Faults:

1999 Land Rover Freelander XEi

What a disappointment this car has been. I bought it five months ago from a very reputable dealer, but have had trouble from day one.

I had to wait a week over the agreed pick-up date because the clutch needed to be replaced (the car had only done 48,0000 miles and I could see from the documentation that came with the car the cam belt and the exhaust had already been replaced) and the CD player had stopped working. I should have taken this as a warning of things to come.

The day after I picked the car up I drove it 30 miles, parked it for three hours then drove back, not an arduous task for a robust Land Rover, not so, the engine over heated causing the head to blow and warp. I had to wait a week for the head to be replaced with anew one, the dealer told me that it was a common fault with these cars.

Then I thought it would be a good idea to get a ‘proper’ service from a Land Rover Dealer rather than rely on the pre pick-up service from the dealer. This is when I found out how expensive Freelander’s are to maintain, £1300 on brakes, fluids, tyres, replacement joints and other bits and pieces, too many to list.

With the car serviced and a new head I thought I’d take it on a 250mile journey, big mistake, broke down five times en-route! Eventually managed to get a Land Rover dealer to look at it (after waiting 4 days) fuel pump needed replacing, again ‘a common fault with these cars’ and a bill for over £300.

Nothing else could go wrong I thought, took it on another 250mile trip and the rear differential completely mangled itself, with a big bang while I was in the outside lane of the motorway and another bill for £800.

General Comments:

The styling of the car is great, the ride is great, the comfort is very good, but the very poor fuel consumption, very poor reliability, a general feeling of being under-powered, switching on the air conditioning affecting the performance and all the general rattles have made it a very unpleasant experience and I can't wait to get shot of it, I can only feel sorry for the next person to own it.

Faults:

Knocking from underneath - Fixed under warranty. It was apparently something to do with the torque converter mountings.

Squeaky front (Disk) brakes - Also cleaned out under warranty with no further trouble.

General Comments:

This four wheel drive really feels like a car on the road. It is quite nippy (although the TD4s are miles better)

Off road it is not a serious contender - it doesn't have a low box. Towing on rough ground is a problem. If you need this get a Disco or Defender.

The driving position/ handling/ performance is great. It currently returns about 37MPG.

The day after I bought this car it snowed like mad. The main roads were shut so I drove home across the moor roads in Derbyshire. If it hadn't been for the Freelander I would have spent the night in my car. If for no other reason definitely worth it.

Faults:

My timing belt snapped at 36,000 miles.

This resulted in a new engine. Due to a design fault with a pin above the sump guard, the new engine seized after 35 miles. Yet another engine was fitted.

A speed sensor blew at circa 40000 miles, which was causing the car to accelerate irregularly and almost resulted in a rear collision with an articulated lorry. The part took three weeks to arrive. When the car was returned, the sensor blew again. I needed to wait ANOTHER three weeks for yet another replacement.

At 68000 miles, the car is now reluctant to start first time. Somebody has suggested that this is an ignition coil.

General Comments:

I have traveled to France twice and once around Spain without any problems.

It is comfortable and, in terms of body and design, safe.

The interior is pleasant and the exterior still turns heads.

I would recommend the hardtop over the soft top any day to reduce noise and possible leakage.

For a diesel, the Freelander is quick off the mark.

It has good fuel economy despite its permanent 4 x 4.

If you have a family and live in a remote area, this car is excellent for winter and provides peace of mind in wet conditions.