FL2 diesel performance

[oldwhippet]

Hi everyone.

I've bitten the bullet and decided to buy a Freelander 2 but I have not yet decided whether to get a petrol or diesel. As most driving will be highways and town I am leaning towards the petrol, but having driven both the diesel impresses me as it feels stronger everywhere except a brief pause from standstill. Has anyone put a performance chip in a TD4? Does it overcome this lag? Does it improve acceleration significantly? The gains quoted by various chip manufacturers are significant but are they accurate? Are there any other performance modifications worth considering? It might be better for me to just get the petrol...

Thanks for your advice.

[mikehzz]

The diesel is fantastic and economical too. Can't recommend it highly enough.

Mike

[nosliwedaw]

For anything other than a drag race, the TD4 has better performace that the i6.
I have a TD4 but I normally get an i6 loaner when mine is serviced etc. They are a nice motor and have quite good economy but lack grunt IMO.

[inside]

TD4 is a fantastic engine. If you want a 0-100 machine then the FL2 is not for you regardless of the engine options.

Can I ask why would highway and city driving suggest a petrol when this type of driving is most suitable to a diesel? Only reason I'd choose a petrol if I was doing lots of short trips where the engine did not have a chance to reach operating temperature often.

[stig0000]

do not buy a i6,,, its all noise and no go,,, and around town the econ is treble,, on the cars coming in the avg for td4 is about 8-9LPH,, the i6 its 12s

and performance is not that good for a 6,, pretty much all the customers i talk to wish they got the td4

i no of no chip for the td4;)

[oldwhippet]

Thanks for all your responses.

I was thinking that mainly stop-start city driving suits the i6 more since that's where I noticed the flat spot off idle in the TD4. Once up and running on the highway and for overtaking I suppose there wouldn't be much in it in terms of performance and I suspect that the TD4 would be more economical. The TD4 did feel very strong once it was moving and since I am coming from a diesel pajero maybe the flat spot feels exagerated since as soon as the power kicks in on the TD4 it goes like a rocket when compared with the gradual build up of speed in the pajero.

Sounds like I need to go for another test drive. I'll keep you posted of the outcome.

[Tusker]

do not buy a i6,,, its all noise and no go,,, and around town the econ is treble,, on the cars coming in the avg for td4 is about 8-9LPH,, the i6 its 12s

and performance is not that good for a 6,, pretty much all the customers i talk to wish they got the td4

i no of no chip for the td4;)

I've got to take issue with this.

Look at the spec & you'll see the i6 is a 200 kph car. 0-100 kph also leaves the TD4 for dead.

It's a Jekkyl & Hyde car. The power & torque curves are quite peaky, the opposite of the TD4. Around town its easy enough to drive, the jackrabbit throttle response you sometimes get with quick cars isn't there.

But if you need the get-&-up-&-go, the trans will soon drop a gear or two. Overtaking is very easy & very quick. If you really need poke, its there in the top half of the rev range.

Otherwise it potters along quite happily on the highway at say 2000 rpm.

The fuel economy thing is a red herring. One day people will realise fuel is the cheapest part of ownership*. And for the record, I've found the i6 is the same if not cheaper with fuel than the Td4 on the highway. It runs on E10, and around Dubbo, Coonabarrabran etc the E10 can be cheaper than diesel. Mine gets economy in the 9s at 100 kph.

It was the diesel rattle at idle that put me off the Td4 actually. I don't think its good enough.

So for me, the i6 has quite acceptable fuel consumption around town, in Falcon/Commodore territory. With Falcon/Commodore performance.

On the highway its smoother, quieter, costs the same to run, with more poke if you need it.

Regards
Max P

* Had a client in not so long ago, whinging about the fuel economy of his BMW. Turns out he puts $2000 a year of petrol in it. But its now worth $50,000, bought two years ago for $150,000. Fuel isn't the problem!

[Tombie]

do not buy a i6,,, its all noise and no go,,, and around town the econ is treble,, on the cars coming in the avg for td4 is about 8-9LPH,, the i6 its 12s

and performance is not that good for a 6,, pretty much all the customers i talk to wish they got the td4

i know of no chip for the td4;)

I do!!!!

I Can retune the current FL2 Diesels.

[djhampson]

The fuel economy thing is a red herring. One day people will realise fuel is the cheapest part of ownership*.

The good thing with the TD4 FL2 is thats its only $2k more expensive than the i6. And you save on rego because its a 4cyl compared to a 6 (In QLD at least)


It was the diesel rattle at idle that put me off the Td4 actually. I don't think its good enough.

I love the rattle :D and the sound of the turbo spooling up. I was disappointed with the TDv6 in Dad's RRS... its dead quiet!

[mikehzz]

The economy of the diesel has actually bitten me in the backside as I drive the car more now because it doesn't feel expensive. This means I'm probably spending the same amount on fuel but doing more kms which is bad for resale and wear and tear. My previous car was a 6 cylinder 180 kw Subaru Outback and it could do 0-100 in about 8 seconds but my FL2 diesel is a way better car in my opinion.
At the end of the day it's personal preference, the dollars are pretty much swings and roundabouts.
Mike

[Tusker]

snip


At the end of the day it's personal preference, the dollars are pretty much swings and roundabouts.
Mike

end snip

Agree entirely. When I did my sums, the costs of ownership were about the same either way.

Regards
Max P

[oldwhippet]

Well I took them both for another drive and I think the petrol is best suited to me and my driving style. The diesel was very good and there were times on the test drive where my wife and I thought it was good enough; but ultimately the dead spot off idle made the diesel that little bit worse in our opinion. Years ago we had a turbo forester and I know it is a very different car but the turbo lag on that became unbearable once the novelty of the car wore off.

It's a very tricky thing to judge since they are both very good engines with different strengths. The diesel is stronger once moving but the petrol is ready to go from idle. The petrol is smoother and quieter but the diesel is still smooth and quiet (at least compared to what I am used to). The petrol is faster and accelerates quicker but it's not really relevant. What did stand out though was that initial pause and if I knew I could dial that out I would opt for the diesel.

A very tough call since if the petrol was "worse" I'd have chosen the diesel as on it's own it is very good. It's just that for me, the petrol suits me better. And at the moment the petrol powered cars with similar km are cheaper.:)

Thanks for all your responses.

[Dorko]

The lag can be fixed by a power chip... but the diesel is much better off road :D

Dorko

[nosliwedaw]

I do!!!!

I Can retune the current FL2 Diesels.


Tell us more!!

cost?

est power and torque?

the lag on initial acceleration?

And finally, fuel economy?

[Tombie]

Tell us more!!

cost?

est power and torque?

the lag on initial acceleration?

And finally, fuel economy?

I'll get the details together soon.

I'm in the middle of a Furnace Campaign at the moment :)

[oldwhippet]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the replies. I ended up buying the petrol version and I know I've only had it for a few days but it is absolutely perfect and I have no regrets at all with my decision.

In my opinion both engines are good so I guess it all comes down to horses for courses. I struggled making a choice after driving both only briefly but my advice is if you are undecided about this go drive a few a couple of different times and I think the decision will be easy to make.

Thanks again for your input. :)

[reklaw47]

What are you going to tow with the new machine?

Rob

[oldwhippet]

Hi Rob, just a box trailer at this stage. Might end up getting a camper trailer one day but can't push the budget too far yet.

[Dorko]

Congrats on the purchase! :D

Dorko

[VladTepes]

Yeah congratulations... now where are the pictures ??