We spend a lot of time harping on about how important matched tyres are on the Freelanders. This is because they operate an active-on-demand system which engages the four wheel drive automatically when it believes one of the wheels is slipping. The problem with this is that if one or more of your tyres have a smaller rolling radius than the others, especially if this is on the rear, your Freelander active-on-demand system (whether it be the viscous coupling system on the Freelander 1, or the Haldex system on the Freelander 2) will think this wheel is slipping as it will be rotating faster than the other wheels. This will then engage the four wheel drive system in conditions and at speeds it should not be used.
So what do we mean by matched tyres? This means all four tyres should be the same make, model, size, tread depth remaining and air pressure – that is, their rolling radius should be the same. Please note the last two conditions, the same tread depth remaining and the same air pressure. We have seen extensive damage done to the drive train by somebody driving on a flat tyre – all tyres new, all the same, but one had much lower air pressure! Then this week we have had a very sad case with a Freelander 2. All four tyres were changed less than a year ago (after having a reconditioned engine fitted), so all four are the same make, model and size. A little while ago the owner noted that fuel economy was getting poor and when we saw the Freelander 2 this week both the power transfer unit and the rear differential are damaged – you can see the play in the power transfer unit in the video below. How did this happen with four identical tyres fitted? When we checked the remaining tread on the tyres three of them had approximately 7mm remaining, however, the rear left hand side one had only 3.5mm. Cause of damage – mismatched tyres!
So please, do not think it is enough to have all four tyres the same make, model, size and changed at the same time. Please check that you have the same tread depth remaining and the same air pressure – look after your tyres and this will help to protect your drivetrain.
Hi,
I aquired a Freelander td4 from year
2001. I must be crazy 🙂
The car has 4 tyres 215 65 r16, but… Front tyres are from one brand and rear from another brand, can this be a problem for drive train?
Thanks in advance
Francisco
Hi Francisco
Congratulations on your purchase. The Freelanders are great vehicles I am sure you are going to enjoy!
Unfortunately yes having different brands of tyres can cause a problem with the drivetrain. All four tyres need to be the same make model tread depth remaining and air pressure in order to protect the drivetrain.
All the best,
Sue
0780 9575 421
Hi Sue,
Thanks for your. I already imagine that will be like this.
I will look for even tyre pressure. The tread remaining is almost the same, difficult do judge because they similar but different, I hope the drive train can handle some difference, I must have any degree off tolerance.
I can’t replace all 4 tyres Wright now, changing one off the pairs doesn’t solve the because it will remain tread remaining issue.
So, until I can replace all 4 tyres, I will pray and hope for the best.
Best regards
Francisco
Hi Francisco,
If you do a run round the block with it then go underneath and touch the viscous coupling unit (the bulbous piece half way along the prop shaft); if it is too hot to hold your hand on it comfortably then the tyres are winding it up and you are risking damage. In this case if you cannot replace the tyres right now we would suggest you remove the prop shaft and run in front wheel drive until you can replace all four tyres – this will avoid any further damage being done to the drivetrain. If it is not too hot to hold your hand on it then you may be fine.
All the best
Sue
0780 9575 421
Hi Sue,
I just run 2 miles to test it. The bulb is ice cold!!! I must be Lucky.
Thanks
Excellent Francisco.
All the best
Sue
Hi Sue,
Today I have been testing my Freelander 1 TD4 on deep sand.
I was great!!!
But, I am bit worried because when I finished i checked the VCU temperatue and it was cold, I was expecting some temperature.
4×4 is obviously working or I will not be able to get through the deep sand easily. To easily maybe, if the the VCU is not warming, maybe is not working at all and is working as a fixed axle???
Thanks in advance
Francisco
Hi Francisco,
Sounds like you have been having fun!
If the VCU is cold that is perfect. It will be working, what you do not want it to do is get too hot to hold!
You can safely go back to the sand and enjoy!
All the best,
Sue
+44-780-9575-421
Is there any way of disabling the electronic brain that drives the 4WD system – without disabling features such as ABS ?
The “Haldex” unit controls the 4WD…. can it be switched off?
Or is this what the twisty knob thingy in front of the gearstick does??
Hi Howard,
You can remove the 4×4 fuse in the luggage compartment fusebox (this fuse can be identified by a picture of four wheels). This will disable the special functions (the twisty knob thingy in front of the gearstick) but it will not affect the ABS. However, this does compromise what the Freelander was designed for and should not be considered a permanent fix for drivetrain issues.
All the best,
Sue
0780 9575 421
Hi Sue
Thanks for your reply.
Thankfully I don’t have any transmission issues – other than a leaking oil seal on the output shaft of the rear diff…. Next week’s job !
I was wondering if, in a pinch, one could use a mismatched spare and by removing the 4×4 fuse the Freelander can be driven without destroying the drivetrain??
All the best
Howard
Hi Howard,
Yes, that is exactly the type of scenario where removing the fuse is the ideal thing to do; it will stop the 4×4 activating and you should be able to drive to wherever you need to get the tyres matched up again without doing any damage.
All the best,
Sue
0780 9575 421
What do you recommend doing with all 5 tyres?? My hippo has 5 so could potentially do a lot of damage IF i got a flat and had to use the spare.. Do you rotate the 5 so that the “spare” gets some wear on it as well??
Hi Meighen,
This is a problem, the spare tyres is effectively useless (or, in fact, worse than useless because it can cause a lot of damage if it is used with a significantly different amount of tread than the ones on the Freelander).
One way to deal with this is, as you say, to rotate all five wheels to keep them all at the same wear level. If you do not do this and do end up in a position of needing the spare wheel, when you put it on take a short drive and then go underneath and touch the viscous coupling unit (VCU). If the VCU is too hot to hold your hand on comfortably then the mismatch in tyres is winding it up and you should call out a breakdown service to recover you to avoid doing damage to the drivetrain.
All the best,
Sue