Various Issues with BOTH my Freelanders and General advice would be ap

[CJ1]

Hi, I was after a Freelander for a long time and ironically ended up with 2 without meaning to.

I have 1 Black W Reg 5 door Millennium Xi 1.8 Freelander and 1 Gold XEi Convertible Freelander 1.8.

I took the Gold one in Swap for my 2004 Mondeo Diesel Estate and I bought the Black one from my Friend for £300.

The Gold one drivers great, has already had the uprated head gasket fitted with modified expansion tank but not the relocated thermostat housing.

The Black one was bought with a blown head gasket but the car has not over heated and I drove it home with several stops to make sure I didn't run out of water for about 10 miles and drove lovely the whole journey home.

I want to sell the Gold one, but first I need to fix a couple of little problems.

The temperature gauge does not work, So first thing I did was buy a Temperature Sensor which did not resolve this, I then checked all the fuses. All fine. Nor sure what to do next. And there is also a blow on the exhaust, but I cannot fins any holes. And the exhaust is really clean and looks very new.

The Black Freelander has a a few issues lol.

To start with, The Head Gasket has failed, I have been quoted £400 plus the cost of getting the head skimmed if it needs it. This price is for the uprated head gasket set with new head bolts, thermostat, and water pump and cambelt kit, but after reading on line I found out that there is an uprated oil pressure rail which is recommended to be done which I will buy when the gold one is sold aslong with the modified expansion tank and the thermostat relocating kit.

Also the front brake pads were an advisory on the MOT it failed at the beginning of September.

The other problems include leaking power steering pipe (£15 delivered) bought and waiting for it to come, and rotted leaking sunroof which is about £80 delivered, and same problem as other one with the exhaust blowing, but most of the exhaust is new.

Both the Freelanders I have are still full time 4wd,

Is there any advice for long term maintaining and avoiding problems in the future?

I am keeping the Black Freelander once it is back on the road as the 5 door model is better for me and a higher spec.

[CJ1]

Gold Freelander now sold and in Dartford area I think, And Black Freelander is in the Workshop with the head stripped down. And I am in Purple Ronnies rejected Ford Escort basic Diesel Van that thinks it is a Puma lol

This is a pic of my Freelander waiting to get in the workshop just before I left.

I will be going to the workshop tomorrow to deliver the rest of the upgrade parts for the repair as I have bought the uprated oil rail, the uprated expansion tank and the thermostat relocation kit.

The Expansion tank came today but the oil rail is due tomorrow and according to the seller the Thermostat relocation kit will be here tomorrow too.

I am hoping that the money I am spending is well worth while. I have spent £144 total including p&p on the upgrade mods listed above and then the HG kit including water pump, cam belt kit, thermostat, valve stem seals, head being skimmed, new head bolts, coolant, oil and oil filter come in at about £450 including labour.

I have read that it is recommended that the radiator is replaced too, but I don't understand why! As surely if the Radiator is flushed it would be ok, wouldn't it?

Would be great to get some opinions and advice on this.

[FridgeFreezer]

If the radiator is in good nick then it should be fine, but that does mean giving it a good look from both sides - so many people look at the front and assume it's OK only to find there's no fins on the back.

I was told not to bother with the oil rail as it doesn't really add anything useful.

Other advice - if the VCU is seized, drop the propshaft & get it reconned rather than drive about with it & knacker the diff & IRD.

Temp gauge - if you're getting some volts at the sender with the ignition on, the gauge itself may be broken, I don't know if the dash pod is DIY repairable but should be easy enough to swap in a new/used one.

[EggNChips]

Temp gauge - if you're getting some volts at the sender with the ignition on, the gauge itself may be broken, I don't know if the dash pod is DIY repairable but should be easy enough to swap in a new/used one.

Think the instrument cluster is coded to the ECU. IIRC the mileage will show up some error message like 'Incorrect' or something if it isn't coded correctly

[CJ1]

Think the instrument cluster is coded to the ECU. IIRC the mileage will show up some error message like 'Incorrect' or something if it isn't coded correctly

Thanks, That is something new I have learnt today lol. I can't do anything with the temp gauge now is no longer got that Freelander as I sold it to fund repairs on my Black Freelander.

[CJ1]

Really daft question I know, but where is the oil rail located on the engine? Is it exposed when the head is removed or is there further work involved? I have the new oil rail sitting next to me now and am waiting for the thermostat kit to arrive, then I will be heading down to the workshop to assist where I can in getting the head properly stripped down. Cheers.

[FridgeFreezer]

Oil rail goes in the sump.

I'd strongly suggest you look up the factory RAVE manuals, which are pinned at the top of the Part Numbers forum. They show you how to do everything properly.

[CJ1]

I am not doing myself, I am paying a garage to do the work.

[CJ1]

Not been a great day at the workshop today as found most of the coolant system pipes were thick half clogged with SOLID what use to be gunk, The radiator is good on both sides on the outside so the garage is cleaning it out properly, and the relocation kit that came today turned out to be seized, used and from a Freelander that blew its head gasket, and the pipes were only partially ok, so got a refund and brand new parts, the dizzy cap was slightly melted and badly worn inside where the rota arm was making contact with it, So now the list has grown quite a bit, but I was shown all the parts before I agreed to anything, and the parts bill grew by over £150! Now I really have NO SPARE CASH, so this beast better pass its MOT.

The car has no resistance when reversing on full lock or going forward with full lock on, The 17" Tyres look ok, but can't really tell as the workshop isn't well lit where the wheels are.

[Adam001]

Your paying a garage to do the work...but helping out? huh?

[FridgeFreezer]

I've never known anyone buy 2nd hand coolant hoses either.

[CJ1]

No I am not helping out lol, just keeping a very close eye on the work as I am interested in how it is all done. And I didn't plan on using used hoses, I made the wrong assumption that the kit I bought was bought and not used, but as it turns out, the person I bought the kit from also bought it second hand.

But the head is off now and got to taken to the skimming company just across the river from my house but about 3 mile drive lol. And the garage are hoping to have it back late this afternoon. But I am stuck with the Van now until next week as the car wont be finished until Monday at the latest and the repair costs have jumped from £400 plus skimming, to close to a shocking £800! So far, and if the rad needs doing I will need to pay for that.

[CJ1]

The bill is now about £800,

The skimming cost £55. which is part of the very large bill, But today I got a proper answer for when my Freelander will be ready, and the answer was by the end of Monday, however this does not take into account the MOT test which I am hoping will be Tuesday, but have got the van which is killing me to drive but keeping me semi mobile until I have the Freelander fully back on the road. I asked the garage about the road noise and the minor vibration, and got told that on this occasion that the most likely cause is the engine when the head gasket was gone. Hopefully this will be the case. But I know all the parts that have been replaced and know that anything else that is possible to go wrong are now only minor cheapish items.

The garage are fitting the Thermostat relocation kit, uprated oil rail and the uprated expansion tank, but I after lots of reading and thinking I have not had the jiggle valve removed.

I inspected the jiggle valve before the head went off for skimming and it is moving freely. The garage is also flushing the engine out to make sure that all the carp is out of the system and advised me that in about 1000 miles it is worth changing the oil and filter again. They quoted me £30 including the filter which I think is good, but may do this myself.

Admittedly I am hating driving the van and really missing driving a Freelander and really can't wait to get it home.

[CJ1]

I am bouncing off the walls with impatience as I can't wait to get to the workshop to see my Freelander being finished! But I have to wait in for a courier to collect an item I sold on Ebay first. Hopefully will be able to get the MOT booked for Tuesday. But may not as it is short notice.

[CJ1]

My Freelander is finally near completion, I spent a couple of hours down the workshop talking to the mechanics and watching what they do as I love watching the engine finally being put back together and they booked it in for the MOT Wednesday mid day, and are replacing the brake pads for me as well today as I supplied the part, and will be going down tomorrow lunch time to hear it running and take it for a spin around the yard. (NOT LITERALLY lol). Fingers crossed that the cat and sensor haven't been wrecked by being on a car with a knackered head gasket. But all is good so far. I also now have a near new water pump for sale for a Freelander as the one that came off it has only done about 1000 miles and has no damage to it at all. And I insisted on all new major parts, although have used some used pipes that I will replace at a later date with silicone pipes. I just can't wait to hear it running again.