'98 Freelander 2.0TD purchase help...

[phibbzy]

Hi all,

I have been offered a '98 turbo diesel freelander 1 in mint condition aesthetically and mechanically good apart from a blown head gasket in trade for my '93 Camry runabout.

Now I hear all over of the 1.8 petrols tendancy to consider the gasket a minor service item - but the diesels (K series in this case) are supposed to have a better reputation.

I have been told that in this case diesel/combustion is getting into the coolant.

Just wondering if A) they're known for it and if their is any way to mitigate it and B) if a blown head gasket is the cause and with the symptoms above am I looking at anything else requiring repair?

Seems like a square deal, I know the F1's get a bad wrap but im hoping there might be something in this...

[woko]

It will be a L series Diesel. K series are the petrol models.

Usually when the head gaskets blow on these it is due to a poor cooling system service history and the head gasket which is a MLS gasket rusts and blows. Its not a common issue with these engines.
Apart from the normal head pressure surface checks with a blown gasket, I would change the glow plugs while the head is off and replace the timing belts with quality name product like dayco.

I have one of these with 213000km and my brother has one with 330000km on them and they both still run well. Biggest issue with these is the IRD unit and if you dont need 4wd you can remove the tail shaft and run it as a front wheel drive.

[phibbzy]

Ah my mistake!

as long as they're not a giant money pit, I'm happy to look into it. Hopefully oil in the coolant and black smoke just means the gasket however I have been told a genuine head is only around $600 AUD so either way...

I have read that the gearboxes have build quality issues but cant seem to find much detail? Whats the go with that?

[101RRS]

Gearboxes are fine, IRDs are fine it is the VCU that causes the issue but after 15 years this has most likely been resolved. I sold my L series diesel with 280,000km and was running great - a very reliable vehicle but I did monitor the VCU constantly.

Garry

[phibbzy]

Cheers,

What did you do to ensure the VCU was in good shape/maintenance regime?

[101RRS]

Checked it every 5000km. If you do a search in the Freelander 1 section you will find various ways of doing it.

Garry

[woko]

This is from another forum to check to see if the newer IRD unit is fitted which slows the wear rate of the VCU

"In my L series diesel - 100kph was about 3200 rpm with the old IRD. With my new IRD 100kph is about 2700 rpm."

Heres a web site on the issue

Symptoms - Bell Engineering (http://www.bellengineering.co.uk/5.html)