2 wheel drive Freelander

I have a 1988 Freelander 1.8 petrol. Bought it with the 4 wheel drive removed. Just had the abs sensor changed as the Speedo stopped working. The only problems is now the amber hill decent warning light is on permanently and the car shakes badly (not through the steering wheel) when you accelerate over 65 (not took it over 70 shaking yet).
Ive had the front wheels re balanced and the Garage has checked all the mounts and the running gear and the newish tyres and say all is just right underneath.
Anyone any ideas? Will the rear wheels need balancing with it being a 2 wheel drive?? etc .

lisaslandy said:

Will the rear wheels need balancing with it being a 2 wheel drive?? etc .

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All wheels are still turning, regardless of it being 2WD or 4WD. So all wheels in contact with the ground need to be balanced.
However I'd be checking for bent wheels or misshapen tyres.
Also do you know why it was converted 2WD? It could be that the IRD is damaged, which could be causing the shake. If the seller said it was for fuel saving, it's likely that the IRD or rear diff is shot, caused by a stiff VCU. Sellers often palm these less than perfect Freelander's off with the line "2WD for fuel economy). In actually fact, converting to 2WD makes so little difference to the economy, it's almost in detectable.

Nodge68 said:

All wheels are still turning, regardless of it being 2WD or 4WD. So all wheels in contact with the ground need to be balanced.
However I'd be checking for bent wheels or misshapen tyres.
Also do you know why it was converted 2WD? It could be that the IRD is damaged, which could be causing the shake. If the seller said it was for fuel saving, it's likely that the IRD or rear diff is shot, caused by a stiff VCU. Sellers often palm these less than perfect Freelander's off with the line "2WD for fuel economy). In actually fact, converting to 2WD makes so little difference to the economy, it's almost in detectable.

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Thanks for the reply. realy appreciate your help/

Had the car for some years now but strangely the shake only appeared since the sensor was replaced? The garage says that the wheels and tyres have been checked and all is fine. I will get the rear wheels balanced tomorrow and see if it helps.

Which sensor? It points to them not putting it back together correctly!

Was there any solution to this issue. I have a freelander 1999.converted to 2wd. Had it for years and then the speedometer stopped working. Had that sorted and now the car shakes like crazy over 65mph. 4 new tyres , all balanced. the amber hilll decent warning light is now on as well. great car other than this issue.

Petrol Freelander with HDC light on can be as simple as the throttle cable needs loosened at the throttle body or dodgy switch connection at the gear lever.
Did the shaking issue start after the tyres were fitted?

Thanks for your reply. The shaking happened after I had new tyres fitted all round. Ive had them checked and balanced again and its still the same. Had the'drop links' done around the same time (whatever they are).
The car runs like a dream. Cant even hear the engine. Lovely to drive but I need it on the motorway each day and Its a big problem.

Are all the tyres the same? They MUST be the same make, type and size.
It's not unheard of for an odd tyre be fitted in error.

The two front wheels are the same make and the two rear wheels are the same as each other. Just had the front rebalanced and the tyre fitter said they were well out. The shaking reduced slightly now only getting real bad arounfd 65pmh

lisaslandy said:

The two front wheels are the same make and the two rear wheels are the same as each other. Just had the front rebalanced and the tyre fitter said they were well out. The shaking reduced slightly now only getting real bad arounfd 65pmh

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Are you sure it's a 2WD? It sounds like a 4X4 problem when odd tyres are fitted.

If it is definitely a 2WD. What make of tyres are fitted. Are they decent, or cheap Chinese carp?

Defo a 2wd.

lisaslandy said:

Defo a 2wd.

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So the usual suspects are.
1: lower engine tie bar large bush gone overly soft. This bush takes a serious pounding when the Freelander is running as a 2WD.
2: There is a front inner CV joint worn. This makes the engine shake, due to already over stressed tie bar bush being loose.

Brilliant. I bet thats the answer. I will have them checked out.

Had the drop links sorted as well. Could this be a problem?

Drop links will give a rattle but no shaking or vibration.

Nodge68 said:

So the usual suspects are.
1: lower engine tie bar large bush gone overly soft. This bush takes a serious pounding when the Freelander is running as a 2WD.
2: There is a front inner CV joint worn. This makes the engine shake, due to already over stressed tie bar bush being loose.

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My mechanic has booked me in for next week. Would you say these are big or expensive jobs?

lisaslandy said:

My mechanic has booked me in for next week. Would you say these are big or expensive jobs?

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The bush should be 15 minutes tops and the CV joint probably an hour or so. @Nodge68 would know better but neither should be an issue for a garage. The parts will be quite expensive though as you need to use an OEM CV joint or you'll get a vibration.

lisaslandy said:

My mechanic has booked me in for next week. Would you say these are big or expensive jobs?

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As Ali said. The tie bar is a 15 minute job and will cost about £45.
The drive shaft will be more expensive as only OE shafts are free of vibration issues. OE drive shafts are much more expensive than aftermarket shafts. The aftermarket shafts I've used do cause vibration, so are pointless imho.

just got a call from the mechanic. Its been in the rsmos at the MOT station and 3 mechanics have looked at it with the parts waiting to be fitted. Told me id be wasting £200 on repairs as there is nothing wrong with the tie bar bush or the cv joint.

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
any ideas guys?

There's something wrong with it, or it wouldn't be shaking. My money is on an in board CV going bad and soft lower tie bar bush exaggerating the shake.
I can't see how your mechanics can say the CV is ok, as it's impossible to check with pulling the joint apart and measuring the wear. I've never seen a tie bar that hasn't gone soft either. Especially one that is running as a FWD.