Hi everyone,

I am moving back to Scotland in April next year and living in a house out in the countryside. The house is in a rural area and far from a main road so I'm looking to get a Freelander 2.

I'm looking to spend about £6500. What should I be looking for?

If possible spend a good bit more and keep it longer to compensate depreciation.
The FL2 is a complicated and expensive car to repair, so I would concentrate on buying one with a good service history and an even better warranty.
In my opinion the SD4 is the best engine/transmission spec, and you need to read the adverts well as a lot of FL2s have been equipped with extras from higher up the model range. FL2 XS SD4 Auto 2010 2012-2017 (21k - 91k miles) (MY2011)
FL2 Metropolis SD4 Auto 2014 2017- (16k - 76k+ miles) (MY2015)

Last edited by IanMetro on 22nd Aug 2018 8:36 pm. Edited 1 time in total

Personally for that sort of money I’d be looking for a GS 160ps Auto * , lower miles the better . Don’t touch a manual car . Look for one that has a full LR or Indy LR service history . Ask the usual questions about rear Diff , Haldex , on the earlier cars the steering rack had problems but these usually came on early in the car’s life . There is a big service due at 10 years including the cam belt , it’s a £1000 job in real terms , factor that in .

* obviously we have one of these , the plus side is no ten year old “electric toys “ to worry about , cloth seats don’t look shabby and aged . The 160 engine is pre DPF so a big worry/ expense that isn’t waiting to happen . Ford/PSA engin and Aisin autobox is a sturdy troublefree combo in that spec. The overall downside is these are expensive cars to run if there is an issue .

Alternatively if you want worry free 4x4 motoring look for something that has a blue oval badge with stars on it  2009 GS Auto Zermatt Silver - Sold June 21 after 10 years of ownership

2016 Subaru Outback SE 2.0 diesel SE Premium Lineartronic Sold 2024 after 8 years and 80k miles . Best Car I ever owned !

2023 Toyota Hilux invincible X 2.8 Auto .

personally I would ignore anyone's opinions and do what I feel is right, stick to your budget, then no worries about value going down. Nothing wrong with manual whatsoever, mine has 162,000 on the clock now. Don't be put off by high miles , I wasn't. Look for a good HSE I reckon ! Then you won't regret wishing you had something on it that you don't have (if you get what I mean).
10 year service if not done , negotiate with seller, I got £700 knocked off price as it was due, it cost about £750 to do it. Happy hunting . . .  2017 SEAT Ateca 4drive 2.0 xcellence (May 2022 -
2007 HSE with HST bodykit in Zermatt Silver 169,700 miles (dec 2016 - May 2022 )
2007 Honda Civic Type S GT (2012-2017)
2002 Mini Cooper S (2008-2012)
1992 Honda Legend 3.2i (2003-2008)
1990 Honda Concerto (1999-2003)
1985 Honda Accord (1997-1999)
1983 Honda Accord (1993-1997)
1983 Mini Mayfair (1988-1993)
1974 Mini 1000 (1979-1986)

Something like this with the cam belt just done and if not the price taken off for doing it. It could be accident damaged of course.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/ad...amp;page=2 FL2 MY10 TD4 GS traded in at 2 years
FL2 MY13 TD4 GS Current

Have a good look underneath - some FL2s have suffered severe rust by being used to launch boats or been on the beach a lot - The sill seams rust if salt is not washed off. Jules

The following 3 things are the most important:

1. Buy an Auto.
2. Don't buy a manual.
3. Buy a car that avoids the well-known clutch and DMF problems.

 FL2 HSE Auto Galway Green
Evoque SD4 Auto Blue.
FL1 HSE TD4 Manual Black - Gone.
RR Classic V8 EFI - Gone

The following 3 things are the most important:

1. Buy a manual.
2. Don't buy an auto.
3. Don't listen to advice from anybody called Pedro.

 FL2 now gone and have a couple of items left for sale:-

Brodit active iPhone holder + Brodit dash clip,
Bluetooth Music Streaming Module.

If you do buy a manual you are missing out on one of the most pleasant driving aspects of the car . Also all of the special traction programs and hill descent control ( which you will probably use if you live a little of th beaten track, especially in winter ) are better suited to an auto box . The Yanks got this right years ago , a manual box belongs in the ages of a man walking in front of the car with a flag . For a decade old design the 2.2 Diesel and 6 speed auto still delivers a very up to date driving experience, You can still use the “ command shift “ mode to manually change , or hold the car in gear . Their is also a sports setting for auto shift . As said above it is indeed about personal choice , but the day you find yourself on a snow covered road queuing behind crawling cars for two hours in appalling conditions the auto wins every time . 2009 GS Auto Zermatt Silver - Sold June 21 after 10 years of ownership

2016 Subaru Outback SE 2.0 diesel SE Premium Lineartronic Sold 2024 after 8 years and 80k miles . Best Car I ever owned !

2023 Toyota Hilux invincible X 2.8 Auto .

The following 3 things are the most important:

1. buy what you want to buy, manual or auto, S or HSE, clutch/DMF replacements are not much more expensive than ordinary cars now and all the toys may not be on your wish list.
2. buy an auto, avoid manual as they are IMHO
3. buy the highest spec you can but SE is probably the pick of the bunch for cost vs spec



whatever you go for, buy wisely and enjoy the FL2 as they are brilliant cars if you get a good one

A nice manual at the right price will be fine. My 🚗 comes out of gear at traffic lights etc so find a old kid with one who learnt how to drive correctly.

The next one for us never happened as they stopped production but it probably was going to be auto. As for snow, that’s why we have weather forecasts to sleep through most nights. FL2 MY10 TD4 GS traded in at 2 years
FL2 MY13 TD4 GS Current

Thanks for all your (varied) opinions lol.

I currently live in Abu Dhabi and nearly every car here is an auto. When I'm back in Scotland for holidays it actually feels like a hassle driving manuals now. Automatics are much better than they used to be and don't rev like mad before changing gear. So it's likely I'll get an auto.

How do I tell if a FL2 has the Ford?Peugeot engine? Was it from a certain date?

All the 2.2 diesels were the PSA engine, or a very slight variation of it (as in when the SD4 came in in 2011)

I think I’m right in saying , up to 2010 the cars without DPF were 160 PS , then with DPF they were 150, the SD variants have 190 . Whoever put these cars together got these bits right and the Diesel has plenty of torque and is pretty rapid and smooth for such a big old thing . 2009 GS Auto Zermatt Silver - Sold June 21 after 10 years of ownership

2016 Subaru Outback SE 2.0 diesel SE Premium Lineartronic Sold 2024 after 8 years and 80k miles . Best Car I ever owned !

2023 Toyota Hilux invincible X 2.8 Auto .

Another for auto! And preferably SD4!  Landrover - turning owners into mechanics since 1948

2014 Orkney grey Freelander SD4 GS.
2004 Zambezi silver Discovery 2 Td5 (Gone)
1963 Surf blue Morris Mini Minor Super de Luxe (my little toy)