1997-2000 (1.8 Petrol & 2.0 Diesel)
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Land Rover Freelander Introduction
1997-2000 (1.8 Petrol & 2.0 Diesel) |
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Page Contents
New Chassis Engineering Freelander on the Market New Engines for 2001 Production Data & Specification Summary
©Rimmer Bros Ltd - Registered in England No. 2155394. VAT No. GB 352 8473 40.
Introduction
Production Data & Specification Summary
Vehicle Identification
Project Cyclone, later dubbed CB40, and finally titled Land Rover Freelander, was given official approval in 1994.
It was a new type of 4x4, a cheaper model aimed at younger buyers and the leisure market. Land Rover had already laid down the design before BMW took control of the company in 1994.
Here, in fact, was a machine aimed firmly at the sizeable market sector which had first been dominated by 4x4s like the Toyota RAV4. Even while Land Rover's new product was under development, the Honda CR-V would also join in - these two Japanese cars being serious competition, all round the world.
To get down to the planned weight and fuel consumption targets, CB40 needed a choice of smaller-displacement, four-cylinder, petrol and diesel engines. All the initial paper studies suggested that a power output of about 120bhp (petrol) and 100bhp (diesel) would be appropriate. For all the obvious timing and financial reasons, there was never any chance that Land Rover could get any new engines designed - so existing Rover Group power units would be employed.
To follow this up, the choice of an ultra-compact transversely-mounted engine/primary transmission layout influenced almost every other aspect of CB40's packaging - this was the first time a Land Rover had ever used transverse engines. A look at the Rover Group's line-up of engines and transmissions provided the perfect power trains.
Not only was there a sturdy 118bhp/1.8-litre version of the celebrated 16-valve twin-cam K-Series Rover engine, about to be introduced for the MGF sports car, but the single-overhead-cam, 2.0-litre L-Series turbo-diesel was also available. Both engines were already configured for transverse engine/front-wheel-drive installation as was the robust PG1 type of five-speed manual transmission which bolted on to them. Land Rover found it straightforward to add a 4x4 layout out.
The centre differential featured a viscous coupling which could stiffen up in its characteristic manner, locking front and rear diffs to each other. But this would be the first Land Rover model without High (normal) and Low ('crawler') gear trains.
The biggest and most costly decision was to choose unit-construction - this being another Land Rover innovation. This meant that most body and structural panels had to be steel pressings.
Although the new Freelander would be shorter than the Discovery, it would actually be wider and only slightly lower. The interior package would be equally as roomy. As a result, the use of a weight-saving unit-construction, smaller engines, and new chassis components meant that the new car would be up to 1,000lb/454kg lighter than the Discovery.
Right from the start, Land Rover decided to provide a choice of styles on the same wheelbase/platform/front end structure: there were initially twelve derivatives. Not only would there be body options, but carefully graded levels of standard equipment too.
The basic, 'entry-level' three-door type lacked HDC (Hill Descent Control), passenger airbags, five-spoke alloy wheels, and other useful features; although all of these, of course, were be available as optional extras.
Land Rover made sure that it catered exactly for the SUV or 'fun' market and for the purely-practical sector. There was to be a five-door estate car type of style - the more conventional of the two, and called 'Station Wagon' - and a three-door type, which could be supplied either with a Softback or Hardback rear door.
Five-door Station Wagons had seating for five, with a rear bench whose back-rest split 60%/40%, with rear belts for three people. The three-door type was configured for four people, with two individually shaped rear seats.
The cabin was trimmed and equipped as carefully as any car in this price class. There were nicely-shaped reclinable front seats, and by any standard this was a nicely-detailed and well-fitted fascia. Features like a driver's airbag (a bag for the front passenger featured on some derivatives), a rev-counter, electric front window lifts, electrically-controlled mirrors and remote central locking were all included.
Not only did the Freelander have a choice of engines, but all independent suspension, and power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering. Suspension was by MacPherson strut, but there was no self-levelling. This showed that the design team was tailoring this car to the 'leisure' rather than to the out-and-out 'off-road' market.
The brakes were disc front, drum rear. In addition there was a sophisticated ABS anti-lock installation, along with two other related features (not standard on all models) - ETC and HDC. ETC stands for Electronic Traction Control: in effect, this used ABS wheel sensors, and its electronic logic, but in reverse. Under certain circumstances it could apply a gentle braking force to the wheel which lost torque, and transfer feeding torque to the wheel on the opposite side of the car.
HDC (Hill Descent Control) was an even cleverer spin-off from the ABS mechanism. In first or reverse gear (when engaged via a yellow collar on the gear lever), with the throttle pedal released, HDC automatically limited hill descent speeds to 5.6mph/9kph, while avoiding wheel lock-up or skidding. Very reassuring.
Underneath the strong, but otherwise conventional, all-steel chassis/body construction, there was detail innovation at all sides. Although the MacPherson struts looked conventional enough, by comparison with private cars they were much more sturdy in detail - including larger ball joints, bushes, and mountings. Links which might otherwise be damaged by hitting huge rocks were engineered to break rather than to distort the suspension sub-frames or the shell itself. The steering rack was mounted high up on a very rigid area of the chassis, to keep it out of harm's way.
When the Freelander was officially unveiled in September 1997, Land Rover suggested that they might make 60,000 Freelanders a year, and that this new model might add 40 per cent to Land Rover's annual output. That, though, was a modest understatement. Almost immediately, demand for the Freelander took off like a rocket, and even before export deliveries began the company could see that this gamble was going to pay off. It was not long before 2,000 Freelanders were being produced every week.
Quite clearly, the Freelander was exactly what the Land Rover market needed. It wasn't long before the brand-new factory block was as busy as possible. Importantly, exports were booming as never before -with three out of four 4x4s finding a home overseas.
And this was only the beginning, for several new, and extra, derivatives were already being planned. At that stage, the pundits noted the promise of new-generation four-cylinder engines which BMW was about to start producing at the massive new Hams Hall factory (which was a mere seven miles north of Solihull). There was also the compact four-overhead-cam Rover V6 which was a close relative of the Freelander's existing four-cylinder petrol engine.
Although the arrival of a commercial (van) version of the three-door Freelander was little noticed in mid-1999, in 2000 there was avid interest in the prospects for new-engined models. Even so, two new types - one with the Rover KV6 V6 petrol engine, the other with BMW's modern common-rail direct-injection Td4 2-litre diesel - were not officially put on sale until September 2000. By this time, incidentally, Ford had taken control of Land Rover, but did not interfere with the strategy.
Both new models were a real advance. Ford stuck to the plan to use the twin-overhead-camshaft 1,951cc BMW turbo-diesel to replace the more conventional Rover L-Series. The BMW diesel was ultra-modern, state-of-the art in every way, and had already found a home in the Rover 75, along with the BMW 3-Series and 5-Series types. It was lighter than the L-Series, but quieter, more powerful, more torquey and (it was claimed) significantly more fuel efficient too.
At the same time Land Rover also made a five-speed Jatco automatic transmission optional; this could be used in fully automatic or in Steptronic 'clutchless manual' mode. Except in tune, and in detail, this engine/auto combination already existed - in the Rover 75.
Independent road tests proved Land Rover's point (though not the claimed 10mpg economy gain). An automatic-transmission Station Wagon Td4 could almost reach 100mph, could sprint to 60mph in a very creditable 14.6seconds, and could record at least 33mpg in normal day-to-day motoring.
Installing Rover's high-revving 177bhp KV6 was even more ambitious. Although provision had always been made at the project 'packaging' stage, this 90-degree V6, complete with twin-overhead-camshaft cylinder heads, was a very snug fit in the engine bay. However, because it had always been engineered for transverse installation, no compromises were needed to slot it into the Freelander. Because it revved so highly - peak was 6,500rpm, while 7,000 was easily possible - Land Rover had to drop its final drive ratio significantly, but the overall effect was the same as before.
Here was the flagship that brought a grin to every Freelander driver's face. With a claimed top speed of 113mph and 0-60mph in 10.1sec, all in turbine like smoothness, and with the transmission control that only a BMW-developed Steptronic system seemed able to deliver, this was a totally different Land Rover 4x4.
Not that the new cars were cheap. In the autumn of 2000, British market Freelander prices (a 1.8i. Softback, for instance) started at £15,995, while diesel Td4 engined cars kicked in at £17,195, while the range of V6- engined types cost between £21,595 and £24,595. Not cheap - but still much lower than those for the current Discovery (£21,995 - &p32,940), and no-one was complaining about those either ...
Like every generation of Land Rover before it, the Freelander had got off to a great start. Now that its future was in the hand of Ford, who had ambition to sell many more of them world-wide, it seemed set for a long career.
Graham Robson
To ensure the parts that you order are correct for your Freelander, you will need to know when the vehicle was manufactured. Although the registration document will tell you when it was registered, this may have been some time after it was actually built. The most accurate way to determine your Freelander's age (along with information relating to its specification) is by the chassis number (also called the VIN - Vehicle Identification Number). You can find this number on your registration document, as well as two different places on the vehicle:
1. On a plate riveted to a panel in front of the radiator.
2. Inside the windscreen, on the lower left hand corner.
The VIN number contains details about where your vehicle was manufactured, the year of manufacture and also the vehicle specification (see the table above).
A typical VIN number would appear as follows:
SALLNABA7VA, followed by a 6-figure serial number.
This information is broken down as follows:
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