The Freelander has developed a whiring noise on the rear end and a strange kind of grating noise when you use 5th and 6th gear.

Its not a job i can do myself and looking at a remanufactured rear diff and Haldex is about £450 to £500 and a second hand gearbox is fairly cheap too, and so i took to looking at a few garages near me that specialises in the Land Rovers including the gearbox issues and no problem too small kind of thing.

So a garage near me good reviews specialises in gearboxes and Land Rover Haldex etc so off i goes to book an appointment. Spoke to a nice lady in reception, few people in there too looking to book their cars in and informed they have a back log of three weeks and my details and vehicle details and issues are taken and they said they will cal me in three weeks when they can get me in.

Four to five weeks pass and nothing, so off i go to see what the issue is, they have no record of me or the vehicle. So issues are taken down off the receptionist goes to speak to the mechanic, he comes in, to speak to me "issues with Haldex is it?" i said im not sure if its Haldex or diff then he mentions the gearbox and his response is "time for a new car i think, thats going to costs you thousands, by the time we take everything off and strip it down its running into thousands of pounds. So much for specialising in landrovers haldexes and gearbox issues then, im looking to leave a nice review for them.

So im kinda in a rock and hard place here and wondering if anybody can offer up some advice, im in the North Ayrshire area

Its often the labour cost that kills older vehicles. There is so much to dismantle on modern cars before you can even get to do the job. Time is money.

Hopefully someone around your neck o' the woods can advise. Jules

Unfortunatley Jules is right.
The Freelander body is strong and well protected from rust, so survives well. The engine is almost bullet proof and certainly good for over 250,000 miles. The rest of the running gear was probably designed for 10 years or 150,000 miles, the electrical system would be lucky to survive 10 years - not many intelligent chips have a production run of 10 years - so spares becomes an issue.

On an older vehicle one expensive item, even though relatively simple to replace can financially write off the vehicle. The caveat is not what is the vehicle worth to the trade, but what is the vehicle worth to you?

For example a 2007 FL2 might be worth £2k trade - but £500 scrap. So a gearbox at £1k with fitting at £500 (4 hours) isn't financially viable, just scrap it. But finding another FL2 similar age, similar spec, without issues for £2k ??? good luck.

On the other hand my Disco Sport blew it's engine in March and already had a faulty transfer box. WBAC valued it at £7k due to the mileage a week prior to the engine failure, the engine, gearbox, turbo, intercooler etc came in at £17k and I still had the work done - the car has sentimental value.

So I will repeat, "what is the car worth to you?" is what counts at the end of the day. Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

Jules is right, unless you are able to provide the manpower, then running an older car is expensive.

Why not press on and get some actual quotes, that will give you a starting point to decide if you want to keep your FL2 or move on to another car.

If you move on to to another FL2 then buy a later model from a known good source with some warranty (if possible).

As with all older cars beware of owners off-loading problems

A fully equipped model is best if you want a chance of owning a classic.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2...6flrfc%3D1

PS Andy131 has the answer exactly, what's your emotional attachment to your present FL2 FL2 XS SD4 Auto 2010 2012-2017 (21k - 91k miles) (MY2011)
FL2 Metropolis SD4 Auto 2014 2017- (16k - 85k+ miles) (MY2015)
Metro in its 12th Year of (Extended) LR Warranty / Full LR Service History
(Expensive, but Trouble/Worry free - hopefully?)

That was a shock.
The car listed was 5 years younger than my DS, similar mileage and £8k - just goes to prove that the DS is not as highly regarded as the FL2.
Then again there was a 2007 FL2 in the same search for £1,790 so my example of £2k wasn't a million miles away. Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

Yeah i get that however the business clearly states

" Car Gearbox Repairs – Ayrshire

Maintaining this complex part in good working order is really important for the safety and performance of your vehicle, a broken gearbox will severely damage your car and your wallet. So bring your car into Bute Service Centre at the first sign of trouble.

As a Servicesure Autocentre, you can rest assured that at Bute Service Centre we are committed to delivering the highest levels of customer service. All the work we do is covered by Servicesure’s market leading National Warranty.

To find out more about Car Gearbox Repairs in Ayrshire, get in touch online or call us directly on 01294 603556"

First sign of trouble i took mine in and am told "oh time to buy a new car as this could run into thousands" wtf does a new car run into then??

I would contact Austin at Bell. He supplies recon units to garages and may have a local to you garage on his books

deadbeatdad.

I went in to get a quote from them for the timing belt around last February. Too busy can't do anything before the end of the summer. Wouldn't even offer a quote.

well i was looking to leave him a review but it just takes you to a tyre fitting service, how convenient

I am going to suggest that "Car Gearbox Repairs – Ayrshire" have so much easier / profitable work that they don't need your business.

The DS equivelent of the front transfer box on mine was failing (teeth in the oil is a giveaway), several local LR independants just said no, one local Indie said yes and made it worse. So in desperation I took her to the dealership, imagine my surprise when they quoted £2,200 (+VAT?) just to look at it. This is not to attempt a fix, just to diagnose.
I had a word with the Technician, and asked him was it a "go away" price, and the answer was yes, they neither needed or wanted the work as they had done one previously and it didn't end well. In fairness they did suggest a LR independant in Bury, who did fix it. Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

I have Neil Engineering 5 minutes down the road that specialises in gearbox and also Haldex, only thing is I need to remove the Haldex myself.

I assume this isn't an easy job on my back under the car?

The haldex separates from the rear diff quite easily.
Its the other stuff that adds to the job-
eg
-jacking up a front wheel up to allow you to turn the propshaft,
-propshaft centre bearing support removal,
-moving exhaust pipe to the side for more access,
-propshaft flange removal from haldex - slow process .

Ive done it a couple of times - up on ramps

Its in the JLR workshop manual Jules

Been Emailing Bell Engineering who have stated they don't do gearbox replacement fitting, they can supply a recon for £750+vat however i think ill buy a second hand one for about £250 and get it sent to Neil Engineering and have all the bearings and syncros done , then get a new clutch kit and try and get the gearbox fitted myself.

Bell Engineering have told me the diff is the cause of the whirring noise not the Haldex, so i think ill take the car to them once the gearbox is sorted and get them to do the Haldex as they are the only ones top put in uprated bearings

Davidspect wrote:

deadbeatdad.

I went in to get a quote from them for the timing belt around last February. Too busy can't do anything before the end of the summer. Wouldn't even offer a quote.

yes id do a lot myself only i dont have a garage and its getting to cold weather season now. If anybody in the North Ayrshire area can help me out fitting the gearbos and new clutch i would of course pay them for their time and id muck in too