Freelander 1 2002 - Turbo Failure?

Well since my recent clutch/ gear linkage issues have been resolved my hippo has been running well......very well in fact so I knew that in probability there was a problem looming...

Its a 2002 Freelander 1 GS TD4.

So here's what's happened.

For about 2 weeks I've noticed a very slight whine when accelerating...it sounded like the turbo on my old Uno Turbo sounded but much quieter so I was already thinking hmm turbo, don't usually hear that....

Went out yesterday for short run and as well as the whine I started to get a rattling sound that sounds like it's coming from behind the engine...Just about where I believe the turbo unit is. It came on very quickly from nothing to a very noticeable rattle (think pebbles in a can with a background whine to boot) within a few miles. A mile or so further down the road I start getting grey smoke (lots) with a tiny hint of blue in it and a loss of power; not complete loss but again noticeable. Fortunately I was less than a mile from the yard at this point so quickly headed back as I've seen an engine run away after a turbo failure and don't want that happening to me. Now I got a similar thing (minus the noise) when I had a loose injector so in hope I checked them but all was fine. Started looking around the engine bay for obvious signs of a problem and noticed what looks like lots of new oil around the intercooler hose where it connects to the intercooler. I pulled the hose and can see oil in the hose and running back out the intercooler. Not jugs of the stuff but enough for serious concern. Checked the oil level which was on minimum when usually the vehicle holds oil very well despite having 150k on the clock> I last checked it about 7 days ago and as usual it didn't need topping up so I know the oil has gone from max to mi in about 7 days - I'm guessing it actually did that in about 1-2 miles since the smoke started though.

So all this is telling me that I have a turbo problem (unless you guys can think of an alternative!!). I know its an expensive part and I know its a pain in the butt to get too (I believe you have to drop the IRD) but I'm reasonably handy with a spanner although lacking ramps etc so I'm guessing I could do this myself. When I look on ebay I can see lots of kits for Freelander 1 turbo's but they all seem to have different parts in them (for example
Land Rover Freelander1 TD4 Turbo Vent Filter Kit LLJ500010 or LAND ROVER FREELANDER 1 2.0 TD4 NEW GARRETT TURBO CHARGER FITTING KIT & BREATHER). If I buy a new turbo (by new I mean recon) can I "simply" unbolt the old, bolt on the new, and put the rest of the vehicle back together? Are there any other parts I'm likely to need or any other bits I should consider checking/ replacing whilst I'm down there?

Finally is there anything other than the turbo failing that could cause this (I live in hope).

Many thanks

Fritz

I can't write to tell you about the parts, but that's definitely your turbo gone.

Whine, blue smoke and oil everywhere in the intake = failed turbo.

You were correct to shut it down quick, runaway is usually fatal to the engines.

hey thanks for the quick reply. I'm hoping I can simply replace the unit as a whole as I've found some instructions on how to do that without dropping the IRD.

One thing I found out this morning after doing some more investigating. I got a local garage to change the crank case filter a couple of years back (they've gone skint since and I think I might know why). I thought I'd check it wasn't clogged as I understand that can affect the turbo. Anyway when I opened it up I have no filter. The buggers have simply removed the old filter and not replaced it with anything.

Do you think that could that be contributory to the turbo failure?

You can simply replace the unit BUT dont forget to clean the oil out of the pipework and intercooler or you could have a runaway when you fire it back up

Also you need to prime the "new" turbo with oil before starting the car after the transplant.

The other option is to consider replacing the turbo bearings and oil seals IF no damage has been sustained by the turbine assembly or housing............

Hi Digby

Thanks for the reply.

TBH I was going to replace the intercooler hoses anyway because the inlet at least (I can't reach the return) is feeling quite squashy. Is there other pipework I should be cleaning too?

And I was thinking of flushing the intercooler with it in place? I was thinking of filling it up with Gunk and then jerry rigging a reservoir above to let gravity do the work.

Didn't think of priming the turbo....Pull the fuel pump relay and crank a few times?

I did think about repairing instead of replacing but the more I think about the noises it made the more I think something catastrophic has happened inside. I'm thinking about a re-con unit from Nerings for 210 and the kits seem to come in at about 110 plus the hassle of actually doing the repair so I think I'm in the complete replacement area now.

Anyway thanks for the pointers, I'm almost looking forward to it now.

fritz

So at that price it becomes less interesting to rebuild - providing its a good rebuilt unit you can get

the pipes to clean are everything between the turbo outlet and the inlet manifold - replace if you want / need otherwise remove and wash out with petrol and dry before refitting.

To prime the turbo, cranking with no fuel is good - keep going until the oil pressure light goes out (and then some) just to be sure

when you do restart the engine you are likely to get a load of smoke from the exhaust as residual oil is burnt from the inside of the exhaust pipe - best to go for a run at night to clean it all out.

Have fun !!

So finally getting around to this job by following this guide.

https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-rover/how-to-change-turbo-on-a-td4.221780/#post-2510752

A friend and I are doing it and we've completed every step except step 11 as couldn't find the two bolts. The guide says they actually did that last and we were hoping it would become obvious by the time we got to that point but they aren't. Anyway after step 13/ 14 the turbo has dropped slightly and is kind of loose but still cannot be removed.

So pretty sure its step 11 that's still holding it in place but cannot for the life of us find the 13 mm retaining bolts (you have to feel your way as you are working pretty much sightless by this point) and we don't really know what they are referring to as the return hose.

Does anyone know what they are retaining/ what they fix to what/ etc.? Then I can hopefully find a picture in RAVE or at least have an idea of exactly where they are.

Or even better does anyone have the Haynes manual that would be kind enough to scan and up load the picture referred to.

So far it's a frustrating but quite satisfying job. As per the linked post I think if there's a next time it could be done much quicker (we're about 5 hours in but that includes removing & cleaning the intercooler; the two hoses connected directly to it; and the conical hose that connects the turbo to the metal hose that runs around the back of the engine to the intercooler (turbo outlet ?).

Many thanks

Fritz