My Story...

I popped my cherry and bought my first landy about a fortnight ago.

Scraping the bottom of the barrel i must admit, but there is a credit crunch on so a range rover was certainly out of the question

bought a landrover freelander s, 5dr 1800cc petrol, it's on a Y plate and registered 2001, 115k on the clock, it's in generally good condition but there are a few things.

1. the other day (after having added about 500 miles to the odometer) the engine management light came on , there doesn't seem to be any change in how it drives (no limiter etc.) but would like to know if there is a sneaky fix, like turning the key in the ignition switch 20+ times < have tried this, doesn't turn the light off

2. The drivers electric window wouldnt work properly, the regulator wire snapped and got wrapped up inside the coil housing causing it to jam completely, stripped it out and put it back in with the broken wire removed. could anybody recommend where to buy the replacement wires at a reasonable price?

3. in the boot the well was very damp with plenty of water and mould in there, dried it out using a small fan heater, given it a good clean to get rid of the smell, is there a fix to this problem or does it just need dried out on occasion?

4. finally, the drivers side windscreen wiper stopped working, this was an easy fix, had to flick off the cap and just tighten the nut (for once a simple job with no complications )


Only paid £1000 for the car, and that was from an auction house so no doubt i'll have plenty more to add to this list before I decide to sell it on.

"before I decide to sell it on"

hmm.. next week? At a grand I suppose you can't complain, though I would have personally spent the grand on a defender. One word of warning though, one hint of loosing coolant/oil then you need to get shot QUICK.

The 1.8 gaylanders are notorious for having repeat head gasket faliure, and like to drop liners. But keep an eye on the fluid/oil levels and you should be ok.

Oh, and don't get it wet, the doors will fall off

Welcome to looneyzone

hey boomer butplug, come n say hello........

welcome:welcome2:

1. need a code reader to read codes and turn off mil

2. ebay

3. rear door seal or seal around fuel filler

TheVengefulElephant said:

"before I decide to sell it on"

hmm.. next week? At a grand I suppose you can't complain, though I would have personally spent the grand on a defender. One word of warning though, one hint of loosing coolant/oil then you need to get shot QUICK.

The 1.8 gaylanders are notorious for having repeat head gasket faliure, and like to drop liners. But keep an eye on the fluid/oil levels and you should be ok.

Oh, and don't get it wet, the doors will fall off

Welcome to looneyzone

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well funny you should mention this, I think the reason it was in auction was a head gasket problem.

when i got it home i lifted the bonnet and the engine looked unusually clean, like brand new clean, which i thought was a bit suspect, a short look over to the left and a look at the water tank and I could see that the water level was low and the water that was in there was very gunky and brown. I checked the oil colour etc and all looked fine, the engine sounds fine with no loss of power and the heaters work ok and it's not even come close to overheating for me.

so i'm half assuming that the previous owners had a head gasket problem, got it fixed and put it straight in for auction to get rid...


i've also got a sneaking suspicion that they may have had the engine management light reset also, as it came on while i was driving the car for no apparent reason...???

Hmm I think you could be onto a tired old dog there. I rekon you should tidy it up a bit, give it a full service, rag it around a little, sell it privately for more than what you brought it for, and spend the proceeds on a defender (Y)

TheVengefulElephant said:

Hmm I think you could be onto a tired old dog there. I rekon you should tidy it up a bit, give it a full service, rag it around a little, sell it privately for more than what you brought it for, and spend the proceeds on a defender (Y)

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fer once nellys makin a lot o sense welcome by the way:welcome:

also out of curiosity (please forgive me if it is a daft question) but is my model a 4x4??

I cant find an obvious switch like on our other 4x4, there is like a pull down latch thing on the gearstick but this shows sort of a picture of a car on a hill with an R and a downward arrow

:s

Mr Anderson said:

also out of curiosity (please forgive me if it is a daft question) but is my model a 4x4??

:s

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Aa yu asked me personally - the answer is "Allegedly"

I do like the defenders, and they would be perfect for my work but I dont think it would suit the wife and kids as much as me.

go for a disco then

what daft says has merit

Defenders are OK if your 5 feet and a fag end, dont mind having your right leg smacked every time you close the door and can wrap your legs double jointed round the footwell to get them away from the steering wheel!!!

Yes, it will be 4x4, unless of course someone has taken the prop away.......... so get underneath and see if the prop shaft and viscous coupling (in line with the prop) is still there. People that have trouble with the VCU and IRD remove the VCU if they dont need the 4wd.

The switch you turned on was Hill Descent Control (HDC). Only works in 1st and reverse gear, to be used when going down steep or slippery hills, keeps the vehicle at a steady, slow speed to help stop it slipping. While in use, keep off the brakes, clutch and gas so it works alone. HDC uses the ABS sensors to detect slippage in the wheels and brakes wheels individually to slow you down (or something like that)

Steve

Tomo1971 said:

Defenders are OK if your 5 feet and a fag end, dont mind having your right leg smacked every time you close the door and can wrap your legs double jointed round the footwell to get them away from the steering wheel!!!

Steve

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I'm 5ft 9" and dont smack me leg ever when I shut the door, Don't have any trouble getting into the car or with the steering wheel getting in the way. Might have something to do with fitting Bucket Seats and having to move them 40mm inboard to avoid fouling the seatbelts. And as a result of moving them over I don't smack my elbow on the door either.

redhand said:

I'm 5ft 9" and dont smack me leg ever when I shut the door, Don't have any trouble getting into the car or with the steering wheel getting in the way. Might have something to do with fitting Bucket Seats and having to move them 40mm inboard to avoid fouling the seatbelts. And as a result of moving them over I don't smack my elbow on the door either.

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5ft 9" ....... Only in your 4" high heels:brick: