Land Rover Freelander overheating problems

Filed Jul 31, 2018 · Electrical, Engine · CA

Purchased the truck in 2003 from land rover, brand new. Dealt with a few recalls and other issues ( sun roof was off track, did not work. Leather seats had deformations on seats. Truck need an acid wash for spots that developed on bumper) soon my engine and coolant issues occurred. Why driving id notice my truck start to overheat. This was even after being serviced at land rover. Come to find out my coolant was leaking. The issue continued to the point where I had to get new external parts ( thermostat, water pipe, expansion tank) this helped but not for long. My truck continued to overheat and leak, o the point I had to replace the cylinder head gasket and the timing belt.. I accumulated only 56,000 miles over 9 years of driving this truck and spent +$20,000 trying to save it ... I see why this model was discontinued after only one year. I have to take my situation to civil court even though this should fall under the lemon law.the class action group I was apart of for 4 years has made no progress at all.

Filed Dec 28, 2013 · Engine · 86,000 miles · NJ

Original owner of land rover freelander 2003. At approximately 60,000 miles, the "service engine soon" light came on and engine had to be replaced due to problems caused by the coolant leaking into the engine. At the time, the car was under an extended warranty so most of the repairs were covered. Now, at approximately 86,000 miles, the "service engine soon" has again appeared. I took the car to a land rover repair facility and was told that the car requires a new manifold intake valve. Total cost of repairs around $3,000. At this point, I am totally disgusted with land rover and will never ever buy or recommend a land rover vehicle. This car has been nothing but a major headache.

Filed Oct 10, 2013 · Engine · TX

Tl* the contact owns a 2002 land rover freelander. The contact stated that the engine overheated when the vehicle was turned on. The vehicle was taken to the mechanic for inspection who confirmed that the engine coolant was consuming prematurely and there was no evidence of a leak. The mechanic replaced the thermostat, the water pump, and the motor fan regulator; however the failure was not corrected. The manufacturer was not made of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 96,000.

Filed Mar 11, 2013 · Electrical, Engine · 70,000 miles · KS

The year is accurate,month and date are approximations started having problems with overheating and coolant leaks. Coolant wouldn't puddle under vehicle,though.but I could smell it sometimes with windows open. Then,one day it would not start. Towed it to land rover dealer and over the course of 3 days,they couldn't start it,either. Was told it needed a new engine.paid out $5800+.now,with 104,000 miles,it's losing coolant,again. They claimed the over flow container was leaking. Had it replaced. And it is still losing coolant.it is not puddling under the truck.I saw,online,where the freelander has a possible engine defect,with cylinder sleeves and gasket problems.do I have any recourse with land rover? Or, could the lemon law come into effect? I,also,have experienced rear window and sunroof motor failures. I am retired. I cannot afford to replace another engine ! Thank you.

Filed Dec 17, 2012 · Engine · 49,807 miles · RI

On november 1st my wife and I left la proper headed towards phoenix, az. With the mileage now at 49,807 and approximately 2 hours of driving on I 10 the car was losing power, so I did my best to safely pull over to the break down lane which was next to the on ramp (very scary). I had been driving at 65 miles per hour when the car would no longer accelerate. I had to call a tow truck because after I let it rest a minute or two it wouldn't turn over. When I looked under the hood I didn't see anything out of the ordinary, no smoke, the coolant tank was full, I checked the oil dipstick and it seemed fine. There were no lights that came on inside the auto to signal that something was wrong, no overheating etc. I had it towed to the nearest dealer and was told to come back next morning. I was told that the engine blew a gasket and was advised due to damage to the engine was to replace it. I was quoted a price of $10,000.00! I ended up selling it for salvage for $500 since we were traveling so far away from home and the cost to tow it to rhode island didn't seem worth it. Since then I have contacted land rover and have been given the run around like many other owners. I also have had the chance since this occurrence to check via internet that this is not unusual for the 2002 freelander. I feel this engine should of been recalled.

Filed Apr 9, 2012 · Engine, Transmission · 81,000 miles · TX

I bought this vehicle in april 2010 and have had nothing but problems ever since. It had 79,600 miles on it when I bought it and was told by the dealer that it had just recently had a transmission replaced. They didn't even know how to open the hood - passenger side. 2 months later and it dies on me going down the street. I pull over and antifreeze is running everywhere. The thermostat housing had separated in two and caused the car to overheat. I called the closest land rover dealer and he quoted me $800 to fix it. I searched on the internet and found the parts to fix it for $80. I replaced the thermostat and housing (1 piece) and got it running again. Since then, the sunroof has quit, both rear windows have quit and the rear sliding window won't open by key. The driver side windshield defroster will not work (only the passenger side) and I have never had an owners manual. The drivers side door will not unlock with the keyless entry either. Now I get to the engine - it started running real rough and lost alot of power. I had a local mechanic run codes on it and this is what he found: p0303 - #3 cylinder misfire; p1319 - misfire emission relevant; p1471, 1472 - vis motors evap purge valve flow blocked; p1475 - leak detection pump leakage diagnostic pump reed switch did not close; p 1775 - gearbox fault transmission system mil fault. I asked his opinion and he told me it was probably not worth fixing. He didn't even know what all of this meant. He was just going to start tearing it down and see what he could fix. I can't afford that. I live paycheck to paycheck and I really thought that land rover had a good name and reputation. I emailed and called them and have had no luck to this point. Everything I have seen on this model proves that it is a vehicle that should be put to rest. I am looking for any help I can get.

Filed Nov 23, 2011 · Engine · 65,000 miles · IL

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 land rover freelander. The contact stated that coolant leaked into the engine, causing the engine to fail. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who inspected the vehicle and stated that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 65,000.

Filed Oct 22, 2011 · Engine, Visibility · 62,000 miles · MN

Like the myriad of other complaints about this vehicle, (http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/webx?14@@.f142477/93#msg93, http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.eea90db, http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/blogspotting/archives/2005/07/blogger_takes_o.html for a tiny example) I too began experiencing the exact same overheating problems not too far past the warranty expiration. It is very, very well documented that there is a complete failure in the cooling system in the freelanders. Can you please, please, please do something about it? I have also had problems with the automatic windows, including one actually stuck partially down currently because I'm past warranty. But that's small potatoes compared to the overheating issue.

Filed Sep 21, 2011 · Engine · 53,000 miles · NJ

My 2004 freelander was purchased from royalty auto sales in little ferry nj on april 19, 2010 with 52,000 miles. We also purchased from same dealer a 1-year warranty from a warranty company represented by the dealer midatlantic warranty company. We put a $6,500 downpayment on the vehicle, and financed $7,000. The problem started within 24 hours after driving off the lot with an overheating issue we returned the vehicle to the dealer who said there was probably not enough antifreeze in it and offered to drive the vehicle for a few days to make sure it was o.k. Dealer maintained issue never happened again and returned the car to us. The car over the next month and one-half continued to overheat several times and require adding of antifreeze with no apparent leak under the vehicle. 2-months after purchase vehicle ceased to start and when towed to landrover was told it would need a new engine and these defects are known about in the automotive industry. To date neither the dealer nor the warranty company has either returned our money, vehicle or repaired the car. Someone should be responsible. Shame on landrover and any dealer that does not research the vehicles they represent as being safe and in good condition to unknowing consumers.

Filed Aug 28, 2011 · Engine · 3,000 miles · OR

We have had several incidents with my 2002 land rover freelander type s overheating and check engine light going on, we have regularly taken it to our local land rover dealer to find out the problem. The latest, now august 2011, the coolant was found to be low, and a discussion with the mechanic and the shop person indicated that their is no external leaks, and that the coolant may be leaking into the engine. I was told that the cylinders/heads are made of different materials, and that a gap may have formed there causing the coolant to leak into the engine. I was told that if the coolant continues to leak without any visible signs of external problems, the engine would need to be replaced. We have done all of the routine maintenance as well as thousands of dollars of repairs for the cooling - including multiple thermostats(I believe we are on our fourth one, including the ones under warranty, etc. The latest diagnosis is coolant into the engine and fouling a cylinder. I repeated asked, since we were under warranty, if we had a lemon and have now seen thousands of postings on the internet relating to this problem, with models from 2000 to 2005, the years the car was available in the us. It appears that there are no viable replacement engines available that do not have this same problem since, the vehicle was discontinued in 2005. Based on the information I have gathered, it appears that the engine used in this vehicle was of a faulty design, given the fact that a replacement with out this problem is not available for the record, my vehicle info is as follows: make: land rover model: freelander type s year: 2002 purchase date: 07/2002 I am the original owner, and I purchased this from land rover portland, portland oregon.