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Hi i am considerimg buying a freelander td4 to tow my caravan,this will be my first 4x4,it will more than likely be a x,y or 51 plate due to money restraints,any tips on buying+owning a freelander would be appreciated ta a.j
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>>any tips on buying+owning a freelander
Yeah - don't.
Try reading the "Car-by-Car Breakdown on the red menu box to your left, or searching for previous threads using "Forum Search" on the right.
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Sorry aj but I have to agree with No FM2R.
Stay away from them particulrly one outside of any warranty.
As one magazine says about the car - you will be inviting the service manager for Christmas dinner as you will get to know him that well.
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Troublesome and not particullary good at towing either
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aj,
How big/heavy is your caravan? Do you really need a 4x4 to tow with? Just been to France for 5 days, saw hundreds of caravans -almost invariably UK ones were towed by 4x4s, almost invariably French/Dutch/German vans were towed by "ordinary" saloons/MPVs. The view that a 4x4 is essential to tow a van seems to be a peculiarly British view, but of course, a heavy caravan may require a heavy 4x4 to tow it. However, I wouldn't have thought a Freelander would be a better tow car than a good saloon/MPV - though I stand correction.
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Phil
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if you feel you need a 4x4 buy a subaru, overall running costs will be no greater than a freelander as you will swap fuel cost for repair but at least you will get something reliable
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or if its a big caravan get a Hyundai Terracan. Good fuel economy (better than some saloons), relatively cheap to run and it won't just tow a caravan, it'll pull a small country - can tow 2.8t.
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Drive Your Way - If anything can, TerraCan
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The view that a 4x4 is essential to tow a van seems to be a peculiarly British view
I imagine the main difference is that some UK campsites can end up being rather wet (depending on location/rainfall etc); I'd have thought a 4x4 a good idea from this point of view.
I'm rather interested in the outcome of this discussion since I tow a boat and have been having some rather scary thoughts about slippery steep slipways. Keep the suggestions rolling.
For one thing, has anyone any experience of the Kia and Hyundai 4x4s?
Splodgeface
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Either a Subaru, as suggested above, or a Honda CRV. Both will be reliable: you won't get a diesel, but are you going to use it for a high annual mileage without the caravan? If not, you'll be OK without a diesel.
If you do need a diesel, it's worth getting advice from experienced caravanners on which cars make good towcars. I would imagine that something tough like a Skoda Octavia TDI would make a good job of it, and I'm sure I've heard that diesel Citroens make good towcars too. Perhaps also a Nissan Orimera or Toyota Avensis.
If it's important to have a 4 x 4, then go for the CRV: the Nissan X-Trail is good too but I'm not sure when they were introduced, so they may be over budget.
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Why is it necessary to have four wheel drive in order to pull a caravan?
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I am looking for a 4x4 because we caravan all year round&keep getting stuck on muddy fields at the minute i tow with a picasso 2.0 hdi,does anybody not have a good word for freelanders,i know the petrols are dodgy with cooling prob's but i am after a td4,i find japanese 4x4 a bit bland except for the x trail but the wife does'nt like them and she will use it 90%of the time ta aj
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What about a RAV4? They're not to bad looking (in 3 door anyway!) and even the petrol versions are surprisingly economical.
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Neighbours of mine have a Terrano, they swear by it for dragging their huge monolith. USeful for other things as well.
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aj - in response to your query on the specific reliability of diesel freelanders vs petrol then yes the diesels are a little more reliable but all the horror stories I have heard have been from friends with diesel freelanders - they are still troublesome. I thought at the time if this is what more reliability is with a diesel then I am astonished. My advice would be to still steer well clear.
I think the best advice I have seen above is for a Subaru.
The CRV is an excellent car and I have owned one - 10/10 for reliability etc but I understand they are not good at towing.
Just to quote an example although I agree this is minor - a colleague has recently picked up an 55 plate Freelander and I popped over to see him th eother day and saw his legs sticking out the drivers door. When I asked him waht he was doint he was sticking draft excluder all round the inside because he had so many rattles and the dealer was not interested.
I quote this because you referred to the interior being less balnd on the freelander - well I agree but they are not as well built.
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Just to quote an example although I agree this is minor - a colleague has recently picked up an 55 plate Freelander and I popped over to see him th eother day and saw his legs sticking out the drivers door. When I asked him waht he was doint he was sticking draft excluder all round the inside because he had so many rattles and the dealer was not interested.
I would make the dealer INTERESTED, believe you me. Has to be fit for the purpose for which it was intended. Take no for an answer.................NEVER.
VBR......MD.
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If your used to diesel economy when towing, don't even consider a petrol 4x4.
probably one of your best bets would be diesel Nissan X trail.... good relability and resale value
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My MiL has a 2.5V6 auto Freelander on a 53 plate. She's very happy with it, no problems so far. It's the ES spec with leather interior, it looks and feels quite well made in my opinion, no rattles. Engine is quite thirsty though at 22mpg.
The BMW td4 engine seems to get good write ups coupled with the manual box. My advice would be to see a few and try one for yourself as you tend to get more people with negative experiences airing their views on the internet. On t'internet there are plenty of people complaining about Nissan diesel X Trails also. Your best bet would probably be a CRV CDTi but they're relatively new so you're looking at 15k plus unless you opt for the 2.0 petrol
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Thought some more about this. I'm guessing if your looking at 01 td4 Freelanders you've got a budget of about 7/8k.
With your budget I'd personally be inclined towards a nice privately owned petrol RAV4 or CRV. SWMBO's got an auto RAV4 and it does 30mpg, a diesel Freelander will only do about 37. You won't get the same amount of torque however - which I'm sure will affect your towing. A diesel RAV4 can probably be got for about 10k
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FWIW, we have TD4 on a 53 plate. One small fault in 2.25 years, fixed under waranty, otherwise no probls
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Boss at work has a TD4 on 53 plate...80,000 miles (mostly motorway...why a 4x4 I have no idea).
Anyway been 100% reliable minus a couple of window seals fixed straight away!
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There is a 53reg Terracan auto for 9,995 - 80K on the clock, 2yrs warranty left (unlimited mileage). Would suit you perfectly. See what these guys have to say - forum.australia4wd.com/index.php?showforum=47
about towing with a Terra!
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Drive Your Way - If anything can, TerraCan
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FWIW, we have TD4 on a 53 plate. One small fault in 2.25 years, fixed under waranty, otherwise no probls
Is it my imagination or did H.J. say that the TD4 was OK and that the rest were Carp???
MD.
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>> but the wife does'nt like them and she will use it 90%of the time ta aj
So, your point is???????????
MD
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Have you thought of Kia, or hyundai instead?
& worth clikin on...
www.towsafe.co.uk
www.towsure.co.uk
VB
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