Starting issues

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B

Birch

New Member
Posts
7
Location
Halifax
Hi all,

bought my first Freelander 2 weeks ago.
07 2.2 auto
And it wasn’t starting in the cold. Replaced battery (as it was goosed) aswell as glow plugs!!!
But still having issues on initial start up!
Could this be a fuel pump issue?
 
Hi,

error code is system terrain temporary unavailable I think, I will have to double check.

alternator is working fine and charging. Yeah starts eventually just takes a few whirls, then once’s it’s started once I can have it on and off all day with no issues. It’s the cold starts it’s struggling with.
 
Getting a Terrain Response not available warning is a typical sign of a weak or under rated battery, possibly coupled with an incorrect starting technique.
The TR unavailable means the battery voltage has dropped enough for data packets on the data bus to be lost or corrupted, which creates the TR unavailable message.

With the Freelander 2 where the battery is marginal, its important to allow the system check to complete before allowing the engine to start. Not doing so will cause lost data as the cranking takes place, giving the TR issue.

Having a correctly specified battery is also important as modern vehicles are very power hungry, and the Freelander 2 is worse than most.
Also it's possible to keep the battery in a better state of charge by locking the vehicle correctly by pressing the lock button twice (it's also more secure), as double locking the vehicle shuts the main computers down faster (in about 20 minutes), but single locking doubles the shutdown time, draining the battery more than it should.

Also it's not that cold yet so glow plugs aren't used much for starting, but they are used after a start to improve emissions, but that should be taken care of by the alternator.

So you need to see what power the battery is, and replace it with a more powerful alternative if it's lacking.
You also need to prevent it starting before the system check has finished, this should be done as a matter of course.

It's also be prudent to check the alternator output voltage, to make sure it's bringing the battery up to full charge.
Remember that it takes 10 minutes of engine running to put back the energy that every second of engine cranking uses from the battery. So if it takes 5 seconds of cranking, that will take about 50 minutes of running to replace the used energy.
Always double lock the vehicle, as this not only prevents the doors from being unlocked from the inside, but also shuts the computers down faster.
 
There is a mod on earlier freelanders to put an extra ground wire onto the engine. The original ones were a bit marginal and also prone to rusting where they bolt to the in the innerwing. Take a hefty cable from the battery negative and bolt the other end to the engine right next to the starter, have a look on the Internet for descriptions of how to do it. Also it is surprising how frequently the glow plugs can fail. I had a full set of original Land Rover glow plugs fitted and after two years, three, out of four had failed so worth getting them checked.
 
Stv123 said:
There is a mod on earlier freelanders to put an extra ground wire onto the engine. The original ones were a bit marginal and also prone to rusting where they bolt to the in the innerwing. Take a hefty cable from the battery negative and bolt the other end to the engine right next to the starter, have a look on the Internet for descriptions of how to do it.
Click to expand...
Definitely
This is a quick, easy and sure way to improve cranking speed, which is directly related to how fast the engine will start.
Stv123 said:
Also it is surprising how frequently the glow plugs can fail. I had a full set of original Land Rover glow plugs fitted and after two years, three, out of four had failed so worth getting them checked.
Click to expand...
Having 2 types of glow plugs doesn't help.
The early glow plugs were rated at 11 Volts and don't last long (I think I've got one go down after just 2 years), as they are used a lot for emissions control.
The later type plugs are 5 Volts, which fail very quickly if used in a vehicle designed for 11V plugs. This error happens a lot, compounding the plug failing issue.
 
Nodge68 said:
Getting a Terrain Response not available warning is a typical sign of a weak or under rated battery, possibly coupled with an incorrect starting technique.
The TR unavailable means the battery voltage has dropped enough for data packets on the data bus to be lost or corrupted, which creates the TR unavailable message.

With the Freelander 2 where the battery is marginal, its important to allow the system check to complete before allowing the engine to start. Not doing so will cause lost data as the cranking takes place, giving the TR issue.

Having a correctly specified battery is also important as modern vehicles are very power hungry, and the Freelander 2 is worse than most.
Also it's possible to keep the battery in a better state of charge by locking the vehicle correctly by pressing the lock button twice (it's also more secure), as double locking the vehicle shuts the main computers down faster (in about 20 minutes), but single locking doubles the shutdown time, draining the battery more than it should.

Also it's not that cold yet so glow plugs aren't used much for starting, but they are used after a start to improve emissions, but that should be taken care of by the alternator.

So you need to see what power the battery is, and replace it with a more powerful alternative if it's lacking.
You also need to prevent it starting before the system check has finished, this should be done as a matter of course.

It's also be prudent to check the alternator output voltage, to make sure it's bringing the battery up to full charge.
Remember that it takes 10 minutes of engine running to put back the energy that every second of engine cranking uses from the battery. So if it takes 5 seconds of cranking, that will take about 50 minutes of running to replace the used energy.
Always double lock the vehicle, as this not only prevents the doors from being unlocked from the inside, but also shuts the computers down faster.
Click to expand...


Hi,

I will double check battery output and see what it’s putting out. I have been having trouble with the key also so this could have been hindering the Battery this last week. Really appreciate all the advice.

I wait around 30/40 seconds once I have soft started the car, before firing it up. If that not long enough I will increase.
 
Stv123 said:
There is a mod on earlier freelanders to put an extra ground wire onto the engine. The original ones were a bit marginal and also prone to rusting where they bolt to the in the innerwing. Take a hefty cable from the battery negative and bolt the other end to the engine right next to the starter, have a look on the Internet for descriptions of how to do it. Also it is surprising how frequently the glow plugs can fail. I had a full set of original Land Rover glow plugs fitted and after two years, three, out of four had failed so worth getting them checked.
Click to expand...

Hi, I will look at doing this ASAP. Hefty being like a 6mm?
I had all 4 glow plugs replaced 30/11/22.
 
Birch said:
I will double check battery output and see what it’s putting out.
Click to expand...

Just read the details on the battery and post the information here.
Birch said:
I wait around 30/40 seconds once I have soft started the car, before firing it up. If that not long enough I will increase.
Click to expand...
You just need to wait for the system check on the dash to disappear, about 5 seconds, which is just long enough to put the seat belt on.
 
Nodge68 said:
Just read the details on the battery and post the information here.

You just need to wait for the system check on the dash to disappear, about 5 seconds, which is just long enough to put the seat belt on.
Click to expand...

battery details are as follows ;
Exide excell EB802
12v
80ah

appreciate the help again mate
 
Birch said:
battery details are as follows ;
Exide excell EB802
12v
80ah

appreciate the help again mate
Click to expand...
That Exide is rated at 80Ah and 700 CCA, which is the original specification, however in my experience Exide Excell often fall short on specification after a year or so.
Bosch, Yuasa and Hella are all rated at 85Ah and 800CCA for the same sized battery.

However if the battery is new and so presumably not faulty, was it charged before it was installed? Lead acid batteries loose charge in storage, something in order of 10% per month being typical, so it's essential they are fully charged before fitting to the vehicle.

It's also definitely worth adding the additional ground cable I've linked above.
 
Looks like the batteries on the way out on my '57 plate FL2. Had difficulty cranking over these past couple of cold mornings and I've had HDC and Terrain Response not available warnings.
Only got 11.7V on the terminals this morning. Got it started and the alternator is chucking out 12.5V, so no charging issues.
Put the reg no. into Tayna's website and they came up with a 096 type/profile battery.
Put the reg no. into Batterymegastore website and they specify a 110 type/profile.
Current battery is a Platinum 110 and is 5 or 6 years old, so it's served me well.

Will be replacing with a 110, either Bosch or Yuasa, although the Exide 110TE looks a contender.
 
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