TD4 Auto-Bad rumbling/Vibration

I seem to have a new problem with my TD4 Auto every week and rapidly going off Landrover very quickly, they just don't seem very reliable at all?
I had an axle/driveshaft bush replaced yesterday for a 2nd time in 3 months. the new one failed and the mechanic fitted a replacement one yesterday FOC. He said he thought the bush was originally fitted back to front and he suggested fitting the new one the other way round. I hope this is making some sense to someone out there? When I went out on the motorway today at 50-60mph there was a really bad rumbling/vibration coming from underneath the vehicle and you could feel it through the steering wheel. I phoned the mechanic and he said he will re-fit the bush the other way round tomorrow. If the bush is fitted incorrectly will these symptoms arise?
Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

What's the bush? A Freelander doesn't have axles and the driveshafts don't have bushes. If a new bush fails that fast, it was ether a low quality part or it was fitted wrong!! There is almost no way a bush could be fitted the wrong way round from the factory!!

Does it still have the vcu fitted?

Yes it still has the VCU. I have just checked the mechanic's invoice and its got Z mounting not bush. Does that make any sense?

Rapidly goin off Landrover:hysterically_laughi

I know how you feel, ive had a vibration for months now, its goin in again next week to a different garage to see if they can find the problem.

A lot of the vibration/rumbling noises can be put down to tyres, I know from first hand experence. I had two tyres replaced on the front of my freelander just over a year ago as soon as they were put on I noticed droning noise and felt a vibration, I went back to the garage and the new tyres were put on the back, still had the droning and vibration. Four weeks ago had all four tyres replaced and had Pirelli STR's fitted. No more droning and no more vibration.

Check your tyres before spending out lots of money on things that might not need replacing. The two tyres that were changed were Michelin's and they put two Avon's on, never again.

could be the tyres or the "bush" he put on is not central and at 90 degrees to the prop or that the VCU is on its way out this caused the whole car to shake going up hill in my old one

This thread needs more info from apexblue.

Is the vibration constant?
Does it depend on which gear the auto-box is in.
Does it occur with power on - or off?
Does accelerating change the vibration at all?

We still don't know for sure which 'bush' we are discussing.

Does the mechanic mean a VCU bearing?

Singvogel.

Well, my bastard vibration isnt really noticable at first, as soon as engines upto temp it starts, seems ta be front central, nothing felt through the steering, just floor vibration and happens in any gear underload.

Also i started gettin like a very random clank noise.

when last was the auto fluid changed mate ?

mark

im having this noise too.VCU wasnt the problem cos i removed the prop and it was still there.My lower rear engine mount was shot so i replaced that and still happening.I'm looking at changing my cv joint son drivers side now

Ok, here goes. The vibration is not constant at low speed and is not noticeable at all when driving round town at 30-40 mph, but when I hit the motorway and get to 60 mph its then when I can feel this bad rumbling and vibrating coming from underneath the vehicle, which is very annoying to drive. It feels like a propshaft rumble/vibration of some kind? I only notice it when at speed in drive, as I don't really use the other forward gears. If I accelerate quite hard, I can also feel the problem, but I never drive it hard anyway. I don't think the so called "bush", as I have been calling it is the VCU bearing. I was told it's the "Z" mounting which is located at the end of the prop shaft where it enters the rear diff? Thanks

Just out of curiosity what tyres have you got on all four corners ????

Grayo,
The tyres on mine are 2 Bridgestone on the front wheels and Nexen on both rear wheels, although I had never heard of Nexon, I have just searched the net and they come up as a half decent tyre from South Korea.
Can this mismatch of tyres cause my vibration/rumbling noise at speed?

apexblue said:

Grayo,
The tyres on mine are 2 Bridgestone on the front wheels and Nexen on both rear wheels, although I had never heard of Nexon, I have just searched the net and they come up as a half decent tyre from South Korea.
Can this mismatch of tyres cause my vibration/rumbling noise at speed?

Click to expand...

It did with mine. I had two Michelins on the front and two Uniroyal's on the back. Changed all four a few weeks ago and it's 100% improvement. I had four Pirelli str's put on, purchased from www,mytyres.co.uk the cheapest I could find on the net. Buy them from them and they ship them to a dealer near you to have fitted. Very good service.

Apparently there are only a few tyres that are a match for the freelander Pirelli, or Continental, to name a couple seem to be the best. Lots of info on forum about tyres for a freelander.

Thanks for your reply Grayo,
I will consider the tyres, although they are all virtually new, it seems a shame to change them, If I am not sure what the actual problem is? My vehicle is booked in at my local garage on Tuesday, who are taking it out for a test run then onto the ramps for closer inspection. I will post the results of their findings on the forum later in the week.

apexblue said:

Thanks for your reply Grayo,
I will consider the tyres, although they are all virtually new, it seems a shame to change them, If I am not sure what the actual problem is? My vehicle is booked in at my local garage on Tuesday, who are taking it out for a test run then onto the ramps for closer inspection. I will post the results of their findings on the forum later in the week.

Click to expand...

Yep thats what I did as well, cost me an extra £300 to have the two prop bearings changed and all it was was the tyres. Do you know anybody else with a freelander that you could change the wheels over to test it ???

No, I don't know anyone else with a Freelander to change wheels over. I have already had the Z mounting changed which is between the prop and diff but it had gone anyway, so I will let the forum know later in the week with the findings. Thanks

Just an update for the forum on this vibration/rumbling noise. My garage had the test drive, then put it on the ramps today. the diagnosis was it needs 2 front propshaft bearings which are badly worn and the anti-vibration damper is perished. These were the causes of the above problems. I am having the work done next week, as the noise is driving me mad plus if I leave it, more problems will arise.
Also, with regards to my ABS brake shudder problem, I am having both front outer CV joints + reluctor rings + abs sensors fitted. Although it's costing a small fortune to put right, it has to be done, as it's my only vehicle and it need to get it as reliable as possible.
One word of warning to anyone thinking of buying a TD4 or TD5 without any service history. DON'T DO IT! I have now bought 2 with no history and learnt the hard way.

Let us know the result after the repair. I had the two prop bearings changed as well but have never heard of the Anti vibration damper ??? thats a new one on me. Let us know.