Well, last weekend I was finally able to let the babe do what she was designed for. Not the caravanning 'cause many cars can do that. Are you ready for this - we went "off-road".
It began when herself said we needed some eggs and being the country type it mean't that we would have to go to our local free range farm to collect. You cannot believe the thrill herself and I had when we turned off the main drag into the driveway of the farm. I am talking serious off-road testing here. The driveway is, in landscaping parlance, one and a half down, Cotswold pebble. For 150 yards to the gate of the farm the babe performed without a hitch. i am sure I detected the power switching from two to four wheel drive on a number of occasions and as there was an incline of some 4 degrees I even used the hill descent control on the way back. Herself said that she was well impressed and could fully understand my decision making process when considering the Freelander against other, lesser vehicles. Talking of which I spoke to my son about the experience and he confirmed what I always suspected, his ML320 (side runners, privacy glass, DVD's in headrests - what a poser), would have struggled to make the journey and as such he would take half a dozen of the eggs that herself had paid for. He didn't of course.
I am sorry to have gone on about the weekend experience but being committed FL2 owners I know you will share the enthusiasm and pleasure that we had. Incidentally the stone dust has marked the Autoglym tyre dressing on the tyres and I wondered if anyone knows of a cleaner which I can use to get the dust off without harming either the tyres or the pristine alloy wheels. Ralph
Zurmatt Silver, Diesel, Automatic, side steps, mud flaps, mats, boot liner, TomTom Start 60 installed, rubbing strips, removable Brink tow bar, after market tinted glass, front styling bar, Rear spoiler, Motorlicious tail pipe trim. Wood Company centre armrest

I bet the farmer does the same route in his normal road car? At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

sounds like the FL2 lived up to expectations and will be swaying your son when it comes to his car change time

I might have to find myself a new egg supplier too  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

chicken george wrote:

I bet the farmer does the same route in his normal road car?

You have such a way to ruin one's enthusiasm...

the farmer (where i used to park my caravan) always had a 4x4 too as he said a normal car's suspension would be ruined by his uneven farm track if used day to day Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Do you know herself says that our son was so impressed with the Babes performance he quite forgot to pay her for the eggs! Incidentally CG, farmers round these parts do not have standard road cars as they prefer to ride round in their very expensive tractors - something to do with the price they pay for the diesel!
Anyway such is our enthusiasm (not dampenend by cutting remarks) for the Babes capabilities that this weekend we have decided to be a little more ambitious and take the caravan out to Ludlow where we can indulge our other passions of golf and getting in the way of farmers who keep chickens. This means that the Babe will have to go "off-road"again. I will report next week, hopefully with photos of our exploits. Do you think LR would pay me for showing how capable the Babe is under the extreme conditions we place her in?  Ralph
Zurmatt Silver, Diesel, Automatic, side steps, mud flaps, mats, boot liner, TomTom Start 60 installed, rubbing strips, removable Brink tow bar, after market tinted glass, front styling bar, Rear spoiler, Motorlicious tail pipe trim. Wood Company centre armrest

No point driving a tractor using cheap diesel if your only getting about 5 mpg


And if the farmers road was proper rough your side steps would be rather bent and ruined by now. Perhaps he should mend his road and use the resulting increased egg sales to pay for the work. Then build more chicken sheds and more roads until he is indeed king chicken


 At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

Last edited by chicken george on 12th May 2009 8:52 am. Edited 3 times in total

alex_pescaru wrote:

chicken george wrote:

I bet the farmer does the same route in his normal road car?

You have such a way to ruin one's enthusiasm...

 At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

CG, I will endeavour, as promised, to provide pics of the weekend at Ludlow. Whether I can upload them without help is another issue.
As an aside in reponse to all the concerns about poor mpg etc. I said at the weekend to herself that despite the Babe being as aerodynamic as a house brick it was showing about 29mpg. Reply from herself was "You can't expect much from a car of this weight and shape. Don't worry about it".
Why do I feel a new outfit or worse still new shoes coming on! Ralph
Zurmatt Silver, Diesel, Automatic, side steps, mud flaps, mats, boot liner, TomTom Start 60 installed, rubbing strips, removable Brink tow bar, after market tinted glass, front styling bar, Rear spoiler, Motorlicious tail pipe trim. Wood Company centre armrest

Mrs G nipping out to the shops

Click image to enlarge

that looks like Peters just run over Jordan on the way to the divorce court  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

Somebody from this forum has been talking to LR.
I have had a phone call this morning from a very pleasant young lady saying that as I am the proud owner of the Babe she is offering a half day LR experience at Eastnor Castle. The idea is that "You can get some idea of what your vehicle is capable of" Who's taking the p then. It is Cg, AndyC or Npinks. I said I would love to go. So what can I expect then, welly boots, mud or worst of all; a dirty car, God forbid. Ralph
Zurmatt Silver, Diesel, Automatic, side steps, mud flaps, mats, boot liner, TomTom Start 60 installed, rubbing strips, removable Brink tow bar, after market tinted glass, front styling bar, Rear spoiler, Motorlicious tail pipe trim. Wood Company centre armrest

Now you have the 'bug' why not come along to our private off road day in June, then see what it can really do

CG enterprises offer a fee LRE day, the customer gets chance to look at a real life FL2 as he/she washes and polishes it inside and out. Then he/she gets a real life driving experience, involving driving Mr CG to the pub and waiting outside for him while he has a skinfull, then once again you get to drive the car,taking him home again, very quietly as you do not want to wake up Mrs CG


please book your places via the private messaging, hurry the places are filling fast  At work
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"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

don't worry about your LRE phone call Ralph

1st nobody has your telephone number to make prank calls (not from this site)
2nd you can park your sparkling car in the carpark and use there cars to go off road
3rd its free and well worth the day out

I'm going on my third later this year, booked in for July, but I am going to postpone until later in the year, hoping that they might have the D4 and new RRS  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis