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first Freelander purchase advice please


martin_t

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Hi

I am on the market for a Freelander1, round about 2004. I am advised to look for a TD4 as the best option. I have seen a couple in a Landrover garage nearby for between £6000 and £7000. Does that seem a fair price? What are the main things I should be looking for or checking?

Any advice would be greatfully accepted.

Thanks

Martin

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Way too much for one that age,have a look around on Ebay and all the internet sales sites.

I'm just s bit scared of buying private and getting a dud as I'm no expert on Freelanders. At least paying over the odds from a garage, I would get a warranty. Not sure which way to go.

Martin

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Warranties are rarely worth the paper they are written on...

However, you are in a better situation for compensation if it goes bang within 3 months nowadays, but that is literally it.

So, find a dealer that doesn;t want quite so much for one, a LR specialist rather than a LR main dealer, where they will undoubtedly be overpriced.

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Hi

I am on the market for a Freelander1, round about 2004. I am advised to look for a TD4 as the best option. I have seen a couple in a Landrover garage nearby for between £6000 and £7000. Does that seem a fair price? What are the main things I should be looking for or checking?

Any advice would be greatfully accepted.

Thanks

Martin

Thats well overpriced have a look on ebay at TD4 auto (best model) then filter for low mileages , and look for full service history

you should find a decent vehicle for half the prices of those you mention , even from dealers HSE is top spec

and worth having .

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£6000 is FL2 money. I wouldn't trust any used-car salesman's private warranty package to be worth the paper it's written on.

Have a read back through this forum, buying advice for FL1 / TD4 has been done to death including all the things to check / look for / avoid.

You'd be better off buying any old TD4 for £2-3k and then spending the change sorting out any problems at a reputable independent specialist.

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Why would you be silly enough to buy any petrol Freelander 1 - just too much worry and a money pit.

Because I'm not ignorant. and have an understanding of mechanics and the engine in question.

As for money pit, don't be absurd. The rest of the car is the same ffS :rolleyes:

The FL1 to buy is a late model TD4 auto - the best of the lot.

It's slow and sluggish. And will be worse on fuel than a manual Td4 and a lot less fun to drive.

They have a place and maybe a good option off road or towing, although no better than the V6 in this regard, just better on fuel.

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I don't know why people who hate them feel the need to chime in & take the p***, I don't chime in on Defender threads calling them crusty unreliable old sheds :rtfm:

Petrol freelanders have a bad rep but with the well-known issues taken care of properly can be bargains.

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I don't know why people who hate them feel the need to chime in & take the p***, I don't chime in on Defender threads calling them crusty unreliable old sheds :rtfm:

Petrol freelanders have a bad rep but with the well-known issues taken care of properly can be bargains.

Absolutely, the petrol one I bought for my wife did 8 years work on the road,(£500) and has now retired to firewood and off road driving instruction for my daughter and friends.Did 100k in it after replacing the head gasket properly. My wife is now the proud owner of a £400 TD4 which was bought with a noisy thrust bearing and seized rear brakes. Both are good cars,better of road than my DII unless in deep ruts.

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For my part I owned a Freelander 1 for over 10 years covering 200,000km. I still have a dead IRD, VCU and rear diff taking up space in my garage.

If you are a skilled mechanic I guess you can cope with a petrol but for a reliable everyday driver, as I indicated above, go the TD4.

Reading between the lines, this is what the OP wants - relatively worry free motoring.

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Sigh.

I've no issue whatsoever with people posting about bad experiences, problems encountered, etc. but just chiming in with "I hate them, they're rubbish" or similar is pointless and doesn't help the OP one way or the other. For all the good it does you might as well say "all blue cars are carp".

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Hi

I am on the market for a Freelander1, round about 2004. I am advised to look for a TD4 as the best option. I have seen a couple in a Landrover garage nearby for between £6000 and £7000. Does that seem a fair price? What are the main things I should be looking for or checking?

Any advice would be greatfully accepted.

Thanks

Martin

I bought my 02 TD4 auto with 103,000 miles for £1500 knowing it needed a few bits. Typically, new window motors and a driver's door lock as it didn't work on central locking. Problems with the VCU/IRD are well known but mine's been OK in this regard. Also had to replace prop shaft bearings. The sunroof doesn't work properly but not bothered as I never use them.

Generally it's a decent car but all the peripherals are c**p. Leather interior, cd changer, engine and gearbox are nice. Would I buy another? Probably not but its not been a disaster.

Oh, and it looks like a girl's car.......NOT butch in any way!

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi, Just thought I would chip on this one.

I was in a similar position as martin t, looking to buy my first Freelander 18 months ago. As has been mentioned all of the usual faults can be found on these pages and it certainly helped me to ask a few sensible questions and look in the right places.

I purchased an 03 Kalahari TD4 from a local small specialist with 130K miles for £2300 that reputedly drove as " they should", obviously being new to Freelanders I couldn't judge this accurately. Although there was little history other than a couple of ancient bills from a main dealer she drove cleanly and quietly and was remarkably presentable. I am not worried by high mileage if everything is hanging together nicely.

In the last 18months I have done 18k miles with little or no trouble. I did have a complete service (every job listed in the Haynes manual service section up to 60000 miles) performed after 3 months of ownership by my usual mechanic. As commented the notional warranty from the dealer is largely worthless unless your vehicle blows up on the way back from its initial purchase, my enquiry about a couple of points was met with a " what do you expect" approach - which at this sort of price is probably fair.

Other than the above service I have had to replace the front discs and pads, I could see the discs where about run out when I made the purchase so carried on until the pads practically met ! The lack of hill descent was tracked down to a broken wire under the gear shift gaiter. A new rear diff oil seal was also required - this took 3 trips back to local specialist ! ( Not so special maybe)

In terms of advice/observation I can say that I get about 44mpg providing I don't have to spend too long on the motorway keeping up with the flow, taking the prop off (the vcu has started to fail) doesn't really add to the fuel efficiency and you do feel less planted on the road. ( I will re-instate 4wd at some point) The sunroof did work in a very leisurely fashion but I have taken the advice and shut it and taken the fuse out. Having 17" wheels is fine for the road but get a spare set of something smaller for some less expensive and more competent off road rubber. I think I have stopped the water accumulating in the rear tool box but have learned to only drop the tailgate glass if desperate as it has come adrift from the lifting mechanism twice and its an irritating job to do in the dark in a carpark if your in a hurry! There are a few clonks from underneath and no doubt a couple of joints will be required for the next mot. The handbrake isn't brilliant despite a couple of strip downs.

My circumstances have changed since getting the car, so my limited off road use is now virtually nil hence the lack of importance of a vcu replacement but I am reluctant to part with her, - there is something about "Freelandering"

Cheers

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