Hi all,

I have a 2008 Freelander 2 SE. It has 115,000 kilometres on the clock. So far, the following works have been done to the car:
> 2 x new rear diff - both left hand side. Needed to be replaced due to bearings.
> New bushes on the rear and front.

The car seems to have Haldex unit issues - however cant get a correct diagnosis.

I am considering my options moving forward, and want to get an opinion about the likely 'big ticket' items that I might be up for in the next 50,000 - 100,000 kilometres? Are there any major issues I need to be watching for?

I appreciate the help.

Thank you.

Do you mean diff bearings or wheel bearings (as you mentioned LH side)

Rear wheel bearings and diff nose bearings are known weaknesses but eaily fixed with new bearings and not too big a cost. No need to replace the Diff if the nose bearing gets noisy. I have not heard of actual failures.

There have been some auto box issues and quite a few manuals with slipping clutches and Dual Mass FLywheel (DMF) failures.

I am not aware of other expensive problems that are common - it will be interesting to read what others contribute. Gone... 2013 XS TD4 Manual Firenze Red
Gone... 2008 (09MY) XS Td4 Manual Stornaway Grey
Prior... 2003 G4 Discovery 2, 1998 Disco 1 and 1997 Disco 1 Company car before that
Also gone in Nov'13, after 7.5 yrs, to new owners with time for more TLC - 1980 Series III 88
Current 2015 Discovery Sport HSE 2.0

115,000 kilometres is about 72,000 miles - not that much these days and there should be plenty of life left in it yet. Chris B seems to have given a pretty good summary of known issues - basically the FL2 is pretty reliable, but it can be expensive to fix if things go wrong.

The big question for me is what do you mean by "The car seems to have Haldex unit issues"? What makes you say that? What are the symptoms? Generally the Haldex units seem reliable, but they can be expensive if they do go wrong.

Also, is your car auto or manual? If manual, has the clutch been replaced? (Good news is that if it's got to 115k without being replaced it may be one of those which never does need done.)

Hi all. Thanks for the replies so far. I really appreciate your advice.

Firstly, my car is an auto.

I am no mechanic, however as far as I am aware, the whole diff has been replaced twice. Not just the bearings.

RE the Haldex unit - when turning on half lock or greater, the rear wheels feel like they are 'grinding' or 'slipping'. It sends a vibration through the car. Some have suggested that it may be 'torque windup'. There is also a whirring noise from the rear end when driving on smooth roads etc. Get a 'knock' from the rear when accelerating hard some times.

Mechanic who replaced the 2nd diff said that there was very little oil in the Haldex unit when he pulled it off.

Strangely when the car has been driven off road, on mud sand etc, the problem with the rear wheels slipping and the noise seems to improve once I am back on the hard stuff.

Thanks once again.

That certainly does sound like wind-up, and a lack of oil in the Haldex unit rings warning bells. Also, if the Haldex is locked up during normal on-road driving it will increase greatly the stress on the rear diff, and could contribute to failures there. It would also increase tyre wear, and possibly result in uneven wear.

I take it you're not using any of the terrain response modes on the road? It's just that some TR modes do lock the Haldex to give a 50/50 torque split.

I have no idea what it's likely to cost to fix the Haldex on an FL2, unfortunately.

P.S. One thing worth checking is that the Haldex now has the correct amount of the correct oil in it. If there's a leak, or if the wrong oil has been used, this could cause problems. It's also possible (although less likely) that the problem is with the controlling electronics rather than the Haldex unit itself, so it's probably worth having any fault codes read and checked.

As for being better after use off road, this sounds plausible. On road there will be very little slip from the wheels, but on mud or sand there is likely to be a lot more, working the unit harder and possibly freeing it up a bit temporarily. It can also make a difference whether the drivetrain is hot or cold - I had a Forester whose centre diff (not a Haldex, but limited slip) was fine when the car was cold, but locked up once it got hot.

If you haven't already, try doing a search on the forum for Haldex issues - you may find something useful.

Is there a 'How a Haldex works' anywhere on the web? Past: FL2 TD4 HSE Auto
Evoque SD4 Dynamic Lux Auto
Present: Audi A3 S Line.

There's some stuff here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haldex_Traction. Not a full how-it-works, although there might be something in the references.

JordL2 wrote "RE the Haldex unit - when turning on half lock or greater, the rear wheels feel like they are 'grinding' or 'slipping'. It sends a vibration through the car. Some have suggested that it may be 'torque windup'. There is also a whirring noise from the rear end when driving on smooth roads etc. Get a 'knock' from the rear when accelerating hard some times. "

I have exactly the same problem with mine, it had a day at the dealer a fortnight ago and sods law it didnt do it however it went in for a service this week and they acknowledged the noise / fault - I am taking it back in a couple of weeks time for the Haldex unit to be investigated as dealer has advised they need to strip it down (?) Bit worrying when mine is only 2 years / 27,000 miles old!!