No comment
Head gasket has gone requiring a new engine (this seems to be a common problem with this car)
The car was only 5 months out of warranty. I have since read several reviews about this happening. How are Land Rover getting away with it?? I think something should be done.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 7th March, 2003
My Freelander has been an expensive nightmare
Well, where do I start. This car has been in and out of the garage since I got it.
The most recent fault is that the head gasket has blown. The head itself is also being sent back to Land Rover to check if it is not porous!
Three months ago I had to have a prop shaft bearing replaced. Admittedly it was not the same bearing that was replaced nine months ago!
The clutch needed replacing after 21,000 miles, and may I add that I haven't had a clutch replaced on any of my other cars in over 30 years of driving.
The servo-steering unit had to be replaced before the car had reached 15,000 miles.
There are many other instances of repairs, but I honestly forget what they all were.
The car has cost over £4,000 within the last year alone, and I will be changing it very shortly. For obvious reasons, I don't want another Land Rover for the rest of my life.
The Free Lander is a very pretty car.
It is responsive, and it handles very well.
The interior is very comfortable, and is a joy.
However, its reliability is shocking. I have heard from other sources that it is not my car alone which has faults, but many other owners face the same problems.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 20th January, 2003
My Freelander needed a new engine after the head gasket went when the car was barely a year old. Since then I have also had the clutch replaced, propshaft bearings. The water coolant system is faulty. I am about to have the third engine fitted. I will never buy another Freelander.
Richard Horne.
I recently contemplated buying a Freelander 1.8 petrol, but was talked out of it by a friends' friend, who happens to work for a Land Rover dealership on the south coast of England. Apparently this particular engine is known to be problematic, mostly due to over-heating and gasket problems - this chap reckons it's because LR fit a scuff plate to the bottom of the engine as standard in the UK, but that this restricts air flow, and consequently causes over-heating. He claims to have changed numerous 1.8 litre engines, and that he would definitely not recommend one. Must be about time that LR came clean on this issue I think.
A nightmare car that must not be touched
Head Gasket blew and leaked into cylinder head requiring new cylinder head.
Had a dreadful time with the dealer and Landrover. The car was only weeks out of warranty, had a full dealer service history and Landrover or the dealer would not help with the repairs. I have since found many other owners of this car who have the same problem. LR know about the problem and published a technical document describing the fault and vehicles that it will affect. There are many more cars that will suffer from this problem.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 14th December, 2002
We have a 1998 Freelander, one owner, 74000 miles, which has had the cylinder head gasket go a second time, this time cracking the cylinder head. This is on top of numerous other problems including a leak which lets water into the stowage locker under the luggage compartment floor, and which has never been cured, despite it becoming evident when the car was new.
Land-rover and the dealer seem to think this is quite normal; I think it is disgraceful. I have a BMW of the same age- never any problems, and I am sure that any would be dealt with speedily. No wonder one buys German!
14th Feb 2003, 10:55
My Freelander has had numerous problems. The most recent the head gasket failing causing coolant leakage. I have to have a new engine. This on a car just over 3 years old. I don't believe it's the "best 4 X 4 by far". I have discovered head gasket failure is a known common problem yet Land Rover have been very unhelpful. I purchased the car believing it to be sturdy and reliable. I feel I have been deceived.