Road Test
Land Rover Freelander TD4
Test date 15 November 2006
Price as tested £31,662
For Impressive off-road ability, looks, showroom appeal, willing engine, refinement
AgainstPrice, some interior quality niggles, occasionally unsettled ride quality
See the old and new Freelanders side by side and you could think the latest version was a hefty facelift. In fact, the two share no significant parts at all. The first-generation Freelander was developed during the time when Rover met BMW; this model was born entirely under Ford’s custody.
And it has a hard act to follow. Not in terms of competence – we’ve already established that the new Freelander is more than just a mild improvement on its forebear – but it has quite some sales success to ape. The original Freelander was the biggest-selling SUV across Europe for five years.
Where it didn’t do so well was in the US and some Asian markets. The 1.8-litre petrol engine was deemed fairly inadequate even in Europe, while the revvy 2.5-litre KV6 auto was too short on easygoing pace for countries whose people have big spaces to cross. American customers also felt the old Freelander’s cabin was too cramped.
So the new car has a pretty straightforward brief: be roomier, classier, more comfortable and more competent, but still be a proper Land Rover.
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