2000 Vauxhall Frontera DTI from UK and Ireland - Comments

This car has had 5 sets of front discs and pads because they keep warping. It works out at roughly every six months.

It has also had one set of rear discs and pads at 50,000 miles.

One water pump at 58,000 miles.

Engine control unit at 55,000 miles and another at 62,000 miles.

Although nothing was found by the garage, the 4 wheel drive made a horrible knocking noise when driven for more than half an hour when the car had done 50,000 miles plus. The problem seems to have gone for now.

For the price of the car the interior is very basic and the plastic looks cheap.

It is OK on straight roads and motor-ways, but rocks and rolls round corners.

What use is a 4 wheel drive car without a differential lock?

I read somewhere else that warped disks can be caused by keeping your breaks applied after coming to a stop on heavy breaking.

I think I caused this to happen on my car because the motorway slip road that I came off was a downhill slope with traffic lights at the bottom. I would come off the motorway hit the brakes, come to a halt and keep my foot on the break until the lights changed. The disk under the pad cooled down slower than the rest and caused it to warp.

This might not be the cause of your warped disks, but the explanation that I got sounded reasonable, hopefully it will save you some money.

Kind regards

Richard.

In response to the question "What use is a 4 wheel

drive car without a differential lock?"

It's not clear whether you mean centre diff lock

(as fitted to e.g. the Discovery) or an axle

diff lock (as fitted to e.g. the Patrol).

The reason the Frontera does not a centre diff

lock is that it doesn't have a centre diff.

In this respect it is exactly like the Patrol,

Trooper, Fourtrak, many Jeeps and Series Land

Rovers. Having no centre diff is no disadvantage

off road. It is a disadvantage if you want to

drive in 4wd on the road; you'll damage the

transmission as you have perhaps found judging

by your comments about noises. RTFM next time.

If you meant an axle diff lock, there is the

option of a limited slip diff which is better

than nothing.

Part time 4x4s are used the whole world over made by Toyota, Isuzu, Suzuki, Nissan etc. etc. They are adequate for snow, ice, sand, mud, wet grass etc., and can only come 'unstuck' when one or more wheels rise off the ground (which momentum usually prevents in any case). Landrover, to whom I presume you refer are practically non existent compared to these other makes in Australia, Africa, Arab Countries etc. Are they all wrong, and 'green oval' drivers the only ones who know? Is this what you are saying? Come on now!

What exactly do you want from 4 wheel drive? If you want permanent 4 wheel drive to drive on tarmac with the grip and roadholding like a Subaru does, purchase a RAV4, X-Trail,or one of the many pavement 4 wheel drive vehicles available without diff locks, but remember that you pay the price in fuel consumption as you are driving two axles all the time.

The Frontera has a brilliantly designed system, two wheel drive with the resulting economy for normal everyday use, and selectable 4 wheel drive with high and low ratios and diff lock available when road conditions turn treacherous with snow or ice, or for serious off road use.

I would take a Frontera anywhere a Land Rover can go, and have often done so!