Hi all thanks for letting me join ,I,m looking to get a FL2 in the next few months and am at present doing a lot of resurch ,I have owned landrovers in the past and enjoy a bit of gentle greenlaning from time to time every body how seems to use the auto box for off roading but is the manual OK of my needs I have driven a FL1 manual off road and it's very low 1st gear was OK is the FL2 the same ,many thanks Tim

The manual FL2's have an anti stall feature that works really well - I can stick it in 1st & it will happily trundle up my very steep lane (single track dirt & very uneven/potholed) with no user input at all to throttle or clutch - feet off.

Many will tell you that Auto is better offroad (often simply because that is what they have) - main reason being that there is no clutch to burn out, some have indeed burnt their clutch out offroading in manual FL2's - but IMO this is due to not understanding the anti stall feature and not letting the vehicle do it's thing - so ultimately user error.

For extreme off road rock crawling I can see the advantages of an Auto box - but for any kind of sensible offroading I don't see an advantage and personally prefer a manual box. If you are doing things that are outside the scope of the FL2 then you bought the wrong vehicle for what you want - a more focussed 4x4 with low range would be a better choice I think.. 2014 Freelander 2 TD4 Manual Dynamic
1956/7 88" Series One Land Rover
1956/7 88" Series One Land Rover - undergoing restoration

Hi mate thanks for the info manual it is

I have the auto box, I've done a little bit of off road but not much.
I went out with a guided group as knowing where you can and can't go, is a minefield!
I had no problems until, I was told to put it in 1st and keep it there, while crossing a river.
There was a little bit of head scratching but figured out a way of doing it.

(While stopped, I put it into sport, manually pushed it to 2nd then pulled it back to 1st.
If my thinking was right, once I'd manually moved the stick, it won't change till you do it again.)

PRadd wrote:

The manual FL2's have an anti stall feature that works really well - I can stick it in 1st & it will happily trundle up my very steep lane (single track dirt & very uneven/potholed) with no user input at all to throttle or clutch - feet off.
.

Do you mean DOWN HILL 3landertwo?

You do not need to engage anything to use the anti stall/crawl up in 1st facility.

But if HDC controls UP HILL motion as well as downhill then that would be handy as you could adjust the speed of travel with the cruise control buttons - are you saying HDC does this? Up Hill? 2014 Freelander 2 TD4 Manual Dynamic
1956/7 88" Series One Land Rover
1956/7 88" Series One Land Rover - undergoing restoration

UP HILL

So HDC acts as a very slow cruise control uphill? 2014 Freelander 2 TD4 Manual Dynamic
1956/7 88" Series One Land Rover
1956/7 88" Series One Land Rover - undergoing restoration

If your need is only for gentle offroading, the auto will easily cope and be more pleasing. Why put up with a painful manual for the majority of motoring; the auto is a delightful long distance cruiser.

I remember back in the eighties at an AWDC event,
being driven around an off road course in Hereford by
Roger Crathorn then Demo team manager for LR,
after dicussing the merits of different transmissions
he surprised me with his comment that the future for offroad use
would be an Auto box with electronic control.
Now having driven manual and auto, I can see the advantage.
Dave DAVE.

Last edited by Dave47 on 10th Jan 2021 8:17 pm. Edited 1 time in total

The later manuals had anti-stall, did the earlier ones?
I have been out with a couple of chaps who had manuals - you know who you are, and the anti-stall feature was amazing, even when you hit the brakes the car stalled and re-started when you left off the brakes - this was in Derbyshire, steep incline and VERY rocky.

So yes it will cope with the odd green lane, personally I would always go auto - then again I did change the clutch in my first FL1 at 13,000 miles in the street so I have a very bad opinion of manuals off-road.
Or it could be that I am well below average when it comes to driving ability  Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner

I was a Manual driver for many years but in the last few years have gone to Autos and will not be going back...why?
1. Older and lazier
2. Auto More relaxing/less speeding fines
3. You dont buy a dog and then bark yourself

This is my first auto car. Have been through rivers, on sand, on rock up & down steep slopes. As long as there is clearance the car will go anywhere. I have the petrol engine which has a lot less torque than diesel & even a bit less again with larger tyres & the auto has been brilliant.

One of the main reasons we bought this car as it has a proper auto. Not dual clutch or CVT rubbish.

I don't see the point of a manual. Procrastination, mankind's greatest labour saving device!

Acoustic insulation ARB TPMS 3xARB air compressors After cooler Air tank On-board OCD pressure air/water cleaning Additional 50L fuel Carpet in doors ABE 2x1kg Waeco 28L modified fridge Battery 4x26ah Solar 120w Victron MPPT 100/20 DC-DC 18amps 175amp jumper plug Awning 6x255/60R18

Once you have had a good auto you won't want to go back to a manual, especially off-road.

J

Don't forget that the manual is "only" six speed, the auto is eight speed.
The auto has a very low first gear, so low that it normally sets off in second, I think the idea was it was as a halfway house for those who might need a low ratio box for towing rather than off-road.

Where the auto lets itself down is it is never fully in your control. The FL1 had the option of selecting first or second via the gearstick and it would stay in second for hours close to the red-line (and by hours I mean ALL day), the FL2 will let you select second or first via the paddles, but will then change gear against your wishes as you hit the red-line.

With either box change the oil every 5 years or 75,000 miles, more often is better - just my personal opinion, the auto will last >200k. The manual is hardly made of toffee either. Tangiers Orange - gone, missing her
Replaced by Ewok what a mistake - now a happy Disco Sport owner