Freelander Project III (Audrey)

Arctic2 said:

Scrap what you can out oven cleaner over night then give it a good jet wash out, please remember to remove the MAP sensor on the side 10mm bolt holds it in this too will need cleaning quick spray with carb cleaner and a wipe over will suffice.

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Thanks for the advice. I don't have oven cleaner handy but plenty of heating oil (paraffin) so will have a go at it with that. I ordered a spare manifold and EGR off ebay this morning so will always have a clean spare to hand.

Alibro said:

My mate is busting to see how it's done so not allowed to touch it unless he is here. It's a messy job tho so happy to share it.

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I'm doing my VCU later in the summer. I'm not going to cut mine open though. I'm going to drill and tap a thread in opposite sides of the casing. Then I'm going to use a grease gun filled with the fluid to pump in the new, hopefully pumping out the old fluid in the process. I'll then fit screwed in plugs to seal the holes. That's the idea anyway.

Alibro said:

Thanks for the advice. I don't have oven cleaner handy but plenty of heating oil (paraffin) so will have a go at it with that. I ordered a spare manifold and EGR off ebay this morning so will always have a clean spare to hand.

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Kerosene will work just fine for breaking up the black gunge. I used some on mine last weekend.

Nodge68 said:

I'm doing my VCU later in the summer. I'm not going to cut mine open though. I'm going to drill and tap a thread in opposite sides of the casing. Then I'm going to use a grease gun filled with the fluid to pump in the new, hopefully pumping out the old fluid in the process. I'll then fit screwed in plugs to seal the holes. That's the idea anyway.

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I think you might have to put white spirit or similar in first and run it for a while to try and thin the old fluid. It becomes like glue so won't be easy to shift. You really have no chance of shifting the fluid which is in between the disks

Was poking about in the engine bay and noticed this hanging down the back of the engine.



It is dry and doesn't smell of diesel so I don't think it's been filtering much for a while?????
Anyone any ideas what is going on here?

Also noticed this pipe flopping about.


I was thinking it is just a breather pipe and was able to snap it back into a clip so unless told otherwise I'm happy enough about it.

This is the manifold soaking in kerosene with strong paper towel shoved in the holes to act as a wick. Now I'm seriously considering an EGR bypass, I don't ever want to have to do this again.

Shouldn't that be an "Audrey Two" not a Three?
See who gets the reference.

The later models always looked quite pretty in light silver!

The filter is supposed to be there and open on a TD4 iirc - something to do with the turbo actuator, someone more clever than me will be along in a minute.

That "walking stick" shaped pipe looks like the gearbox breathers fitted to the defender.
I no expert on Freelanders but bet its similar.

I think @Nodge68 might advise against removing your EGR.

raywin said:

That "walking stick" shaped pipe looks like the gearbox breathers fitted to the defender.
I no expert on Freelanders but bet its similar.

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IRD breather?

Alibro said:

I think you might have to put white spirit or similar in first and run it for a while to try and thin the old fluid. It becomes like glue so won't be easy to shift. You really have no chance of shifting the fluid which is in between the disks

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I was going to give the fluid time to flow out. I think a daily turn a few degrees will help drain the fluid from between the plates. I'll have a month or so to get it out. My VCU isn't solid at 45 seconds for the OWUT. I hope the fluid is still fluid, not jelly

Alibro said:

Was poking about in the engine bay and noticed this hanging down the back of the engine.

It is dry and doesn't smell of diesel so I don't think it's been filtering much for a while?????
Anyone any ideas what is going on here?

Also noticed this pipe flopping about.

I was thinking it is just a breather pipe and was able to snap it back into a clip so unless told otherwise I'm happy enough about it.

This is the manifold soaking in kerosene with strong paper towel shoved in the holes to act as a wick. Now I'm seriously considering an EGR bypass, I don't ever want to have to do this again.

Click to expand...

The filter is the turbo breather. It just hangs down the back with one end open.
The bent over pipe is the IRD breather. It's supposed to be clipped up, like you have done.
Manifold cleaning is a horrible job but once it's clean, it's easy to keep clean.

davidsmith1307 said:

I think @Nodge68 might advise against removing your EGR.

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Mine runs horrible without the EGR working as it should. It gives my TD4 the 2K misfire.

Nodge68 said:

I was going to give the fluid time to flow out. I think a daily turn a few degrees will help drain the fluid from between the plates. I'll have a month or so to get it out. My VCU isn't solid at 45 seconds for the OWUT. I hope the fluid is still fluid, not jelly

The filter is the turbo breather. It just hangs down the back with one end open.
The bent over pipe is the IRD breather. It's supposed to be clipped up, like you have done.
Manifold cleaning is a horrible job but once it's clean, it's easy to keep clean.

Mine runs horrible without the EGR working as it should. It gives my TD4 the 2K misfire.

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If mine was 45 secs I'd leave well alone for at least 10 or 20k. Audrey is currently 3 mins so yours has a very long way to go . Mind you it feels really tight when driving so should have been sorted a long time ago.

As for the EGR I am giving everything a good clean and putting back as it should be to see how it is. That way I've a benchmark before trying the bypass.

B34R said:

Shouldn't that be an "Audrey Two" not a Three?
See who gets the reference.

The later models always looked quite pretty in light silver!

The filter is supposed to be there and open on a TD4 iirc - something to do with the turbo actuator, someone more clever than me will be along in a minute.

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Sorry lost on me.
All three of mine have been silver, just happened that way but not complaining.
So it's normal for the filter to be hanging unconnected?

Got a few things done today before the inevitable issue of ordering the wrong part cropped up,
Started by wiping down the manifold and getting it as clean and dry as it's going to be. What a horrible dirty job that was!
Then I fitted the new leakoff kit complete with brass fittings.


Very nice.



After that I decided to have a go at the rear drive shaft gaiter which was spraying a nice layer of grease on the bottom of the fuel tank and chassis



All was going great, the bolt holding the lower wheel hub came out nice and easy, the drive shaft came out easy, after a wee clean up the circlip holding the CV bearing popped out and the bearing fell off no probs. I then started fitting the new gaiter and discovered it is far too big for my drive shaft.
I'm not sure why as my cars VIN number is within the range quoted for this part but obviously someone got it wrong. It looks like there are two part numbers for this gaiter and I got the wrong one. Even worse the gaiter I bought was only £9 but the other one is over £30.

Did you get the gaiter for the rear and not the front? Front and rear gaiters look the same except the front is much bigger than the rear.

Nodge68 said:

Did you get the gaiter for the rear and not the front? Front and rear gaiters look the same except the front is much bigger than the rear.

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I checked this page on Rimmers http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-GRID009787 and found two part numbers for the rear inner drive shaft gaiter, then ordered this gaiter http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-TDR100710 from a cheaper supplier on ebay. It is too big for my drive shaft so I'm thinking his is the one I need. http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-TDR500220 but I will try to get it locally so I can double check it's correct before handing over the cash.

Alibro said:

I checked this page on Rimmers http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-GRID009787 and found two part numbers for the rear inner drive shaft gaiter, then ordered this gaiter http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-TDR100710 from a cheaper supplier on ebay. It is too big for my drive shaft so I'm thinking his is the one I need. http://www.rimmerbros.co.uk/Item--i-TDR500220 but I will try to get it locally so I can double check it's correct before handing over the cash.

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I seem to remember reading that there was a change in rear drive shafts. I'm not sure what changed or when however.

Nodge68 said:

I seem to remember reading that there was a change in rear drive shafts. I'm not sure what changed or when however.

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Some say 01 and some say 03, take your pick.

I just finished replacing the diff supports. What a pig of a job that was, not complicated but awkward to do while lying on your back having a constant shower of rust falling your eyes. Wrestling the N/S support into position was the hardest part but it's done now so once the O/S gaiter issue is sorted I'll replace the diff oil.
I'm not sure how much oil should be in the diff but I had expected to loose some when the propshaft was pulled out but none came out. Even when the diff was being pushed around to change the mounts it didn't spill any. I was also surprised to find that the diff mount bolts had copper grease so had a look at the service history and they were done last year only 8k miles ago.
I guess a combination of tight VCU and cheap rubbish parts are responsible for their short life. I used a Land Rover front mount but Bearmach rears as the rears don't get as much abuse.

Alibro said:

I just finished replacing the diff supports. What a pig of a job that was, not complicated but awkward to do while lying on your back having a constant shower of rust falling your eyes. Wrestling the N/S support into position was the hardest part but it's done now so once the O/S gaiter issue is sorted I'll replace the diff oil.
I'm not sure how much oil should be in the diff but I had expected to loose some when the propshaft was pulled out but none came out. Even when the diff was being pushed around to change the mounts it didn't spill any. I was also surprised to find that the diff mount bolts had copper grease so had a look at the service history and they were done last year only 8k miles ago.
I guess a combination of tight VCU and cheap rubbish parts are responsible for their short life. I used a Land Rover front mount but Bearmach rears as the rears don't get as much abuse.

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You'll get about 1/2 a Litre of oil out of the diff. I fill them to the filler hole which is about 700ml of oil. I use an 80w90 semi synthetic in the rear diff.

Nodge68 said:

You'll get about 1/2 a Litre of oil out of the diff. I fill them to the filler hole which is about 700ml of oil. I use an 80w90 semi synthetic in the rear diff.

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I suspect mine is low then so will have to sort that out too. Any suggestions how to drain it?