Freelander 1 V6 Engine Replacement

Here we go! It's actually worse than what the video shows because of the cameras white balance.

Absolutely nothing to worry about with that amount of steam. It's completely normal for a Freelander V6 or well running 4 cylinder to make that amount of steam. Even my TD4 makes that much when it's cold. My V6 used to make so much steam that it would blow inside the car in the wind. I'd not worry about it myself. As long as the engine isn't blowing coolant out through the pressure cap, there's little to worry about.

Seems an awful lot to me! So do you think I should go ahead with the thermostat change and see how long that lasts me? I'm worried about the knocking it's making too. Seems to be blowing the exhausts fumes out in puffs rather than a smooth output.

The engine sounds fine from the video. The inlet plenum is rattling but that's common when they wear out. Your new one might better in that respect.
I think I'd change the thermostat and see how it goes to be honest. If the engine does turn out to duff. The thermostat can moved to the new engine easily

I thought the same - I was expecting a far more spectacular steam display!
That's not terminal. Change the stat and see what goes.

I bought my K series for £280 because the seller saw a similar amount of steam coming from it and thought the HG was gone. I've been driving it for a month or so now and still waiting for a problem. Not saying it won't go anytime soon, it is a K series after all but for now it's OK. I think the car was lying up for so long it was probably full of condensation.

I really hope it doesn't turn out to be a head gasket problem Alibro. Fingers crossed you just got a bargain there. The video I posted doesn't really do it justice. The white balance of the camera isn't true plus it was a really bright morning yesterday. It's been smoking for a while. It couldn't have been related to the thermostat before as there was no water under the car. I'm pretty sure that's just a recent thing. My engine management light was on solid for a while then it went out then immediately after I was having major water loss. Probably was under such pressure internally that it found the weakest point, in this case the thermostat housing and blew it!

I watched that how-to video again (and again) from Atlantic British last night on how to change the thermostat. Upon his recommendation, I'll have to order that special grabber-type tool for when replacing the inner bolts on the lower part of the manifold.

You didn't need any special grabber tools for replacing bolts. They are a fiddle but if my sausage fingers can do them anyone can.

Haha! Brilliant!

Only buy tools when you have proved you need them, otherwise you'll have to sell the car to make space for all the tools that you are recommended to get!

Yeah I know! Haha. I have everything else. That grabber is only £8 from eBay and knowing me, without it I'll get really frustrated and drop the bolt like, 100 times before I get it in!

I'm looking forward to doing this job but also kinda dreading it too! Hope I don't mess it up! Haha.

The hardest part will be remembering where all the pipes and wires go. So use labels and pictures for that. The next hardest part will be removing the remains of the old thermostat from the block and refitting the new stat without damaging the O ring. Make sure you have some plumbers silicone grease for refitting or you'll struggle for hours, only to find that the O ring is scrap. Been there done that

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm going to label and photograph every step, making notes of the steps on the way so I can just follow it in reverse to refit everything. Still can't believe how many connections there are with this job.

I bought an O-ring with the thermostat along with the elbow and straight pipe. I hope that's the O-ring you're talking about? I also hope I don't damage any connections that have become brittle over the years. Being a heavy handed drummer with a touch like an elephant I'll be proceeding like I'm playing the classic board game of operation!

This is the O-ring I bought. Is this the one you mean?

Andythedrum said:

This is the O-ring I bought. Is this the one you mean?
View attachment 97348

Click to expand...

That's the O rings. You'll need 4 to complete the job but I always get a couple spare, just in case .
Oh also, when you remove the old thermostat and elbow pipe, you'll probably find they break off in the block. This is where the fun starts as the remnants need careful removing as A, you don't want to be blocking to water ways with broken plastic pieces. B you don't want to be damaging the block boring by using sharp tools. Getting the stuck bits out is often the worst part of the job. After the plastic remnants are removed, the block needs a good but non-damaging clean. I find sponge backed pan scourers work well for this task. You want to clean round the boring, not up and down, or you'll make tiny scratches that could cause leakages.
Make sure you lubricate with silicone grease on assembly as it increases the life of the O rings as well as reducing the chance of them getting damaged in the first place.

Andythedrum said:

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm going to label and photograph every step, making notes of the steps on the way so I can just follow it in reverse to refit everything. Still can't believe how many connections there are with this job.

I bought an O-ring with the thermostat along with the elbow and straight pipe. I hope that's the O-ring you're talking about? I also hope I don't damage any connections that have become brittle over the years. Being a heavy handed drummer with a touch like an elephant I'll be proceeding like I'm playing the classic board game of operation!

Click to expand...

Suddenly Andythedrum makes sense. Sorry what was that you said, Pardon, can you speak up a little.

Hehe! Thanks again for your advice and support everyone. I read before that picking parts of the thermostat out was expected. Fun. Not! That's my biggest worry about this job.. Breaking or breakage of parts as I do it. And after getting all the way down to the block the last thing I want to do is damage where the thermostat connects.

I had no idea that this job required 4 O-rings. Damn. I'll have to get on the phone tomorrow and order some more. Is there anything else I need for this job? I have the thermostat in the housing, elbow pipe and straight pipe. And the one O-ring of course. Do I need anything else? I was hoping I could use Vaseline instead of silicone grease only because I already have that. Would that work ok? Thanks again.

You'll need 2 large zip ties for each end of the straight pipe. These simply stop it moving sideways. You'll see how it goes when you pull it apart. The streight pipe is greased up with "silicone grease", slips all the way into the water pump housing tube. Then thermostat is fitted, followed by the elbow pipe. The bolt is then fitted, keeping them in place. Then once both stat and elbow are in place, the straight link pipe is slid into the thermostat to bridge the gap. The large zip ties are then fitted to the narrowed ends to stop the straight pipe from moving to far each way.

Silicone grease is available at any plumbing supplies place. It's used for plastic plumbing fittings like wast pipes. It's the only suitable lubricant for this job. Oil based lubricant will damage the O rings and squeeze out as the O rings are pushed in. So it must be silicone I'm afraid.

Hi Everyone,

Just thought I'd give you an update. My replacement engine arrived on Wednesday and is sitting on a pallet in my garage for when the time comes.

I made a start on attempting to change the thermostat today (on my existing engine that is!). All went fine with the disassembly except when I got to the actual thermostat itself. When I touched the thermostat the top of the housing came off in my hand only with the slightest touch which shows how bad it was. Anyway, upon trying to remove the hoses they just won't budge! How do I get them off? I raised the little clips on the front of the hoses but they won't budge in the slightest.

I'm a bit bummed out as I was really pleased with my progress up until that point. I've had to stop and carefully place everything inside the engine bay with the hope of another attempt another day.

Here's a pic of the section that I mean..



Oh and I removed the single bolt that holds the housing and elbow pipe in but none of that would budge either.