Ok, I will let you know what the dealer says today, but will get Sarah looking for some more FLs to drive.

A more general question, if we are going from a 3 year old RenaultSport Megane to a FL1 is it going to be a mistake?

In general how reliable are they? I guess on the positive side I would be able to do most of the work myself on it.

It would be a second car and only used for about 20 miles a day.

We had sporty cars before the freelander, and to be honest we've never looked back.
Just remember like any second hand car, you won't know the full history of it. So give it a good test drive and push all the buttons.
As with Any car maintainance is the key. Look after it and you will get less trouble.

Check
Central locking works, locks are a weakness.
Hill descent, put it in first and press the button. It shouldnt go over 5mph down hill.
Rear door handle, they rust and come lose.
All tyres are the same. Mismatched tyres can destroy the drive train.
It doesn't smoke like an old tractor, give it a boot and check for clouds of black smoke.

Have fun!
Mike

Thanks Mike, useful list.

The one we test drove had a dual sunroof, do they normally rattle or is it fixable? I think it would drive me mad!

Same as ours, usually the catches need tightening, or the rubber seals have worn.
Easiest to take them out and give the area a good fettle. I use leather food on the rubber, helps keep them quiet.
Mike

doesnt detract from the major issue here.

£4800!!! for an 04 plate td4!

:5bsmilielol5:

Thats just stupid money for an 04 plate. Get yourself on ebay, buy one for £2000! and then you have £2800 for any issues it may have.

Ones I've seen lately have been 3 to 5k at dealers. Always pay a premium at dealers for the warranty.
If the drive systems chuffed, could save you more money in the long run.
You pays your money, as they say.
Mike

true, id rather buy one thats already broke and get it dead cheap, rather than have it last until the warranty runs out before it breaks!

Skinny Mike said:

Same as ours, usually the catches need tightening, or the rubber seals have worn.
Easiest to take them out and give the area a good fettle. I use leather food on the rubber, helps keep them quiet.
Mike

Click to expand...

I took mine out cleaned all the hard and green buildup out and vaselined them.

ZDomZ said:

I took mine balls out, cleaned all the hard and green buildup out and vaselined them.

Click to expand...

i knew there was something about you norfolkers

My partner is pretty specific about what one she wants, hence the price.

Has to be a manual Sport or HSE, under 100k miles and not in silver. Some of the adventurer ones don't look too bad either.

She also won't get a car that needs fixing, guess she doesn't trust my mechanic skills!

It would have to be from a dealer too, as it would go on a credit card for a few months.

Is that Ashbourne Derbyshire your from?
If so try

http://www.cloverleafcars.co.uk

Not too far away. Plenty to try.
Mike

Skinny Mike said:

Is that Ashbourne Derbyshire your from?
If so try

Used Cars Sheffield, Used Car Dealer in South Yorkshire | Cloverleaf Cars

Not too far away. Plenty to try.
Mike

Click to expand...

Yep.

Interestingly enough I sent a link to the HSE one to my partner earlier. Will go and have a look at some soon then.

You've definitely got to try a few - if they're going to do some work on the gearbox, it won't sell for a bit presumably if it turns out to be the one you want. Mind you knowing there is an issue, might be worth giving it a miss anyway!

My '99 (L Series) gearbox I'd describe as OK - not sporty crisp or sloppy - just OK. Although reverse is a bit vague which I think is pretty common.

There's been a popular thread on here recently about Freelander reliability and the consensus I believe was very positive. There are some annoying things like drop links that pop up often and a lot of the issues here I think are with 'cheap' replacement parts that aren't up to the job an fail very quickly. Its worth spending a few extra quid on these types of bits if they need replacing. The BIG thing is the transmission - the VCU - which I'm sure you're fully aware of. Its absolutely critical to keep on top of tyres and tyre pressures and don't get lazy with them, or it'll bite your bum - or at least your bank account. I don't know if the 'cracked chassis' was fixed in later models, but that's a problem the Freelanders are/were prone to - have a search for it on here if you've not heard of it.

When you're looking at Freelanders - make sure you look in the cubby box in the boot floor - its a good sign of whether the car is water tight - its not called the goldfish bowl or fishtank for no reason. Also the passenger footwell carpet - that can get wet for a number of not so nice reasons.

I'd had Discos (TDI & V8) for over 10 years before the Freelander and initially I found it a bit boring, but I love it now, great car. I've piled on the Ks touring NZ without skipping a beat (well it did once!) and with great economy. When I've stuck the boat on the back and laden it with a few 100 Kgs of camping gear its got the family comfortably over mountains and twisty backcountry roads. It takes me fishing, skiing or down the shop equally well. Top car.

The only time it has let me down was when I got lazy checking the tyres, distracted by having friends visit and just wanted to go out touring - and an under inflated tyre caused the VCU to blow the IRD. It is a shame such a simple thing can cause such major problems, but even given that, its still a top car.