Thats probably it then...I thought it was operable upto 30mph which is where my expectations are a too high then.  _________________
Gone - 2010 Rimini XS

Aero_383 wrote:

MartynB wrote:

And don't forget HDC is not only switch on use, if you feel you are decending a hill too slowly or quickly with HDC engaged you can use the cruise control buttons to adjust the HDC action, don't be afraid to use this it is very good once you get used to it

I have been out playing on some hills today, and I can't seem to increase or decrease speed using HDC. What am I doing wrong ?
1st gear, steep hill, GGS, HDC engaged and working, pressing CC button repeatedly and also tried pressing and holding - no speed increase. I know it should go up in very small increments but the speedo and I am sure there is no speed increase
I'm sure it's a PICNIC error (problem in chair not in car) ...any thoughts ?

Well, i've had a chance to test all your snow driving wisdom today, and it has faired well. here's my thoughts after trying it all out.

- glad I have winter tyres!
- Snow mode works well and rev reduction provides a smooth spin free acceleration
- HDC feels good, and I never knew you could adjust it, so that was good too (I know RTFM)
- Climbing hills was great, with a nice steady speed
- Braking (even with snow tyres) is obviously the most difficult area. Don't go too fast and brake softly works well, let the car do it with the engine does too. But winter tyres or no winter tyres you have to respect a big lump that needs slowing on slippery stuff. Snow braking pretty good, mush pretty good, icy clumpy mush ok if careful, but way better than the other loons on the road.
- I seemed far more stable than most on the road, so had to remember to give this flat bed lorry some room as he slid all over the place turning into hilly road turn offs!
- The BMW's stayed at home today.. good call chaps.
- Audi drivers didn't (im ex audi driver) - and were gradually deserting their cars !
- I was fairly comfortable with the cars ability in the snow, it's the others on the road that made me worried!! Four wheel drive doesn't stop loons hitting you

Anyway.. thanks for all the responses.
Mike '08 Freelander 2 HSE in Stornoway Grey

Premium, Climate and Clear View packs.

Last edited by Ooma on 18th Jan 2013 1:18 pm. Edited 1 time in total

Thanks for the Hill Descent tip - I used HDC this morning to really good effect. GGS was not required as normal setting copes easily. The looks from other motorists as I drove past them in the outside lane was priceless......

I was out in mine in snow for the first time today (Midlands so we had around 4 inches of the stuff by 11am this morning).

It was an interesting experience.

No issues with grip or traction that I could tell.

Long hills with a gradual incline are fun because instinct is to stay off the throttle but the auto box tends to mean you don't have the engine braking effect.

Braking is something you really need to think about simply because you have 2 tons to stop rather than 1

Nothing helps you when you're stuck in traffic because someone's stuck up front somewhere.

If I could take every other car and driver off the road I would have felt a lot safer.

The auto box gives you excellent engine braking. Just approach the top of the hill slowly, so you are in a low gear, and descend without touching the throttle and the box will hold the gear and not change up. You can still brake without it changing up. If you want to change down manually then select Command Shift and select the gear you want.

It's as flexible as the manual and brakes just as well.

Auto vs manual punch-up starts here!

Interesting, I didn't tackle too many hills but that's how it felt, as if without hitting the brake the car would build up speed under its own momentum - I probably need to spend a bit more time getting used to it.

Had a kind of strange experiance with mine today in the snow, I reckon its down to lack of experiance on my part as its the first time driving an FL2 in the snow. Half an inch of snow today at work, as I left work I went up the access road that bends as it goes over a bridge. Driving at about 10 mph and as I was going up the bridge the car skidded side ways. I took my foot of the gas and the car stopped. Then I set off back up the hill and it was fine. Then at home the side street was covered in only half inch of snow and as I turned into a side street the car skidded slightly as I put more or less full lock on. Again i was going less that 10 mph. So as i'm a complete novice i'd say its something for my self to watch out for. Tyres have all 4mm on them so maybe its time to change tyres? Black MY2013 SD4 GS Auto, Wood Company Armrest, Freel2 sticker.
Gone MY2010 Freelander 2 Manual TD4.e S, Alaska White.

Just tried out my new set of Nokian tyres WR G2 Sport Utility 235/65 R17 108V XL BSW in the snow and forget the Conti's, Pirelli, Michelin these are the business, they give you total grip in ice/snow/water. Check out how they test these tyres on their website and you can see why these are so good. You can also run them all year round as well and they are slightly cheaper then some of the premiums mentioned and wear is ok on the tests. Got mine from Mytryes online delivered to local fitter within 3 working days from Germany. Before this only had Conti's fitted which cost more and only last 24k and frankly I got fed up with how useless they are in the winter ice even the cross contact was only marginally better. A tiny bit more road noise is the only compromise but now I have a freelander that can go anywhere in the conditions it was designed and I would say about 60% more grip then before.

Stevie5tapes wrote:

Tyres have all 4mm on them so maybe its time to change tyres?

Had a shockingly difficult drive to work today which took twice as long as usual with numerous 2 wheel drive cars (with summer tyres no doubt) struggling up hills. We had 4 to 5 inches of snow here and my biggest worry was some prat sliding into me. I had to use HDC repeatedly and also did the whole 1 hour journey in snow mode and the FL2 was faultless (Although it did defy the laws of physics and auto wipe half a windscreen's worth of snow into my drivers footwell at the start ?!?!?!?!?!?). I am SO glad that i did an LRE a few years back as otherwise the HDC noises would have freaked me out !! My colleague also made it into work in his R reg disco although he did manage to fishtail himself into a 180 degree spin on the way - something to do with his brakes or his ' chinese ditchfinder' tyres me thinks !!!! The 'wisdom' is that a 4-wheel drive is worth NOTHING, other than 4 wheels spinning instead of 2, unless you have got the right tyres. Indeed, I was very much able to tour Germany in the snow many years ago in my 2 wheel rear drive Porsche because I had decent winter tyres. FL2 HSE Auto Galway Green
Evoque SD4 Auto Blue.
FL1 HSE TD4 Manual Black - Gone.
RR Classic V8 EFI - Gone

Still waiting for a chance to test my wintrac 4's. Where is the blizzard I was promised this morning, the same blizzard that had the shelves in supermarkets stripped by panic buying idiots, and all local schools closing at lunch time because there might be "a massive dump" (their phrase not mine) according to the Met office.

We have had about 2mm !

I want snow, and I want it now ! _________________
Gone - 2010 Rimini XS

No issues with snow in manual XS- just driving on sheet ice was the hard part especially braking or should I say sliding
Don't think any of the settings would have helped just gave me a big scare especially when my wife said it shouldn't do that it's a 4x4 !!!!!!
Glad getting new tyres tomorrow 2011 XS,Sumatra Black, GONE MARCH 2014- RR Evoque Prestige 5 door ,MY 2014,Loire Blue, Silver Roof, Panoramic roof.
MY 2016 Disco Sport HSE Auto Scotia Grey,REJECTED
Mercedes E220D AMG line with air suspension(Gone)
DS 200 SE Dynamic my 21 (Gone)
DS 200 SE Dynamic my 22 (Gone)
Audi Q5 40TDI S line (gone)
Discovery Sport D200 S 2024 MY

Ooma wrote:

Four wheel drive doesn't stop loons hitting you

That is the one thing which puts me off taking the car out in the snow! I've lost count of the number of idiots I've seen slide helplessly into other cars, armfuls of lock and driven wheels spinning furiously. It's actually terrifying when they are headed your way.

This is my first winter with a Freelander, although I've experienced many previous snow seasons with RAV4s etc., I've never had problems driving in snow when the roads were empty. Unfortunately most of the time I've been stuck in queues of 2WD cars driven (& I use the adjective loosely) by morons.  2020 Defender D200 110S Pangea Green
Gone: 2018 L550, TD4 SE Tech Auto, Carpathian Grey
Gone: Defender 90 200Tdi, Grey Raptor
Gone: 2012 FL2, TD4 GS Manual, Santorini Black

Ooma wrote:

- The BMW's stayed at home today.. good call chaps.

Not me. Wife went to work in her FL2 and I went in the 330D. I got rid of the terrible BMW run-flats ages ago and it has got winter boots on now. The 330D had no problem driving through 4-6" of snow, up hills and turning tight corners. Considering its got 300BHP & 620Nm of torque I think the winter tyres performed amazingly. With the OEM run flats I wouldnt have been able to get off our drive !
So to paraphrase something someone once said "there is no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate tyres"