2010 Land Rover Freelander 2 SE TD4 (4x4) review - Drive

€ 28.00 · 4.8 (218) · In Magazzino

I bought this car new in 2010 and at the time it was the only vehicle that ticked all my criteria. I was after a small to medium sized SUV, diesel auto with some decent off-road and towing ability. Plenty more choices today. On the bright side the Freelander has been a fairly reliable and comfortable ride. Still has the original battery and windscreen wipers! Love the armchair like seats - have been on several 10hr day drives without any soreness or stiffness. For a car with reasonable 4wd ability, the ride and smoothness on all surfaces is excellent and still ranks highly compared to some of its more modern competitors that I test driven recently. I have taken it on some pretty rough off-road tracks and it has amazed me many more serious 4wdrivers on how far it can go -the Landrover terrain response system really works. It's also been a effortless towing vehicle with plenty of torque from the 2.2l diesel and seemless operation of the auto. Now for the down side. Depreciation is horrific. This $60k newby is now worth between 10k and 15k. Hardly worth trading in or selling, I will probably give it away to one of my kids one day. $1800 for a genuine tow bar - absolute ripoff. Between $700 and $900 for a major service every two years. Not much cheaper going to an independent because of the high cost of parts. A bearing in the rear differential recently failed. Landrover Aus strongly recommended replacement of whole diff due to ongoing problems with partial repairs. $3,800 later I am back on the road. Whilst the standard stereo and speakers are of reasonable quality, there is no satnav or Bluetooth. At the time of buying the car, it only came with 19" wheels which was a bit at odds with its off-road abilities. I would have preferred 17" wheels but was told these would have been an additional expense! I have never had any trouble with the larger wheels or punctures when off road, just drove a bit slower over the rough bits. Amazingly enough the car still looks as new, the paintwork is still very good and leather seats perfect. It's worth lot more to me than the trade in price so I guess it will be a family keeper for a while yet.