FreeLander Head Gasket

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Hi        02/08/2005

I purchased a 2000 x 1.8 petrol freelander in 2001, by 2003 the head gasket had blown, but luckily it was under warranty and landrover footed the bill and repair on the eve of me driving to France on the annual holiday. After several outraged calls they loaned me a nice Discovery to drive to the SOuth of France for 2 weeks.

Can you believe it (you probably can) today almost 2 years to the day the gasket has gone again. Why oh why did I not get rid of it sooner. I too have had to replace the clutch and to be honest it has been one thing after another..... 

Never ever will I buy a Landrover again and hopefully this message will alarm other potential buyers to be very wary indeed. 2 head gaskets in 4 years!!!! That's not right.

Tania Judge

Hi Marc,    01/04/2005

            I bought a Freelander new (S reg) and after 3yrs and 34k miles the engine seized and the head gasket had gone. I was charged £3500.00 (HR Owen) for a replacement engine. Since then load of other stuff has gone wrong. Thought I would let you know.

Jason Stiles

 
Hi Marc 12/03/05
 
four years ago I purchased a Freelander 50th edition motor (which was approx 6 months old from memory) from a Landrover dealer - price £18,000.
 
Three weeks ago my wife and I were travelling along the M25 motorway and the cars engine suddenly stopped working.  I managed to get the car over to the hard shoulder, without crashing into another car - pretty scary!
 
The AA took our car to a local garage to assess the damage.  The garage had confirmed that the Head gasket has blown and that there was serious damage to the rest of the engine - ie hole in nos 4 piston (whatever that means!).
 
Approx cost to fix the car - £3,000. 
 
I contacted the dealer whom we purchased the car off of and they said that we could use any Freelander dealer to put in a claim for us.  (We purchased the car in Wales).
 
Anyway, almost three weeks later all Land rover are prepared to do is give a good will contribution of 33% parts and labour to a value of £920 (inc VAT). 
 
This goodwill claim is subject to the repairs being carried out at an authorised Land Rover dealer.  The cost of the repairs would increase from our local garage quote of £3,000 to between £4,000 and £5,000.
 
I have already spent £150 getting the car looked out, along with paying for more insurance to borrow a family members car £300 and really do not know what to do.
 
As the value of the car (5 door, petrol, all mod cons, leather interior, air conditioning, just under 60,000 mileage, etc) is probably only worth maximum £5,000 to £6,000 does anyone have any advice about what I should do next?.
 
I want to dispute Freelanders 'good will gesture' as I believe if I get the car fixed then surely I should be able to decide who fixes it!
 
By the way if anyone is deciding to flood the customer complaints section - don't bother.  They really could not give a damn, especially about second hand, dodgy Freelanders with a rubbish 1.8 engine.  After I threatened to seek legal advice they said 'off you go then Sir, good luck'.
 
No comment!
 
T Bennett

Dear Marc, 07/05/2005

 
Bet you can't beat this.  I had a head gasket go on my 1999V Reg Freelander at 48,000 miles.  Landrover wanted to charge me £3,600 to replace the engine which, frankly I couldn't afford.  So I got a reconditioned engine fitted for £2,000.  The car has just made it to 56,000 miles and - guess what - the head gasket has blown and I need a new engine.  Landrover have quoted me £3,600 again.  At the moment, the car is sitting on the Chelmsford dealer's forecourt, which is where I will be leaving it to rot.
 
Cheers
 
Dave
 

Marc, 10/05/2005

 
As you will have gathered I am another Freelander owner which has blown its head gasket.
 
From the moment the recovery person picked me up i was informed of the dreaded K series engine.( I am not mechanically inclined and as such was oblivious to this problem).

I  opted to have the car taken to my local garage where I know the work will be carried out properly and at a fair price - although it is still going to be expensive.

 
Reading the horror stories on your site and other forums it appears that i have done the right thing in taking to my local garage rather than a LandRover dealer who will charge me a much more inflated price.
 
Can you give me any numbers at LandRover where i can still make a complaint and see it i can get any financial assistance from them as this appears to be a common fault rather than a one off.  The car s a 2001 Y plate with 43000 mile. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
Andy

Hello Marc.

Another horror story for your collection. I have a Freelander 3 years 5 months old 35,000 miles. I was driving in moving traffic at aprox 40 MPH when the engine started to miss. I looked at the temp gauge and everything was normal. The engine misfired again, I could not understand it.
For some reason I looked in my rear mirror all I could see was blue smoke and no cars behind. Luckily I was close to a lay-by and pulled over.
My friend owns a garage and is only charging me £400 to repair the car.
When it is repaired it is going to be sold immediately, the car is a complete waste of time. I did not waste my time ringing Rovers, as £400 is bad enough.
Bill

 

Hi
I have a 1998 Freelander with 40k miles on the clock. Usual story of the head gasket going, had it replaced at a cost of £400 and 2 months later the car started over heating again. This time took it to a landrover dealer and they said the head was cooked (whatever that means?) anyway they wanted to charge me £2500 to replace the head, I eventually got someone to fit a replacement engine for £1500. What a joke this car is, I have been driving for 30 years and had some right old bangers in my time but I have never come across such a bad fault that the manufacturer refuses to take responsibility for.
Regards
Michael Reeve
 

Hi Marc,

Nothing unusual with my situation in that the head gasket went at 49750 miles and Guy Salmon Land Rover are telling me the cost is £2500 to replace the engine with a reconditioned one. What absolutely flabbergasts me is the fact that the service history is 100%, and it was last serviced only 3 months ago, and yet the dealership is stating that Landrover will not cover/contribute towards the costs, because I'm not the original owner - what difference does that make? I would like to know who I can speak to regarding this problem, as I'm sure you're aware, this is not an acceptable situation.

many thanks for your consideration
regards
Rory
 

Dear Marc,

Thanks for the email.  Thanks to the local Land Rover Dealer, we have been told LR will pay for all parts and 50% of the labour (around £500) to fix the head gasket.  Luckily it happened 0.5 mile from home and my wife got it home OK. As I used to work on engines (long time ago) I recognised the problem, so it didn't move until the low loader took it to the garage. I guess this is a lot better than £3,600 for a new engine... 

Never believed a head gasket could go at 33,000 miles, but after reading about the K series on the web, this is not uncommon.  LR and MG Rover should have agreed to do a modification during a major service, not leave a ticking bomb.

Regards,

John

Dear Marc, 

I have just read your letter on the internet regarding your Freelander.  I have a W reg 1.8 petrol.  I have had it less than 8 months.  It has done just 39000 miles.  I took it for its 4th service.  It was its 36000 mile service.  It was a bit late, but i had no reason to think that there was anything wrong.  It was in very good condition, and spotless under the bonnet with service history.  I took it in to my nearest landrover dealer for its service and they later informed me that the Head Gasket had gone and the Freelander needed a new engine, the cost of which was £3000.  Landrover have said that they are not going to pay a penny towards the cost of a new engine. 

Anon

Hi Marc,

Now that I have traded my 2000 Freelander(for $A10000.00 or $A3800.00 net - after repairs)I would like to add my story to the long list of outraged Freelander owners. Firstly I would say to any prospective Landrover buyers...Don't !!! For any Freelander owners ... get rid of it NOW!!! My 1.8lt petrol Freelander blew its head gasket right on que at 60000kms. I was told by a mechanic that the problem was a design fault in the cylinder linings, and there is no repair procedure. My only option was an engine replacement. The car was "offroad" for 6 weeks and the ordeal cost me $A 6200.00 in repairs and I lost another $A 17000.00 in depreciation over 5 years. The re-sale value of this car is appalling. I asked a Landrover dealership mechanic if this is a common fault with this car..he said "no more common than any other car". I then spoke to a salesman in the same dealership and asked for a trade figure on my Freelander in it's current state and he said..."The trade value will be low because the engine in this model has some reliability issues". Landrover Australia washed their hands of the problem saying that the car is out of warranty and they will not cover ANY repair costs. I have been told by several mechanics that the 1.8lt engine fitted to Freelanders has a lifespan of between 50000 and 100000 kms. Because of the design flaw they will ALL fail and the only option is replacement. Landrover should face reality and take responsibility for this poorly built motor car. Folks, spread the word and take my advise, don't by a Landrover, and if you have a Freelander, get rid of it !

Terry and Janie Edwards

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