Freelander 2 (LR2) HALDEX WOES !!!

Hi All.
I have a Freelander 2 diesel which I purchased new in 2011.
at the ripe age of 3 years, 3 months, I had the ' traction reduced' and 'special programs turned off' warning light come on. Each time I started the car, it would be OK and then after a few miles the warning returned. This only happened for 2 days and then it was ok until earlier this year. Since it started playing up again, i have had strange rumbles, noises etc, uneven tire wear and at one time a screeching metal on metal noise.
I realise its the Haldex Unit causing these problems.
I have been offered 2 options by the local independent dealer, overhaul the Haldex pump (approx £600) or a new Haldex Gen 4 supplied and fitted at approx £2000.

Option 1, overhaul the Haldex pump in theory sounds fine but they say there is no guarantee it will solve the problem for more than a few days / weeks / months. Option 2, have a Gen 4 Haldex fitted, which is what I see as the most logical option,but having read up on this, It appears the Gen 4, if it goes wrong in the future, cannot be overhauled at all, whereas the Gen 3 can be overhauled.

Can anyone advice me of what they have or would do in this situation please.
Many thanks
Julie

When was the Haldex last serviced with a fluid and filter change?

Contact Bell Engineering, they are the go to guys for this sort of problem. http://www.bellengineering.co.uk

GrumpyGel said:

When was the Haldex last serviced with a fluid and filter change?

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It has never been serviced....ever

Snaggapuss said:

Contact Bell Engineering, they are the go to guys for this sort of problem. http://www.bellengineering.co.uk

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Thank you. I have seen their site whilst trawling the interweb.

On two wheels said:

It has never been serviced....ever

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an unfortunate common problem, landrover list the haldex as a "for life" component and thus it doesn't come up on service lists, but in my relatively few years of owning my own f2 I have realised that the simple task of changing the filter and oil on a regular basis can save a load of grief further on down the line. (which reminds me, time to change oil and filter on mine. Whilst your at it change the oil in the transmission as well, another "for life" component.

Snaggapuss said:

an unfortunate common problem, landrover list the haldex as a "for life" component and thus it doesn't come up on service lists, but in my relatively few years of owning my own f2 I have realised that the simple task of changing the filter and oil on a regular basis can save a load of grief further on down the line. (which reminds me, time to change oil and filter on mine. Whilst your at it change the oil in the transmission as well, another "for life" component.

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Yes, hindsight is a wonderful thing. Im supposing its far too late for me to change the filter and oil now and hope for a miraculous recovery?

On two wheels said:

Yes, hindsight is a wonderful thing. Im supposing its far too late for me to change the filter and oil now and hope for a miraculous recovery?

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I'm going to change the oil in mine, although the only hint of a potential problem is a slight judder if I pull out of a junction.

I'm pretty sure mine is the original fluid too, which isn't good at 119500 miles.

On two wheels said:

Yes, hindsight is a wonderful thing. Im supposing its far too late for me to change the filter and oil now and hope for a miraculous recovery?

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I'd be getting it serviced first before hitting the expensive fixes. I'd recon there's a reasonable chance of it sorting problems.

Only take it to someone you are sure will do a good job and the price should be no more than £250 including the parts/fluid - Bells quote £180 but I don't know if this includes the service items which they sell for £60.

If you can get it to Bells, then brilliant, but they do have a backlog at the moment, there's a current thread running where someone is having to wait at least 5 weeks for them to sort his F2.

It would need to be a garage with experience of the Haldex - I don't think it needs to be LR experience, for example Volvos use the same Haldex unit.

LR indies are not necessarily experienced in transmissions on Freelander, dealers should be OK (but check the price) and even they are more interested in flashyer models in the range because they can charge more, so may not see 2nd hand age Freelanders. If you go to an indie, have a look at what sort of vehicles are parked up outside their unit - if they are all old Defenders and Discover1s then they will be great on those cars, but not necessarily on Freelander - they are very different beasts.

Others may disagree with what I've said here