Freelander 2 (LR2) 1st anniversary of FL2 and Amber Engine Management Light - help!

Hello folks, I’m HorseyGirl and I’ve stalked the site over the last year but this is my first post! I am not very knowledgeable about cars so please be gentle.

As I’ve said, I’ve owned my FL2 for a year now and I love it ... until last week. Went to our local supermarket to fill up and almost straight away I noticed a dip in driving performance. Also, it began to bunny hop occasionally in 2nd gear. Fuel economy isn’t great either and my first thought was I’ve just used some dodgy fuel. I persevered as it only occurred every now and then.

Fast forward to yesterday, bit more frequency in the bunny hops and I noticed a change in power. Then on the way home from a trip out locally, my engine warning light (amber engine symbol) came on and car was driving even more sluggish.

So, husband wants to change fuel filter and shove some reddex in the tank but I’m fairly sure that isn’t going to be enough. I know I need to get the diagnostics done for a clearer picture but has anyone had any experience with this before I take it to the local garage. Also, am I ok to drive short distances while the lights on?
Car has done 103k now and is on a 58 plate.

Hubby is right, then an Italian tune up to clean dpf filter

OK, I will go with this first and keep everything crossed.

Last time I put redex in a motor it made it worse for about 3 months to the point of everytime the engine got hot and I switched it off it wouldn't start again untill the engine cooled down.
Luckily after a few months (assuming the redex burnt away) the car was fine again... I'll never stick that stuff in another motor again.

Eek - maybe I’ll tell him to just change the filter and leave the reddex alone! Thanks for the warning. If the fuel was contaminated - say with water or some debris - would there be other signs?

Could be dirty fuel you got from a pump, if you are going to put anything in the tank use this in the link below. I presume we are talking about a TD4, a 58 plate wont have a DPF I think, so getting it up to temp is not your worry, if the car was running nice until you filled up then it is most likely got to do with the fuel.

Try and get a sample of the fuel in a jar leave it over night and see if any water is in it.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TWO-2-x-...l-Treatment-Fuel-System-Additive/222076086571

Tbh I don’t know about the dpf. My understanding is that during this registration period (58/2009) they made some with and some without. Is it easy to check?

Are you 100% sure you put diesel in and not petrol? It's a common mistake and gives the symptoms you have the moment you drive off.

Nodge68 said:

Are you 100% sure you put diesel in and not petrol? It's a common mistake and gives the symptoms you have the moment you drive off.

Click to expand...

I’m positive. I only made that costly mistake once about 15 years ago! No, receipt confirms diesel fuel.

In the UK the dpf was optional on the FL2 on 58 plates. As it cost money I would assume most didn't bother to buy it as an option.

Hippo said:

On a Freelander 2 the 8th character of the vin will tell you if it had a dpf fitted when first built in the factory. If the 8th character is C or E then it has a dpf. The Freelander 2 was always available with a dpf from the beginning in the UK, but it was optional in early years (at extra cost). Most FL2 diesel markets operated on similar rules but not all. On the MY10 (model year 2010) onwards they fitted them as standard in the UK because they were forced to because of emission rules. Surprisingly the UK was late to enforce dpf's being fitted as standard. Some countries demanded they were fitted as standard sooner while others didn't bother. Yer would think the UK would have been one of the first to demand it as standard with the constant talk of air pollution.

Click to expand...

Smell the fool cap and pipe to see if it's got petrol in it. Should be difficult to get a petrol nozzel in but I guess some manage it.

Any news?

https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-rover/what-mileage-is-your-freelander-2-on.311241/

Hi there, it turned out to be a 2 inch split in the inter cooler hose. It was running like a dream again till last night now this morning I have a different issue altogether (no power to dash/stop start doesn’t work at all but power to radio, seats etc) just about to post again on a new thread

Failing battery