3dr Serengeti??

[SiT]

Good afternoon

I will shortly be in the market to buy a new car and after narrowing down what i need from a replacement i have pretty much settled on a 3dr Freelander.

Initially i was looking at the standard range available considering both 1.8 and TD4 engines. I then came across the Serengeti model and fell in love with it straight away!!! I really like the extras on it, the wheels really suit the car and the privacy glass and dark interior trim look superb.

So having narrowed it down i have a couple of questions -

In relation to engine choice i am still undecided, i normally cycle to work which is literally 15mins down the road so my car often stays at home on the drive. My wife has a company car for which the fuel is paid for and for nipping around town on the weekends we tend to use this. Where my car comes in is during my days off which are often during the week, it will be required to tow and launch a jetski fairly regularly too. With this is mind i was leaning towards a 1.8 petrol as fuel consumption won't really be too much of an issue but would like to hear peoples thoughts??

This leads me onto my next question.....if i plumped for a 1.8 model i would more than likely have the had gasket changed straight away. I have read that there is a suggested upgrade/kit which is recommended and wondered if somebody could list the individual parts or point me in the right direction??

With regard to budgeting for a replacement HG what is the typical cost to do this in peoples experience?

Some of the Serengeti's have the rear bars which go up and over the hardback portion of the car, this is something i like however not all of them are fitted with them. If i ended up buying one without them are they an easy fit and what sort of price are they?

Is there a Freelander parts specialist on the net which you guys tend to use?

Sorry for all the questions, no doubt i will think of some more along the way and thanks in advance.

Si

[MJIbex]

Some of the Serengeti's have the rear bars which go up and over the hardback portion of the car, this is something i like however not all of them are fitted with them. If i ended up buying one without them are they an easy fit and what sort of price are they?

The roof rack system was not standard. Very easy to fit about 10-12 bolts. From memory the kit was around £300 at main dealer plus fitting. Remember if fitted it makes removing the hard top considerabley more interesting and not a 1 person, 1 minute job.

Mark.

[rustymark]

Price is spot on for the bars but you should be able to find a set with a bit of trawling the tinterwebnet at various breakers yards / ebay sometimes.

Why bother with the petrol engine at all? You would be much better off with a TD4 esp as you intend towing as it has better torque for this - I appreciate a jet ski is not heavy though!

The petrol K series engine does have a modified head gasket kit avaiable which should be fitted if it needs to be replaced - there is also a modification for early models which incorporates a low coolant switch in the system in the hope you won't run it dry. Generally even with the uprated gasket there is still no g'tee you won't get the same problem again. Diesels don't suffer (often) from this fault.

There are lots of LR part suppliers on the web - Rimmer Bros in Lincoln are good and offer main dealer parts at a fraction of the price (well at least of my main dealer parts dept in Hull) and they post out 1st class to you.

[freenelly]

Good afternoon

I will shortly be in the market to buy a new car and after narrowing down what i need from a replacement i have pretty much settled on a 3dr Freelander.

Initially i was looking at the standard range available considering both 1.8 and TD4 engines. I then came across the Serengeti model and fell in love with it straight away!!! I really like the extras on it, the wheels really suit the car and the privacy glass and dark interior trim look superb.

So having narrowed it down i have a couple of questions -

In relation to engine choice i am still undecided, i normally cycle to work which is literally 15mins down the road so my car often stays at home on the drive. My wife has a company car for which the fuel is paid for and for nipping around town on the weekends we tend to use this. Where my car comes in is during my days off which are often during the week, it will be required to tow and launch a jetski fairly regularly too. With this is mind i was leaning towards a 1.8 petrol as fuel consumption won't really be too much of an issue but would like to hear peoples thoughts??

This leads me onto my next question.....if i plumped for a 1.8 model i would more than likely have the had gasket changed straight away. I have read that there is a suggested upgrade/kit which is recommended and wondered if somebody could list the individual parts or point me in the right direction??

With regard to budgeting for a replacement HG what is the typical cost to do this in peoples experience?

Some of the Serengeti's have the rear bars which go up and over the hardback portion of the car, this is something i like however not all of them are fitted with them. If i ended up buying one without them are they an easy fit and what sort of price are they?

Is there a Freelander parts specialist on the net which you guys tend to use?

Sorry for all the questions, no doubt i will think of some more along the way and thanks in advance.

Si

Hi

I have a 3dr Serengeti on a 02 plate and am very happy with it,

The one thing i am asking is it an auto if so make sure the gearbox oil has been changed at 60k if not sooner as i have just had to replace the gearbox as i missed the 60k oil change.

Apart from that i have used mine for towing my caravan and it does it with ease no problems ,i was lucky as it came with the roof bars , side steps and towbar ,(steps and towbar for sale if anyone interested )

Go for the TD4 much better engine than the Petrol.

Rgds

Neil

[SiT]

Thanks for the replies people, sounds like its definitely going to be ideal for what i want it for which is ace - you wouldn't believe how many cars i have considered only to find that they don't or can't do several of the tasks i want from them.

The Freelander is brilliant in nearly every aspect.

With regard to the roof bars i think i may try and look for one with them already fitted but if not its nice to know they can be added at a later date. With regards to the diesel your all quite right it probably is best suited to me,if only for the extra torque for towing the ski, and to be fair some of the slipways are more sand than concrete! So the 4x4 system will more than likely be used and that extra torque is likely to come in handy.

Saying that it sounds like freenelly has found the 1.8 to be more than capable and thats towing a caravan so a ski should be no trouble. Freenelly thanks for the heads up on the gearbox! So if you were buying again you would go for the diesel??

With regard to the TD4 does anyone now how they handle higher mileage? Looking at a couple of examples they are up around 110k and didn't know how the engine fairs at these sorts of mileage??

I am going to try and get a price for HG upgrade and replacement anyway so that if i do see a 1.8 then i can budget for that.

Si

[freenelly]

. Freenelly thanks for the heads up on the gearbox! So if you were buying again you would go for the diesel??

Yes but with a manual gearbox

[MJIbex]

With regard to the TD4 does anyone now how they handle higher mileage? Looking at a couple of examples they are up around 110k and didn't know how the engine fairs at these sorts of mileage??

Engines generally fine. Main issue areas I would be aware/check:-

Turbo hoses spliting - fairly cheap, not a major concern.

Fuel pumps packing in - difficult to know how worn (car should start imediately not require repeated cranking or use of accelerator).

Clutch & Hydralics - clutch pedal should feel light and not feel like it's turning inside out.

IRD, rear diff, and rear diff mounts - don't want clunks or bangs or harshness in drive train whilst driving (esp low speed turning, although you will feel resistance whilst doing this), check for heavily feathered rear tyres.

Water leak into boot storage compartment.

To buck the trend, although I would have a Td4 over a 1.8, the 1.8 definately is better off road (manual to manual) as it has more just of idle torque in practice and is far less likely to stall at low offroad revs IMHO. Td4 auto is your way forward as it eliminates the clutch problems and is better offroad as obsticals can be tackled more slowly and power fed in more progressively.

Mark.