Okay so here's our Freelander issues:

For over a year the coolant in the reservoir continues to disappear without a trace. We had misfires on two plugs a year ago--plugs were fouled but not white--and had motor work done: new plugs, coils, and rings. Freelander ran better for a year, all the while coolant still disappeared from the reservoir; we kept refilling every week.

This year, thermostat goes bad, octopus and hoses break directly in the front of the engine. We had thermostat replaced along with factory push-pull plastic hoses. When we got the Freelander back it now has additional problems: every time we start it up we get white smoke out the tailpipe for several minutes and the misfires are back--same pistons are misfiring as last year before the rings were replaced. And, the coolant continues to disappear without a trace--it's not just burning out the pipe, it's leaving the reservoir while the Freelander sleeps at night and going, well, nowhere it seems. Our Rover Specialist in town has no idea what's going on nor does he know how to fix the issue, or he knows what's up and just isn't telling us! Oh, and now the oil light blinks all the time when we drive the thing--actually, we stopped driving it, since there's never any pickup with the misfiring and such.

Does anyone know what the problem is? Is my engine toast, or can this be solved with some sort of gasket replacement, tightening of the heads, whatever? We've invested thousands in service and we still don't have a working Freelander...

Any suggestions are appreciated--tech help is more appreciated to get this thing working right (for once).

Thanks!

 

New mechanic.

Oil light is major concern. Engine will seize without good oil pressure. Have this tested, and have a wrecker haul it to the shop. Don't drive.

Coolant has to go somewhere. One place is dribbled out while driving, thru a weak coolant cap. You or shop can also rent/borrow a coolant pressure tester, pump system up to 15 PSI and let sit, external leaks will show. There is a dye that can be added to coolant, and it shows up on plugs if coolant in cylinders.

Coolant can also go into the oil, so it can make oil reading increase on the dipstick.

White smoke this time of year is steam from coolant in cylinders. It leaks in overnight, and is burned off by engine. You could have mechanic pull plugs after truck has sat overnight at the shop, and check for coolant in cylinders. Makes misfires and poor performance. Head gaskets or cracked block. This is likely one of your problems.

There are very good indy mechanics in Jersey, and there are good ones at dealers.

 

I purchased a brand new LR Freelander model year 2000. What a mess.

My Freelander V6 SE leaked Coolant for the complete 5 years I owned her. I had to carry a Gallon of Dexcool around for 5 years.

My biggest mistake was not letting the coolant leak out completely under warranty and let the engine break.

Please check your Heater Core. This was the cause of the Coolant Leak on my Freelander and was only noticed by the Land Rover Service Center as soon as my warranty expired, literally the week after.

My Freelander also had a broken Transmission that was also only disgnosed after the warranty expired.

I guess Freelander is another work for Nightmare.

Sell, sell, sell while she still runs, else get stuck with it.

The Transmision is Jatco and uses a special LRN402 Fluid.
The Motor is Chinese and uses Epoxied Cylinder Wall Sleeves.

The list is endless....

All the best!
Shermie

 

Engine is British, liners are set with Rolls Royce licensed Hylomar sealant that remains flexible. Use Castrol Transmax multi vehicle import for the Jatco. Head gaskets are leaking. If they are failing near the oil galley you will notice a loss of pressure and oil may enter the coolant. You have to be careful on cold start up if there is coolant in the combustion chamber. Engine can hydro-lock and break the liners.

Try using Bar's Leaks 1111 epoxy head gasket fix. Follow the directions, and if it slows down or stops, you have found the problem. It won't last forever, but I have gotten 10,000 miles out of one application.

 

You're screwed. Freelander's do this more or less constantly. You can either replace it with another time bomb freelander motor (I have I'd sell you for 1700 that runs great at the moment) or sell it for scrap.

 

I traded it in for a Chevy... Dealer gave me $500 to scrap it for me.