrived today, not a second to lose, I went about fitting it!



Being smaller than a regular scangauge, finding a suitable place to mount it was easy.



Out with the old, in with the new. Test fit for depth.



A quick scratch of the head "I need to get the wiring in behind the dashboard....hmmm, THE AERIAL!"



The aerial was perfect to act as a draw wire for the cable that's required to go between the OBD port and the Scangauge.



Taped the cable on



And up she came



Indoors with the clock surround I went



Aligned the Scangauge with the clock surround...Perfect fit, no cutting required!!



Out with the hot glue gun



A quick bead all the way round



And back in she went



Now all I need to do is put about 2000 miles on the clock to get the thing calibrated!

 

[Kizzeh]

Looks good!

 

[PlattyR56]

Thanks.

Colourwise the backlighting is off. It's currently a light greenyblue. Hoping a green window tint will bring it closer to the colour of the clocks/etc.

 

[Epicuser]

Looks great.

I put an internal & external temp gauge there instead.

I would like to find somewhere else for my Scangauge 2 to go, rather than being on top of the steering wheel housing. Jury still out on that.

 

[PlattyR56]

Looks great.

I put an internal & external temp gauge there instead.

Thanks.

I too would like an external temperature gauge. Do you have a link for the one you went for?

 

[Epicuser]

Have you looked in my thread? I think it is in there....my 2006 HSE auto.....

 

[PlattyR56]

Found it thanks!

How do you find the colour match with the interior lighting?

 

[Epicuser]

Found it thanks!

How do you find the colour match with the interior lighting?

It is a very good match to the green dash lights, but my interior lighting is another subject-I have white LED's all round so I can see inside at night