A couple of questions about my Freelander

I have a 2001 Freelander TD4 Auto, have owned it for a couple of months now and think it is brilliant. I have a couple of issues that someone may be able to advise on.

1) Sometimes when I start it up, the engine idles a little erratically around the idle rpm range. - not sure why.

2) When driving on the motorway at about 70mph, my steering wheel seems to vibrate, this is annoying. When I bought the freelander, I put a set of 4 Parelli Scorpian STR tyres on. Together with the normal wheel balancing that the tyre garage does, I had the tracking done. I thought that this should sort out any motorway wobble on the steering wheel - Any ideas?

3) The other day on the motorway i took it upto about 80-85mph and the whole car seemed to vibrate which was a little disconcerting. - Any ideas on that.

Thanks for any ideas/hints you may have.

steering wobble is common at around the speed you talk.best drive faster till wobble stops.

nitropaul said:

I have a 2001 Freelander TD4 Auto, have owned it for a couple of months now and think it is brilliant. I have a couple of issues that someone may be able to advise on.

1) Sometimes when I start it up, the engine idles a little erratically around the idle rpm range. - not sure why.

2) When driving on the motorway at about 70mph, my steering wheel seems to vibrate, this is annoying. When I bought the freelander, I put a set of 4 Parelli Scorpian STR tyres on. Together with the normal wheel balancing that the tyre garage does, I had the tracking done. I thought that this should sort out any motorway wobble on the steering wheel - Any ideas?

3) The other day on the motorway i took it upto about 80-85mph and the whole car seemed to vibrate which was a little disconcerting. - Any ideas on that.

Thanks for any ideas/hints you may have.

Click to expand...

Greetings,
No1: Throttle potentiometer/position sensor intermittent signal to ECU at idle or one of the injectors may be on the way out. I would have a scan carried out to check for stored fault codes.
No2: Examine the front drive shafts and wheel bearings for signs of wear.
No3: If not related to No2 then I would suspect propshaft ujs and VCU support bearings.

Good luck.D..

Dann, thanks for the reply. Any ideas on how I can check the items that you have pointed out? Thanks

Do not put off sorting a dodgy injector. I will update my thread on the matter once I get mine back from the garage and know exactly what happened!

nitropaul said:

Dann, thanks for the reply. Any ideas on how I can check the items that you have pointed out? Thanks

Click to expand...

No1: Throttle potentiometer- this sensor is located just above the throttle pedal, check the multi-plug is secure and you might try 'wiggling' the wiring and sensor while the problem is happening, a sudden improvement would show you were on the right track.

Possible injector fault: As you don't mention any starting or engine power problems, the injectors may well be o.k but make sure the electrical plugs to the injectors and the high pressure regulator (located battery end of common fuel rail) are clean and tight.

No2: First job, make sure the wheel nuts are all tight and check that the balance weights haven't fallen off one of the front wheels.
Take a careful look at the tyres, although they are new they could still have faults or been badly fitted. Put pressures up to 30psi all round. Check wheel rims for damage.

Jack up each front wheel in turn and grasp tyre at top and bottom, then side to side feeling for any slackness in either wheel bearings or steering/suspension components. Now with the car supported safely with axle stands, examine the front drive shafts looking for split gaiters and undue movement/noise from joints.

No3: Most likely suspect is one or both VCU support bearings. grasp the propshafts near the bearings and push up and down, if there seems to be a lot of movement then the bearings are probably worn.

One way of identifying this type of problem is to remove both propshafts and VCU then a test drive in front wheel drive only.

Good luck.D..