Land
Rover Freelander Introduction
1997-2000 (1.8 Petrol &
2.0 Diesel) |
Page Contents
Introduction
Production
Data & Specification Summary
Vehicle
Identification
Introduction
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.
New Chassis Engineering
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.
Freelander on the Market
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.
New Engines for 2001
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
Production
Data & Specification Summary
Vehicle
Identification
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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