Thinking of buying a 2003 Freelander

[vanillanut]

Hello:

I would appreciate any advise on buying a 2003 Freelander. It is the Sport 4wd model. I live in Alaska and the car will be for my wife.

Thanks in advance

Pat

[Funrover]

All I can say is that they are a fun little SUV... When I worked at a LR dealship in 02 They were a blast to drive!!!!! The are good off road for what they are too..... I like the autostick setup..That and everything is easy to reach and use..Goodluck

[appstatedisco]

I thought recommending a freelander to my mother. She looked at most other larger SUV's, but they're usually too high(shes large and getting older so it's much harder to get up into those mamouths). Would a freelander be suitable for a larger lady as far as interior space, height from the ground, etc..?

[Choqiees]

I hate to be the assh*** here but when I asked the dealer about getting the Freelander, he said don't because they had a lot of breakdown with FL. but then again if it is fun to drive like Funrover said then it'll be worth it.

[garrycol]

If the car is a V6 or a TD4 then go for it. If it is a 1800 petrol then stay right away - it will get expensive and cause you grief and heartache.

Do a search on the posts and you will see why

Garry

[Roverdude]

I have a 2003 SE3 and it's been great (knock-on-wood). As a commuter, road trip vehicle, and light off-roader it works beautifully. I've been topping 20mpg regularly, even on some road trips w/ my windsurfing kit strapped to the roof. No real complaints, although I would have loved to have heated seats, and bonatti grey/alpaca color combo, which weren't available on SE3's. Only other complaint is I despise the fuel filler arrangement. You need the key to pull the cap off. I would have much prefered a normal door. Other than that, it works great. I would recommend an HSE or SE3 as they had the better seat design.

[TerryS]

As you're in Alaska, your only engine option is the V6, which, all-in-all, is a good little motor. We can't get the 5sp in America, which is sad, but the sportshifter on the auto is nice. Some people claim it's underpowered, but I can't agree with that. Our's is rapidly approaching the end of it's warranty, so we bought an extended (72 month, 100,000 mile) aftermarket warranty, which, I would highly recommend to anyone. There is very little the DIYer can do on these. Even oil changes is a pain, given the location of the filter.
We've had one sincee 2002, and my wife loves it. I have to agree, it's a pretty capable ute. It seems to be better built than all the other mini SUVs. Due largely to it's weight and power distribution, you'll not miss a 2 speed transfer box. We don't spend enough time in the BVI to warrant owning one, so we always rent a Freelander, and have had every engine/gearbox combo there is. Most of the tucked away beaches down there are only gotten to by very rough, steep and rocky trails. The freelander always makes me comfortable.
The few things I dislike are the windows can't even be cracked in the rain (Nice aftermarket window shields available) the sills extend far out, so getting in requires care unless you want to back of your pants to get dirty.Spare tire cuts into rear visability. With back seats up, rear storage is tight. Milage could be better, but not unreasonable to expect 26-27 on the highway. If ours dissappeared today, I'd get another.

[Muddy Oval]

sounds as if they were trying to 'upsell' to something with more profit in it. Freelanders don't break down any more than any other Rover.

[HMBFreelander]

Since you're looking at an '03, make sure you get all the service records including, if you can, a record of all warranty work. That will tell you a lot. IMHO the '02s (first year in the US) gave the '03 and later a bad rap. Mine has been great, others have had some problems and a few have had terrible problems with '02s.

All around, it's a great truck. The guys in this area use 'em to go sking in the Sierras and rave about how they handle in snow. With a few mods, they'll keep up with a Disco off-road pretty well. Stock they still have all the other mini-Utes beat. And it rides nice so it's a good road trip car.

The cost of dealer service is, well, sky high. If the dealer is good then it's worth it. If not then find a trustworthy independent. The warranty stays valid provided the work is done on LR recommended schedule - no matter where it's done. Just keep the receipts. An extended warranty is a good idea if you are going to keep the truck a while. There's an expensive timing belt change at 72K miles so if the truck is nearing that mark, make sure the belt change has been done or adjust the price accordingly. The 72K mile service is in the neighborhood of $3K!

Good luck.

[Rovin4life]

Heres the deal with a freelander.

at 72,000 miles the timing belts need to be changed.

at that point its twelve hours of labor. not counting parts that are need.

Usually it runs two grand or more. THe motor needs to come out.

Of course your lucky if nothing breaks on them because all the coolant hoses, and pcv hose are plastic and leak.

Then there is the dreaded knock from the manifold.

heres the lowdown on any manufacturer.

IF you want to know what car to get check to see what the employees are driving at the dealership.

I have yet to see a freelander v6 past 80k.

[TerryS]

Originally Posted by beezel

heres the lowdown on any manufacturer.

IF you want to know what car to get check to see what the employees are driving at the dealership.

I have yet to see a freelander v6 past 80k.

So using your logic, I shouldn't buy any Land Rover that my local (or any) Land Rover dealer's employees aren't driving. I'm not sure what the going rate out in your neck of the woods is, but I don't see alot of LR mechanics driving anything the dealer currently offers the driving public. I can't assume a Freelander is no good if the mechanics aren't driving them because I don't see them driving Range Rovers, Range Rover Sports, or LR3s either. Many that I know are driving older series 1 Discos or Classics and pretty much for the same reason we use them for, not because they, as mechanics, think they are great quality. In fact, the average new Land Rover buyer today would go look at Lexus,MLs or zipfinity, if they thought the guy working on their $75K car was also driving one. Maybe cuz they would assume he's paid too much, but more likely because their psyche wouldn't let them drive what "the commoners" drive.

Since Freelanders only went on sale late in 2001, as a 2002 model, it's unlikely a car, driven more by housewives, are going to put 20K/ yr on their car, so why are you are you surprised not to see many Freelanders with 80K miles on the clock? The average guy who drives 20K+ a year is more likely to be driving something a little bigger. My wife got hers in the fall of 2002, and has only just hit 45K.
Ironicly, the service manager at the LR dealer nearest me, bought a traded in 2002 Freelander, Gosh, he must be stupid or something, right?

[ish]

Pat........r u a girl?........It could effect the answer to the question.

[Rovin4life]

If the customer doesnt want to spend the two grand or more on the timing belt then they trade it in.

It comes to us and gets immediately sent to the auction.

The question people have to ask themselves is do they want to pay for the repair on the vehicle and still get a bad tradein. Now if you trade in the vehicle to a dealer thats not a LR dealer. You actually will get a better value. If it is a LR dealer then they already know what it will take to sell the truck. Discos get a better trade in value cause we wont need much to sell it.

Remember no warrantee will cover a timing belt when it breaks from non replacement at 72k.

Remember this is a ROver engine and transmission. They aint around anymore because of their bad designs and poor reliability.

The V6 was a so called improvement. yet its still unreliable. Seriously the stopped selling them because of reliability was down the toilet.

Personally I wouldnt buy one. Its not worth the trouble especially when Motors blow, manifolds break and rattle and trannys blow. you might be lucky. If your engine blows before seventy two thousand then you will be in luck and not have to get the timing belts replaced.

thats the way of getting your money back on a freelander.

[Muddy Oval]

It's not a Rover engine and transmission- you are beginning to show some ignorance here. The engines were made by midland powertrain which belonged to the MG/Rover Automotive Group which just went under because of MG's poor sales and unwillingness to expand its market. The transmission is Japanese, a product of Jatco. That's why Freelanders share a Honda CV joint and bolt pattern on the hubs. It's the same transmission used in other cars from Acura Legends to BMW 3 Series.
They've had their share of problems, just as the other models in the line have as well. Consider how bad the Discos were originally, and the Defenders too. The 93 NAS Defender had a customer satisfaction rate of about 12%. It wasn't hard to work the bugs out of the Disco since it ran for YEARS with only minor changes- although still, if compared to almost ANY other make and model, they still kinda suck as far as quality. Sure, a Disco can drop and engine or rear main seal and people shrug it off as Rover Quirkiness, but a Freelander drops a rear main or engine and it's because Freelanders suck, right? Blech...

[vanillanut]

Hey Ya'll:

Well, after carefull consideration and review of the responses, we bought the car. It is a 2003 Freelander, black with 15000 miles. The factory warentee is still in effect until August. We have owned high-end car before. My wife's last car was a '99 Saab 9-3 SE Convertiable so we understand what expensive shop visits are.

Does anyone have a copy of the factory service manual they would sell me? I have found, with the proper manual, there is a lot of things a mechanic can do at home. If you have the service manual, especially on CD, please email me off line at vanillanut@gci.net.

Thanks again for the advise

Pat
Anchorage, Alaska