Newbie..is anyone still alive here?

So I'm probably a bit late to the party (as usual for me) but after wanting a range rover for as long as I can remember, I am now the proud owner of a 51 plate 3 door td4 hippo. I found this forum by searching for bits n bobs...I also found it very useful for information. I thought I better say Hi because Im sure you will here a lot from me..especially when I am looking for advice or help etc so...well...HI people!

Anyway, first impressions of my freelander 1 are....it does have issues that I didn't see or hear when i test drove it, it is going to cos me money to keep it alive....I am now committed to getting my shabby little hippo in great shape and keeping it that way now I have driven and own one! I actually love it! No wonder you see pre war land rovers still being used as daily's. I even have my beloved motorbike up for sale to put the money back I spent buying it.

Up to now......

When I bought it, the prop was in the boot :$ so I re-fitted it and found at 55mph plus, i had a ww2 spitfire following me down the road. After a bit of googling (other search engines are available) and finding this forum, I purchased a pair of new prop bearings and today fitted them. This solved the spitfire problem thankfully. My next major issue is a water leak im working on near the water pump. I have a new water pump and thermostat so whatever it turns out to be I think i have it covered. Other than that, it seems pretty solid. Few minor things annoying me like the fact it need a gear linkage bush kit, and I still have not worked out how to get the hard top out from under the roof bars (like i said..first time owner). Im not sure weather I should refurb the wheels (bit shabby) or buy a good second set for summer maybe. Anyway, that's me and my hippo saying hello.

Thought you wanted a Range Rover?

Welcome any way

I did, but love pretty much all land rovers. The freelander seems an obvious option for me because it is so versatile as a 4x4, or at least it seems it (being a new owner I don't actually know yet).

Good luck with the new car mate They are a great motor but do require a little TLC. It sounds like your the kind of person you likes to make sure the car is right so you'll have endless fun with your hippo. As most people out there drive their car until it breaks you always get plenty to fix when you buy 2nd hand.
As I already said in your other thread, test your VCU. A stiff VCU will trash your drive train in no time costing many hundreds to put right.
Common faults are:-
Boot door handle bolt holes rusting. Get down low and look up to see the issue.
Window regulators
Boot door mechanism
Fuel tank supports rust to nothing
VCU stiffens and takes out the rear diff and the IRD. (very expensive)
Usual silly electrical nonsense you expect from any British car
Rear door stays get sticky with not being used but not a problem for you.
Rear Diff supports
VCU supports
TD4's can have issues with thermostats, MAF sensors and/or injectors.

Take a look here at my last project car. It was bought as a runner and described as Mint but if you look down the first post I have a list of jobs I did you'll see it was far from it.
I suspect many folk would have bought this car and driven it without doing any of the jobs I did but I like to make them as good as I can.

Thanks I will have a look. The worrying VCU seems perfectly fine, no heat build up and it does work as it is supposed to i believe so that's a bit of a worry out of the way for now. I do have a plenty full list, however like you say, mostly minor things like a stiff rear door etc, wouldn't have been bothered but the missus struggles to open it
All in all, it doesn't seem too bad and drives remarkably much better than i thought it would. Only thing I'm getting used to is the road noise from the big all weather tyres it has fitted, (they look like all weather...not dirt but not road only), and that they are not the quietest of vehicles, but it goes with the territory I suppose. Much better with new prop bearings that's for sure
Im an instant fan whatever it throws at me.

Lewall said:

Thanks I will have a look. The worrying VCU seems perfectly fine, no heat build up and it does work as it is supposed to i believe so that's a bit of a worry out of the way for now. I do have a plenty full list, however like you say, mostly minor things like a stiff rear door etc, wouldn't have been bothered but the missus struggles to open it
All in all, it doesn't seem too bad and drives remarkably much better than i thought it would. Only thing I'm getting used to is the road noise from the big all weather tyres it has fitted, (they look like all weather...not dirt but not road only), and that they are not the quietest of vehicles, but it goes with the territory I suppose. Much better with new prop bearings that's for sure
Im an instant fan whatever it throws at me.

Click to expand...

I suggest you read this. My Twopence worth is on the 2nd page.
https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-rover/noisy-vcu.305754/page-1