Hello all,

About a month ago my Freelander 2 broke down while I was driving home to work, I accelerated to overtake somebody and suddenly the engine just died, it didn't really make any sound or give any indication of what might have went wrong.

Originally I thought the issue might have been the balance pump in the tank because it was only a quarter full and I've read that they do fail occasionally. However after filling the tank after about 6 trips to the garage with a 5l tank, and bleeding the fuel filter, it still didn't start.

I had a mobile mechanic come out, he investigated some error codes, turned it over a few times, sprayed some quick start in the air filter and when that didn't work, said that it was likely the timing belt had slipped a few teeth. I wasn't even aware a timing belt could slip like that. Based on the sound of the engine turning over, he seemed optimistic that if it had "only slipped a tooth or two" then it may not get compression yet have not done any damage to the engine. Is this possible?

What's the best approach moving forward? Fit a new timing belt and see if that works?

Thanks, Levi.

What were the fault codes

No the timing belt can't just slip. It's held in constant tension by a belt tensioner.
When was it last replaced?

There are several items that can cause sudden engine shutdown.

The list below is in order of liklihood.

The crank speed sensor being about the most common. This is normally accompanied by the MIL coming on, but not always, and it doesn't always show any codes either.

The throttle body gears can strip, which allows the throttle plate so shut under spring pressure, preventing air from reaching the engine.

The drive plate in between the exhaust cam and HP pump can break, and sometimes the cam itself can break, both preventing the HP pump from building pressure.

A major failure of the timing belt or its tensioner/idlers would also stop the engine running, but this is far from common. Hyundai Ioniq 5 Ultimate. The family car.
2009 Rimini Red SE TD4. Gone.
2006 Tonga Green i6 HSE. Gone.
Audi A5 convertible, my daily driver.
1972 Hillman Avenger GT, the project.

1 Listen to Nodge.

2 Please provide some more detail about your FL2 (fill in your profile) and a bit of history about past faults and servicing.

3 If you can't do it yourself, get it to a reliable garage and have any codes read (most things are monitored and recorded on FL2)

4 Again if you can't do it, get the garage to diagnose it and give you some estimate of repair. FL2 XS SD4 Auto 2010 2012-2017 (21k - 91k miles) (MY2011)
FL2 Metropolis SD4 Auto 2014 2017- (16k - 77k+ miles) (MY2015)
Metro in its 11th Year of (Extended) LR Warranty / Full LR Service History
(Expensive, but Trouble/Worry free - hopefully?)

The mechanic said that the codes were all related to a dead battery (the battery had died roadside while waiting for a tow) so he cleared these and he didn’t say there was anything else of interest.

The Freelander is a 2010, 2.2L TD4, with about 140,000 miles. It’s got a very limited service history and I don’t believe it’s ever had a timing belt change. I’ve only had it for about 3 months.

So it’s not possible for the tensioner to fail and for either the upper or lower parts of the engine to rotate one tooth and then for the engine to stop? I imagine tensioners wearing out is possible since it comes in a timing belt kit to be replaced.

In addition to all this, when I bled the fuel filter I did notice there was air in the fuel line from the filter to the pump. However since the engine didn’t start with quick start can I put this to the back of my mind?

Thank you all for your replies so far.

Edit to add: the mechanic who came out to the car was a (seemingly) trustworthy mechanic running a proper company with good reviews, not just some bloke I know.

The belt is outside its time for a change, which is 10 years or 150k miles, whichever comes first.
I'd think it unlikely that the belt has failed because it's a pretty robust design, but at that age you've been playing Russian roulette with it.

It's unlikely that the belt will jump, even if outside its change time, but it can fail completely, which means a top end rebuild will be necessary.
I'd want a lot more investigation done before I'd blame the belt though.

He's not much of a vehicle specialist though, as a specialist never clears codes for things that aren't relevant. Codes are part of the vehicle's history of operation, and shouldn't be erased without a good reason for doing so.

Check the list of things I suggested first, before going further. If it does turn out to be the crank sensor, then get the belt done ASAP. Hyundai Ioniq 5 Ultimate. The family car.
2009 Rimini Red SE TD4. Gone.
2006 Tonga Green i6 HSE. Gone.
Audi A5 convertible, my daily driver.
1972 Hillman Avenger GT, the project.

Okay, so I’ve ordered a new crankshaft sensor, so hopefully in a few days I’ll be able to swap that out and quickly see if that was the issue. What’s the best way of checking the other issues?

I have seen a couple of teeth strip off of the timing belt, so will jump two teeth, might not knock a valve. The easiest way to check is to take the engine side covers off and put all the pins in the locating holes. If one is out, you have a problem. You have to take out the starter motor as well.

For what it is worth, if the crank sensor was at fault you would have a relevant error code. I found this out when I fitted the wrong year version to mine and it refused to start.

The timing belt is pretty easy to inspect. Just need to remove the top inlet pipe and the cover. I would do that before anything else.

Unfortunately crank sensors don't always trigger a code, which is why that are often rejected as a cause, but they end up being the issue. Hyundai Ioniq 5 Ultimate. The family car.
2009 Rimini Red SE TD4. Gone.
2006 Tonga Green i6 HSE. Gone.
Audi A5 convertible, my daily driver.
1972 Hillman Avenger GT, the project.

I wonder if the more costly code readers will pull Crank Sensor codes. There are five codes listed.

I've had 2 crank sensors fail on mine.
The aftermarket sensor that was on it when I bought it showed an open or short circuit code when it failed using my Icarsoft I930.
The OE replacement failed out of the blue and showed no code at all on any of my diagnostic equipment, which included SDD, the I930 and my Delphi diagnostic software.
I believe the OE sensor failed due to a bad connection in the plug, so I replaced that and installed another OE sensor, so far it's been ok.

I suspect that only certain failure modes show up on diagnostics, which isn't exactly helpful.  Hyundai Ioniq 5 Ultimate. The family car.
2009 Rimini Red SE TD4. Gone.
2006 Tonga Green i6 HSE. Gone.
Audi A5 convertible, my daily driver.
1972 Hillman Avenger GT, the project.

Very true. Even replacing them is no guarantee that the replacement is a working one or how long it will last. I have a couple or three of them stashed away, one in the glovebox.

I keep meaning to fit and run them to prove or otherwise if they are known good ones. Will I get round to it someday.

I've also got a tested work sensor as a spare in my boot, along with a 10mm spanner so I can replace it at the side of the road, which I done on 2 occasions now. Hyundai Ioniq 5 Ultimate. The family car.
2009 Rimini Red SE TD4. Gone.
2006 Tonga Green i6 HSE. Gone.
Audi A5 convertible, my daily driver.
1972 Hillman Avenger GT, the project.