Item: Used Land Rover Freelander 2006-2014
Rating: 4
Author: Steve Huntingford

The premium SUV market expanded quickly during the Freelander’s time on sale, so there are many, many rivals.

The <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volvo/xc60/4x4/used-review/n17383">Volvo XC60</a> is a closely related one, being a car that dips into the same <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/ford">Ford</a> family parts bin. It’s similarly roomy and looks more expensive inside and out, but it’s far less capable off road.

The<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/santa-fe/4x4/used-review/n394"> Hyundai Santa Fe</a> went on sale in its second-generation form in the same year that the Freelander 2 was launched, and while it lacks the premium badging, it’s still a fine car, well made and reliable, and with the bonus of seven seats.

<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/audi">Audi</a> entered the market in 2009 with the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/q5/4x4/used-review/n244">Q5</a>, which, while being more expensive than the Freelander, is generally a very fine car. Just choose carefully if you’re buying an early example, because these can have a stiffer gearbox and firmer ride.

You should also take a look at the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/x3/4x4/used-review/n829">BMW X3</a>, because it's a little more practical than the Freelander,&nbsp;more efficient and faster, and it has a much nicer interior that comes complete with an excellent infotainment system.

For all the latest reviews, advice and new car deals, sign up to the What Car? newsletter<a href="https://pages.haymarket.com/whatcar/wcar-form.html"> here</a>

<h3 dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-cars/land-rover/freelander">Find a used Land Rover Freelander with What Car? &gt;&gt;</a></h3>

Page 5 of 5

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<h3 dir="ltr">Sunroof</h3>

The sunroof glass of vehicles produced between 1 November 2006 and 12 January 2008 might become detached from its guide rails and jam the mechanism. Find out from a Land Rover dealer if your Freelander has already had the necessary recall work carried out.

<h3 dir="ltr">Booster heater fire</h3>

There have been&nbsp;two recalls for potential fires on examples built between the period of&nbsp;1 February 2007 and 2&nbsp;June&nbsp;2008, caused&nbsp;by&nbsp;a short circuit in&nbsp;the booster heater. Early signs of this are a battery drain the means you cannot start the vehicle, or a pungent smell of hot or melted plastic. In extreme circumstances, this can lead to a fire. Speak to a Land Rover dealer to ascertain if this recall has already been applied to your Freelander.

<h3 dir="ltr">Fuel Leak</h3>

The&nbsp;fuel rail on diesel models&nbsp;manufactured between 1 January 2012 and 31 October 2013&nbsp;might leak fuel and this could lead to a potential fire if it hits something hot, such as the exhaust manifold. Check with your local Land Rover dealer to find out if your car has already had this recall carried out.

The Freelander is perhaps a little too old now to be included in the What Car?&nbsp;Reliability Survey, but it never scored particularly highly when it did. However, you can minimise the risk by buying the best example you can with plenty of&nbsp;evidence of it being well looked after. Insist on a full service history from a Land Rover main dealer or a specialist, and if you can find an owner that has kept a file&nbsp;with all the receipts of recent maintenance work, so much the better.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/land-rover">Land Rover</a> finished last&nbsp;out of 31 manufacturers in our latest survey, well behind rival brands such as <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/audi">Audi</a>, <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/bmw">BMW</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/mercedes-benz">Mercedes</a>.

If you would like to see the full reliability list, head to the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/2020-what-car-reliability-survey/n20042">What Car? Reliability Survey</a> pages for more information.

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Land Rover is synonymous with SUVs, and especially with the Defender – the rugged runabout that has seen service in war zones across the world, but also as part of the Queen’s personal garage.

If off-road prowess is one of Land Rover’s core values, though, the other is luxury. Indeed, the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Velar are among the best luxury SUVs you can buy.

The Discovery, meanwhile, is a practical rival for the Audi Q7 and BMW X5, while the stylish Evoque (which is available as a three-door convertible as well as a traditional SUV) goes head to head with Audi’s Q3 and BMW’s X1.

In the coming years, we’ll see a new road-biased ‘Road Rover’ as well as an all-new Defender.

LAND ROVER

FREELANDER

Smart looks and temptingly low prices put a used Land Rover Freelander within most budgets

Used Land Rover Freelander 2006-2014

<h3 dir="ltr">MPG</h3>

Depending on the model, you can end up spending a lot on fuel. Post-2010 cars are generally more frugal than earlier ones, especially the&nbsp;front-wheel-drive version with the slightly detuned diesel engine; it has official combined&nbsp;economy of 47.2mpg. However, four-wheel-drive models aren't so frugal;&nbsp;the early 2.2 diesel should get 37.7mpg.&nbsp;Later models with stop-start (badged TD4-e) are better&nbsp;at 41.3mpg.

The 3.2-litre petrol engine is best avoided. While it’s smooth, you’ll get 25.2mpg out of it at best.

<h3 dir="ltr">CO2 emissions</h3>

It's best you don't go for the 3.2 petrol here, because it coughs out a massive 265g/km of CO2. One for the very well heeled…

The one with the lowest CO2 output is the front-wheel-drive Freelander, which&nbsp;emits just 158g/km. Early four-wheel-drive diesels produced 194g/km, but the revised TD4-e got this down to 179g/km.

An automatic gearbox can raise CO2 emissions figures considerably, so check before you buy.

<h3 dir="ltr">Road tax</h3>

Since all Freelanders will have been registered under the previous road tax system, the annual fee you'll pay will be based on the amount of CO2 produced (see above). To find out more about the current <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/advice/buying/car-tax-changes-in-2019-%E2%80%93-what-do-i-need-to-know/n1153">road tax costs, click here</a> for further information.

<h3>Servicing costs</h3>

<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/land-rover">Land Rover</a> servicing is generally reasonable compared with other premium brands such as Mercedes, but there’s a big, 10-year service to consider that covers the timing belt, as well as all of the fluids for the engine, gearbox and four-wheel drive system. This can run to more than £1000.

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Smart looks and temptingly low prices put a used Land Rover Freelander within most budgets

Second-generation Freelanders&nbsp;can now be had for less than&nbsp;£2500. These examples will have a&nbsp;high mileage, though, but&nbsp;if you can find one for that sort of money that's been well cared for and fully serviced, it could be something of a bargain. Spend between £5000 and £7000 on a 2009 example with reasonable mileage.&nbsp;

Later examples tend to be more expensive, though.&nbsp;Late 2014 examples have dropped down to a starting point of around £11,000 for something with a respectable mileage.&nbsp; The very last cars with minimal mileage that are listed at main dealers tend to go for at least £17,000.

Check the value of a used Land Rover Freelander with <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/car-valuation/">What Car? Valuations</a>

<h3 dir="ltr">Engine</h3>

Despite being four-wheel drive, the 2.2&nbsp;TD4-e returns good fuel economy, especially in post-2010 models, which received a number of small mechanical tweaks to improve efficiency. Hence, it is a much better choice than the only petrol variant offered – a 3.2-litre engine – which is simply too thirsty.

Those seeking fractionally better economy should go for the front-wheel-drive eD4, which also features engine stop-start to save fuel in traffic, but it isn't&nbsp;as common.

<h3 dir="ltr">Specification</h3>

We’d go for an XS, on balance, because you get plenty of equipment for not a lot of money.

Our favourite used <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-reviews/make/land-rover">Land Rover </a>Freelander: 2.2 TD4-e XS 4WD

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<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Running costs that won’t break the bank </li> <li>Generous kit</li> <li>Pokey engine and tidy handling</li> <li>Spacious interior</li> <li>Boot big enough to cope with family life</li></ul>

The car-buying public has fallen in love with small SUVs, or crossovers as they’re often called, with thousands turning away from conventional hatchbacks in favour of something that rides that little bit higher.

The original baby SUV is the Nissan Juke, which remains a popular choice, but there are plenty of better rivals to consider instead. We’d recommend you look at either the Ford Puma or Skoda Kamiq, because they offer&nbsp;a great blend of practicality and value that keeps them&nbsp;clear of the opposition. Equally, if you’ve got more money to spend, the Audi Q2 and Volkswagen T-Roc&nbsp;are both fine choices.&nbsp;

Small SUV

Although few Freelanders will&nbsp;ever see serious off-road use,&nbsp;it’s a good idea to check for any potential underbody damage.

The interior of the Freelander needs to be checked carefully for loose or damaged panels, and it’s not unknown for the optional leather seats to split at the seams.

The Freelander uses a DVD-based sat-nav system, which is slower than the newer hard drive or SD-card-based setups, and the DVD needs replacing at regular intervals to ensure it’s up to date.

A low&nbsp;rumbling sound from under the back of the car could indicate trouble with the rear differential and that can be more than £1000 to replace. Rear wheel bearings can wear out&nbsp;and cost around £350-£400 each to replace.&nbsp;Power steering pumps can fail, and that could lead to a £1000 bill if the rack needs replacing. The Freelander seems especially susceptible to developing suspension and steering tracking alignment issues, leading to excessive and uneven tyre wear.&nbsp;Anti-roll bar drop links can also wear out, so if the car feels less than precise on a test drive, that’s most likely the cause.

There have been reports of occasional issues with the oil breather pipe and the fuel injectors in diesel Freelanders, with smelly fumes inside the car&nbsp;being a sign of injector trouble, but it’s usually a relatively affordable fix to the injector washers.

Electrical systems can develop faults, especially the alarm system and (optional) automatic windscreen wipers.&nbsp;

The optional heated windscreen mechanism can be damaged by stone chips and is often replaced with a cheaper non-heated, non-original product.

The original Land Rover Freelander was a top seller and a huge success commercially, right across Europe, but this second-generation version represented a big step up for the British company’s smallest product. With smarter looks inside and out, it could take on premium-badged opposition such as the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/x3/4x4/used-review/n829">BMW X3</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/q5/4x4/used-review/n244">Audi Q5</a> for the first time.&nbsp;

The most popular engine of choice&nbsp;is the 2.2-litre TD4 diesel engine, which produces 157bhp and gives the Freelander pretty good performance. If not, there was also a 190bhp version of the same engine in the SD4 that comes paired with a six-speed automatic gearbox. You could also briefly get a 231bhp 3.2-litre six-cylinder petrol (available until 2008) that was relatively swift, but you’ll pay dearly for the privilege at the pumps.

There’s a broad range of different Freelanders available used, with plenty of special editions toward the end of its life. However, the majority of cars for sale are either S, GS, SE, XS or range-topping HSE. S models&nbsp;are just a bit too bare inside for comfort, but GS versions are better, with cruise control, rear parking sensors and front foglights. SEs&nbsp;have heated seats, while XS models feature part-leather seats, electric adjustment for the driver and passenger and front parking sensors. Range-topping HSE Freelanders get full leather and sat-nav.

This&nbsp;second-generation Freelander also made a bit of history by becoming the first Land Rover product to be sold with front-wheel drive; that fuel-saving eD4 model was added to the range in 2008 and provides a noticeable reduction in fuel consumption. Plus, it’s not as useless in tricky conditions as you might expect, due to&nbsp;the weight of the engine&nbsp;over the driven wheels.

Most Freelanders are four-wheel drive and come equipped with a clever Terrain Response system (apart from S versions) that adjusts various vehicle parameters to help you when going off road. Provided you’ve got good tyres on your Land Rover, it should go farther than most from the beaten path.

When you venture back on to sealed&nbsp;roads, you'll find&nbsp;there’s a lot of body lean in bends.&nbsp;However,&nbsp;the Freelander grips well and has a very comfortable ride. Wind noise can be an issue at high speeds, but it’s still a relaxing car to take on a long cruise. &nbsp;

True, the interior plastics don’t feel as classy as those in contemporary Audis and BMWs, but they’re much better than the ones used on the original car. There's plenty of head and leg room in&nbsp;the front, and the high seating position&nbsp;gives&nbsp;an excellent forward view over the bonnet.

Adults won't enjoy sitting in the rear seats,&nbsp;though, because there isn't a great deal of leg room back there. The bench is at least mounted quite high to afford a good view out over the front seats.&nbsp;It’s also a shame that the Freelander’s boot is so small.

If you're interested in finding a <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-cars/land-rover/freelander">used Freelander</a>, or any of the other cars mentioned here, head over to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/used-cars">Used Car Buying</a>&nbsp;pages to find lots of cars listed for sale at a great price.

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Used Land Rover Freelander 2006-2014 review

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Wondering what the best used Land Rover Freelander 2006 - 2014 is for your money? The expert What Car? review team can help you out.

EngineDespite being four-wheel drive, the 2.2 TD4-e returns good fuel economy, especially in post-2010 models, which received a number of small mechanical tweaks to improve efficiency. Hence, it is a much better choice than the only petrol variant offered – a 3.2-litre engine – which is simply too thirsty.,,Those seeking fractionally better economy should go for the front-wheel-drive eD4, which also features engine stop-start to save fuel in traffic, but it isn't as common.SpecificationWe’d go for an XS, on balance, because you get plenty of equipment for not a lot of money.Our favourite used Land Rover Freelander: 2.2 TD4-e XS 4WDPage 4 of 5

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