I am in the middle of a live freelander head gasket scenario now.
My R reg owned by me since 2001 and fully dealer serviced let go a gasket and cooked an engine at 92K (only 42K done by me) in 2002. Unfortunately I was not aware of the emerging problems with the K series engine at that time so stumped up £ 3,600 plus for a replacement and back on the road.
Last week after another 42K the same thing happened!
I am waiting for Chipperfield Landrover to get back to me having talked to LR. Ironically I was about to buy a diesl auto from them so they may well have lost that sale unless LR UK come up with a good deal.
Chipperfield have given me a nice HSE 1.8 to run around in for which I thank them, also they are very sympathetic to my plight. However watch this space.
Worth reiterating, this was a FULLY DEALER SERVICED VEHICLE.
At this rate the next head will last less than 20K !!!!!
LR FREELANDER 1.8 HARDBACK 2002, 30,000 UPDATE FOLLOWING PREVIOUS MESSAGE.
As arranged by land rover assistance vehicle was taken to Guy Salmon Leeds( where it was purchased ). Received a phone call to confirm HG was the problem and after pressure testing we needed a new head. We also mentioned that the windscreen wipers were noisy and that the d/s window struggled to get up and down.
Two days later we received our LR back - not a penny to pay all the above work including the wiper linkage and part for the electric windows were covered under the manufacturers warranty In total approx £ 2000.00
We received 100% customer service from Guy Salmon Leeds and cannot praise them enough, nothing was too much trouble and the car was even valeted inside & out before we got it back.... WELL DONE GUY SALMON LEEDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
New years eve..! of all days, just setting off to a party. Noticed the temp gauge was at its max. turned off the engine as had a good idea what the problem was, on inspection the water resevoir was empty and when oil cap removed found a white gunge( water & oil mixed ) pretty sure this is the CHG.Telephoned LR assistance who I might add have been great, provided a courtesy car and have arranged to collect my car to take to the main dealer after the holiday.
After reading all your comments I am prepared for a fight, I absolutely love my Freelander and am gutted this has happened. Only had it eight months and its been been 100% reliable up to now.
Will update when main dealer has inspected vehicle.
Joining this 'club' is like graduating ... ! I feel I have arrived.
This is our second Freelander, first one was a complete nightmare and possibly the worst thing I ever bought in my life. After 3 years of absolute hell and regret culminating in the entire 4WD system packing in, traded it in. If only I hadn't bought another - what was I thinking?!
Brand new Freelander went back to a certain Guildford main dealer 9 times in 12 months - because the wipers would either throw themselves off, or just fail. LR UK said it was because my wife let the wipers stop in a vertical position and then they frooze to the windscreen. In August. The hottest August on record. How we laughed!
Latest situation is that the clutch just failed totally. Why? Because on a routine service, I asked aforementioned LR dealer to oil the clutch pedal to stop a slight squeak. They REPLACED the clutch, which 5 days later fell out on a Hampshire lane, stranding the wife on her own for 3 hours. Not a happy woman!! Tried to complain to LR UK, but lost the will to live after realising I needed a mathematical formula to figure out how to get LR Assistance to speak to LR UK and Dealer, but without me talking to LR Assist chap but can talk to LR UK and Dealer (according to LR UK bloke on the Complaint's service). Hopeless.
QUESS WHAT I GET TO JOIN THE CLUB. HEAD GASKET HAS JUST BLOWN CHRISTMAS EVE AT 57K HAVE HAD CAR 6 MONTHS ITS ON A 2000 REG. LOTS OF MINOR PROBLEMS TO I SHALL BE POINTING OUT. HILL DECENT DONT WORK. REVERSE GOES IN WITH A CLUNK, WASHERS DONT WORK . ONE DOOR DONT OPEN ONLY DOES WHEN IT FEELS LIKE IT S AND ITS CENTRAL LOCKING.I RECENTLY WORKED IN LOGISTICS IN LANDROVER WHEN SPEAKING TO THE GUYS, THEY TELL ME LANDROVER FREELANDERS ARE PUT ON THE ROAD WITH OVER 15 DESIGN FAULTS. WISH I KNEW THIS BEFORE BUYING ONE.
yes I have a blown gasket too at 65000.00 miles and I was quoted 3200.00 for the repair. Afterwards I found out how common this is from everyone I mentioned this to, and some one told me that Land Rover had a policy of 'good will' about the repair. When I made enquiries about this I was told that the dealer who quoted the repair would have to apply for me. When I asked why I had not been told about this, I was told that dealers were not allowed to tell the customer and that 'the customer has to ask first'
Driving home last night in my 1.8 Freelander and the temperature gauge went through the roof. No water in the resevoir. Phoned Land Rover, they say it looks like the head gaskets gone. I took the gamble buying it....paid the price!!! Shame cos I like the car.
This is a letter (condensed to important details) emailed to LR UK Dear Alison Re my phone call to yourself on the 17/11/04 Freelander cylinder head fault. The cylinder head has obviously been blowing between No1 cylinder and the water jacket (hairline fault on head,no visual problem to the gasket which know happens (as seen on watchdog) and had expected BUT NOT @ 18,684 MILES .This in my view is a manufacturing fault. A new head will cost me £750.00 + vat excluding labour. I am looking for a contribution towards the £750.00 for this fault. I understand you were not happy that I had dismantled it , whoever dismantled it would have found the same fault. I am an engineer by trade.I am more than happy for you to inspect. My father had a RR HSE ,I have a Discovery, my wife has a Discovery,I also have a 1951 LR 80", 109 LWB and an LR ambluance both for restoration and also use a LR 90 for the farm.In the past I have had an RR classic shape and an LR 90 hardtop so being a LR enthuiast I find this unhelpfullness difficult to understand. The hardest work this Freelander ever does is pull a 72 year old lady and my sister around (no off road work what so ever). FREELANDER INFO YEAR OF MANU 2000 1ST SERVICE CARRIED OUT 15/11/00 2ND SERVICE CARRIED OUT 13/02/02 @ 6,678 MILES 3RD SERVICE CARRIED OUT 03/03/03 @ 10,226 MILES PRESENT MILAGE 18,684 MILES THIS EQUATES TO LESS THAN 2 YEARS AVERAGE MILEAGE (10,000 PER YEAR) FROM NEW THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.
Please could you explain the reason behind the thermostat modification carried out on this model?
How can we all remain loyal to LR and buy future LR knowing that they may only last for 18,684 MILES before blowing up and be treated so poorly by yourselves?
I urge you to reconsider this to salvage your reputation.
I have finally had a telephone call from Alison after sending 3 emails and 3 faxes and numerous phone calls to say they will not assist.
Own a 1999 freelaner 1.8s, head gasket blew (surprise surprise). this vehicle is out of warranty so will have to pay for repair. Landrover say a new engine was needed, they didn't even need to look at the car! Got some other advise from various garages who all said the chances of it needing a new engine was very remote, it would only be the head gasket. Decided to have a look myself as have been in the trade years ago, water in cylinder 3, had the head skimmed new gaskets put it all back together, runs perfect now all for a cost of about £250.00. I spoke to landrover who said it was cheaper to replace the whole engine than to strip it and repair, this i find hard to believe, it took me 14 hours to complete and i'm no master mechanic. if any one wants any more info on parts and suppliers please contact me [Log in to view email] and will gladly pass on any info.
Hi to all fellow landrover victims. Own a 1.8i v reg landrover freelander. Bought it 18 months ago, worse decision I ever made. Car riddled with problems, in and out of garage at least 10 times since I bought it. Constant battles with what they say warranty covers. To top it off head gasket blew on the weekend. only 53,000 on clock. Have only done 13,000 since I bought it. Have pointed out that if they have admitted to watchdog they have a problem then they have sold me a car with a known fault (this they cannot do). In middle of discussions about damage will update later.
I cannot fault Gatwick Landrover in any way! They are the most helpful bunch of people I've ever come across. They bend over backwards to be of assistance even with the smallest of problems. The new showroom is fab - a real credit to them - if you haven't been in - go!
Bought a 2000 1.8 3 door in April 2003 which had done approx 60000km. Came with FSH from dealers. Clock display faulty but car in excellent condition. Didn't take long to start experiencing crunching reverse and finally had the clutch replace last week at 95,000km (cost R4200).
At 80,000 km service had a bunch of little extra's done which added R2000 to the bill. Have also had front left CV replaced (R2400) with part of the cost covered by extended warranty. I have been trying to get rid of the vehicle and can't. Land drover dealers offer R25 to R30,000 below trade and this weekend I discovered that the IRD unit is only expected to do 100,000km - comment by dealer in Pietermaritzburg. In addition when the clutch was fixed I asked them to investigate a minor vibration I felt when accelerating - turns out the catalytic converter is busy packing up and will cost R7500 to replace. According to my local dealer this convertor was removed from subsequen year models as it was not suitable to South african conditions. Most recent annoying niggle is the faulty selection swith on the radio refusing to go to CD mode. This happens frequently after the car has been switched off. Do I like my freelander - yes. its a great car. Would I get another one? Not unless someone else paid (and kept on paying the unending bills)
Bought my 1.8i 50th Hardback in June 1999, among some minor problems, had my first Engine replaced @ 22K (£2K under warranty), then ECU & ABS Modulator in 2004 (£3K).....
At this point was ready to sell.....cleaned the car....took it out
Now here I am driving a courtesy car whilst my car is recovered with another Head Gasket failure @ 58K...
I have owned my freelander 98 S reg for 18 months. It was high milage when i bought it but knew nothing of the problems I have been reading about here. At the moment it is sat in the local garage unable to move. I have been told it is probably going to need a new engine!! If anyone can help me out here please e-mail me [Log in to view email] I have a full service history for the car...is there anyway i can get landrover to pay for part of the costs? And has anyone had any luck in doing this?
Update - I have commenced litigation with GUY SALMON LANDROVER who's only defence appears to be that I cannot sue them because I did not have a contract with them as I bought the car on finance. However, I have been advised by my solicitor that as I paid them a deposit, there was a contract and are therefore liable. This is an absolute scam and I am not backing down (a point of principle, I don't care how much it costs). The hearing is listed for 15.12.04 in the county court and I will update later. Meanwhile, anyone who does not get full satisfaction from LR should think about starting an action with their dealer as they are liable. Also, I have found Guy Salmon to be less than helpful - having spent a small fortune with them over the years, the SYTNER Group will not see any of my money again!
Ok, so I've just had the Freelander back from its 12,000 mile service at the dealer. The invoice total of £330.99 does cause a momentary arching of the eyebrow. For a quick oil and air filter change I think the dealer can't be doing too badly. I notice on the invoice the addition of 'Environment charge...£5'. Not a lot, you may say, but what the hell is it? I am told its for getting rid of your used oil... hmmm
The car, a TD4, is running relatively smoothly although the clutch has come back feeling quite heavy. I guess something has been adjusted. Previous to the service I had noted some minor clutch judder when pulling away cold so we'll see if anything has changed. HDC light has also alarmingly flickered on once or twice. Apart from that pretty trouble free so far.
Owned a 1999 5-door top-of-the-range model - petrol manual from new and sold it at 100,000 kms vowing never to own another Landrover EVER.
Where do I begin to relay the endless nightmares I had with this "lemon". While under warranty I had at least five recalls for various niggles - mainly poor fit and finish. At one point the hill-descent-control developed a mind of it's own and would engage itself while driving on-road - in motorway traffic etc, - you can imagine how "exciting" THAT was. Problem was eventually rectified.
My biggest nightmares came at around 70,000 kms. Yes a head gasket blew on the motorway in peak hour traffic - it was just outside warranty and took me 10 months of battling with Landrover New Zealand before they finally coughed up with the whole NZ$1000 for the repair. The vehicle "cluttered up" their local agent's garage for all of that time as I refused to pay for it - knowing if I did I would never get reimbursed - (luckily I owned two other vehicles and could afford the luxury of time - much to LR's chagrin). It only got paid out once I threatened to "go public" in various ways (and I would have) - that LR came to their senses and acted morally and ethically for once.
Worse was to come - two months later the radiator "packed up" and was beyond re-conditioning - it needed a whole new radiator (another $1000)! God knows what was going on in the engine to cause such a failure?!
Now for the finale - just one month later a whine started to develop in the rear wheels and before I knew it I was up for $8000 of repairs to the differential - all this on a vehicle that had traveled less than 100,000 kms and had NEVER been off-road!
What can you say or do - the stress and worry was enormous. I can still feel the sense of relief at finally getting rid of that calamitous "dog". They talk about these things crossing the Sahara desert - mine could barely get to the front gate! NEVER AGAIN!
I've gone back to Japanese and haven't had a worry since - purchased a Lexus RX330 about six-months ago - what a beauty - Lexus TOTALLY deserves all the good press it gets. Take my advice - if you're thinking of buying a Landrover - think again - there are better ways to throw away hard earned cash - like taking a "world trip" with the money you'll save on endless repairs and depreciation.
What are peoples opinions of the 2004 freelander? they have upgraded the 1.8k engine... is it any better as regards head gasket problems? any opinions??
I have a 1.8 XSi freelander that is 6 years old. its just done 67K and is loosing coolant. the LR garage tells me it needs a new HG. Joy.
I am thinking about changing to a TD4.
Over all i think i have done ok with the XSi. In the 3 years i have owned this car i have only had to replace the sunroof rails, and the LCD clock.
UPDATE Called Land Rover. They have a policy of assisting customers with the blown head gasket problem on vehicles up to 6 years old, and 60,000 miles. The vehicles also need a service history!
Luckily I have all these - the process is that you have to drop the car into a Land Rover dealer, they file a report to Land Rover on the condition and Land Rover then decide how much (%age) to pay. Costs range from £800 for the 'simple' head gasket reparation, all the way to £2,500 if the engine has blown.
Do make sure that you hassle Land Rover - without this site I would probably just have coughed up for a repair at an independent!!
So thanks for sharing - thats what the web is all about. Ultimately, a visit to this site may have saved me £2,500!!!
Cheers all......I think a Kia Sorento is high on the list for a replacement - and it'll be a diesel this time!
I've had a Freelander XEi 5dr (1999) for 15 months. Its been on two very long trips to the South of France, with absolutely no problems whatsoever to date.
Some of my friends have had them and cursed the K series engine, but until yesterday I just scoffed and imparted my 'no problems' for me guff.
Yesterday, 50mph on the A12, funny burning smell and a loud bang. Having been a veteran of head gasket problems (my old Volvo 940 exploded nicely - with a £1,000 bill) - I thought I knew what the problem was. I drove for 1/2 a mile to the nearest lay-by, keeping the speed to 25, and got out. Well, the tell-tale 'emulsion' sliming down the front wing immediately gave it away.
Note to self - read review websites before buying another British motor!
All ratings and reviews are submitted by visitors to this web site, and represent their own personal opinion. They do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of Preloved.
You use this information at your own risk. Preloved can not be held responsible for any damages or loss resulting from the use of this site. Please see our Terms and Conditions for more details.
