Should i buy an 04 Freelander 2wd 1.8 l lr1

[dogsbody]

I drive a Rangie so hardly a Freelander expert but I thought that two wheel drive was only introduced in 2011. Which would mean that any earlier two wheel drive one is a four wheel drive with one axle disconnected. Again I'm no expert but I thought that this was done to hide a failed VCU or similar.

But, as I said, I'm no expert.

 

[Richieod]

It's not a windup
I know nothing about freelanders
Or cars in general
That's why I'm posting her to get some advice

 

[Duncp73]

It sounds like you've already made up your mind to buy it, otherwise you wouldn't keep asking for advice when so many people have told you to walk away from this particular Freelander. If the dealer is willing to turn it back to 4x4 he'll probably want another 1500 for it.

 

[JC600]

Fl1 only came in 4wd, so if it's got 6 months warranty get them to fix the 4wd system.

 

[hd3]

'Richieod'

listen to what the ppl are sayin' ..

the fact that it's 2wd points towards 'it's got problems' ..

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walk away from it ..

have patience 'n look around for another ..

read what you can on this forum .. learn the pitfalls .. then go out and seek ..

here's some links :

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http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f38/freelander-everything-you-need-know-46437.html

http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/1620217-post9.html

http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f9/noob-q-buying-214443.html

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explains the 4wd system ..

Symptoms - Bell Engineering

WHAT DOES MY FREELANDER’S VCU DO? | For Land Rover Enthusiasts

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various bits of tech. info re. freelander'1'

Freelander - Fix problems, repairs, diagrams, whats wrong, faults, upgrates - Land Rover

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L - series diesel tuning
http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f57/l-series-tuning-guide-174487.html

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TD4 specific :

ROVER 75 MGZT ENGINE FAULT FINDING

Maf sensor problems.

freelander td4 mpg
http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f9/mpg-my-td4-results-181789.html

http://www.rover-club.net/graphics/manuals/16/m47r_diesel.pdf
( does not include info. re. the variable vane type turbo )

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http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f69/2004-freelander-1-sales-brochure-specification-197513.html

http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f69/2001-freelander-1-sales-brochure-specification-195912.html

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( various LR vehicles ) .. Common Faults and Questions:
Common Faults and Questions - Land Rover Zone

 

[The Mad Hat Man]

warranty wont cover pre-existing faults either .

 

[Richieod]

Ok cheers for the advice

 

[Hippo]

Freelander 1's can suffer with transmission problems. The viscous coupling VCU in-between the prop shafts can fail. This causes stress in the transmission and something has to give. Normally the intermediate reduction drive (fixed ratio transfer box) and/or the read diff. To stop this happening again owners remove the vcu and both props. It's a cheap fix that may solve their problems. They can do without the rear diff if it's broken by removing it. If the ird is broken then it either needs fixed, or you disconnect the pinion gear (if that's the only broken bit) to make it work again but only allows front wheel drive. Could be the gear behind the pinion broken instead. Called mondo mode after the great mondo - forum member on ere who put his Freelander 1 into mondo mode.

If you buy it in mondo mode then it will cost something like £300 to £1000 to make it 4x4 again. Perhaps a bit more. If you don't want 4x4 then that's ok. Stick with 2 wheel drive. The risk is the ird may have been stressed so if you don't know what the original failure was it may be the case it's not been fixed to last. Also the 1.8 k series has a lot of head gasket failure so look out for that. Often a secondary effect of something else like a simple coolant leak. They're cheap for a reason. Peeps prefer the diesels. Take it on a very long test drive and knock it about a bit if you still want to buy it. He's selling it 2wd as he probably took it in broken and this is the cheap fix. Some prefer 2wd.

 

[howardo]

if you want a 2wd car why buy a landrover

 

[Brack]

if you want a 2wd car why buy a landrover

coz he dunt know nothing about cars

+1 for running away bud, read and digest all this information then pick a good un

 

[Singvogel]

why are td4's preferable?

shirley an L-Series would be the better option if he really must have a FL1!

My apologies to those of you with the earlier Rover diesel engine.

I was thinking TD4 only because it would be newer (and diesel)

Although the early diesels are likely to be still reliable enough, the rest of the vehicle will be getting a bit long in the tooth now.

So - I'll rephrase for the benefit of the OP then -

IMHO you'd be better with a diesel of some sort as the 1.8s and the V6s petrols could well have a HGF issue.

Also what's the point of a 2WD Freelander? Why is it 2WD? Where are the removed bits?

It might be OK if you have the VCU and props in the shed ready to fit in the wintertime.

 

[WLJayne]

Thanks lads
Getting at 6 month warranty with it
Dealer says it needs regular servicing and maintenance and the engine will be fine.
Lots of extras with it
Costing me 4700 sterling
Supposed to be picking it up tomorrow
Kinda confused now

Hi Rich,

No Petrol Freelander is worth £4700, you are being had up the bum at that price. Look on autotrader to see comparable models, mine is worth £3000 at the very most and is an '04 top spec SE model in extremely good condition - and even mine has some problems. It sounds like the saleman is quite persuasive, we're not trying to bully you or anything - we're trying to spare you from making an extremely bad purchase. If it is 2wd then that means that it has big problems with its transmission as others have mentioned. Some people leave it in 2wd but you don't know whether the whole system might break one day! Dealers will tell you that it is to improve MPG, which is a bare faced lie. They will screw you out of the warranty and leave you out of pocket, there are all kinds of clauses that will allow them to wriggle out of the £2000+ worth of work that will need doing to it if you want a working transmission system.

As has been mentioned, the diesel models are better suited to those who are not home mechanics. If you are a DIY mechanic then the 1.8 is easy to keep happy but you have to know the car inside out to nip problems in the bud. The TD4 and L series diesel models will put up with minor problems for longer so that they will be detected during a service, the 1.8 K series is a bit fragile and if it's not watched like a hawk it will develop problems. That's not to say it's not a good engine, it is extremely powerful and when it's given what it needs it's pretty reliable too. But the smallest coolant leak (which happens all the time on an unsupervised 1.8) will lead to huge problems.

For £4700 you ca easily afford an 2004 TD4 diesel in excellent condition. Of course we think you should get a Freelander, we love them, just don't get that Freelander. Please. Please, please please listen to us .

I just hope it's not too late .

:welcome:

Will.

 

[Singvogel]

We might all be too late Will.

He said he was picking it up today!

£4700 - wow!

If I was to be sellling my late 2004 HSE I might not get near that money as a trade in.

I reckon this will end in tears - but of course I hope I'm wrong.

 

[WLJayne]

I reckon this will end in tears - but of course I hope I'm wrong.

I hope not, but I fear we'll be too late too. The salesman is right in that with proper maintainance and care the engine will be ok, but that means far more than people think . But £4700 is an unbelievable rip off for a 1.8 hippo.

Well, we've done our best to warn him.

 

[Freelaner]

have we got any "I told you so" t-shirts in stock Will?

 

[WLJayne]

have we got any "I told you so" t-shirts in stock Will?

We don't need T-Shirts, we have Tommy Lee Jones to communicate our sentiments.

 

[Nodge68]

I'd happily have a petrol Freelander. In fact I've had 4!! 3 1.8's and my current 2.5. The problem with buying them is you really really do need to know what you are looking at and what to look for long term. This Freelander is I feel going to be trouble as well as being twice the price of a comparable possibly trouble free vehicle!!

 

[WLJayne]

I'd happily have a petrol Freelander. In fact I've had 4!! 3 1.8's and my current 2.5. The problem with buying them is you really really do need to know what you are looking at and what to look for long term.

Exactly, you need experience or be willing to learn fast to keep a petrol hippo in top shape. Mine has been blidingly brilliant in the snow, I'm not afraid to go anywhere. Between a fully functioning 4x4 system and good quality tyres I can get over anything snowy on the road.

 

[Brack]

We might all be too late Will.

He said he was picking it up today!

£4700 - wow!

If I was to be sellling my late 2004 HSE I might not get near that money as a trade in.

I reckon this will end in tears - but of course I hope I'm wrong.

So it's worth nothing near £4700 if it was in top shape then less the cost of it being 2wd - if he bought it and then wanted to sell it tomorrow how much do you reckon he would get for it ?

 

[WLJayne]

So it's worth nothing near £4700 if it was in top shape then less the cost of it being 2wd - if he bought it and then wanted to sell it tomorrow how much do you reckon he would get for it ?

At that mileage? About £2300 on a fair market.But there's one born minute day so you could probably get away with considerably more .