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As posted elsewhere...

Got my Ford Ranger Wildtrak pick-up earlier this year and tows my 6-berth Avondale Dart a treat, hardly know it's there. Switchable 4WD on tap and full leather with all the toys. I managed to get 4 bikes, a host of fishing gear and 2 suitcases along with numerous other holiday "items" that my wife insisis on and not forgetting the full awning, all in the back of the pick-up! Great to keep that little lot out of the caravan.

My '06 version set me back 6.8k but you can get the slightly less specced Thunder version for much less. It's a 2.5l diesel av32mpg, the beauty of this Ford is they make the engines in the far East, Thailand i think, so you get that wonderful Jap reliability for very decent money and you can tow up to 3000kilo of caravan

And i certainly do not use this vehicle for work! i have to go on commercial insurance, don't know why, but the advantage of this is that it keeps the road tax low!

All in all, a no-brainer for the wife and i and the 5yr old twins, we love our hols even more

Quote: Originally posted by Hazzo on 08/10/2009

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My surf is insured through asda for the same (£350) last year the wife went with norwich ripoff, at, 1300, I went mad. I think its so high because of import but I don't give a s***, its reliable, cheap to run and maintain and tows the 1800kg plus with ease, think the same engine is in the Landcruiser here. H

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I know i'll get slated for expressing an opinion but...

We've got a 56 plate X-trail dci SVE that we bought new, We've also got a Bailey Senator single axle. I find the X-trail very nervous as a towcar even with nose weight just right, tyre pressures etc etc. The only similar size car we've towed with was a Peugeot 4007 that was much more stable.

So, we bought a Disco 300Tdi for 2k from a friend and caravanning is so much nicer now. Easy towing, easy pitching and so far (touch wood) the disco hasn't let us down. TBH I didn't expect it to be as good as it is but it's completely changed the way I think about going out to remote sites just for the weekend. 20mpg for the disco, 30 from the X-trail (both with van in tow)

The X-trail is a great car but I can't see me ever towing with it again....

Sorry to all the haters for expressing an opinion but thought you might find something useful from our experiences.

Regards

Tony

Hi

Just some advice based on experience. I would avoid a Toyota RAV4 like the plague if you don't want bills like the Freelander. They have a well documented history of flywheel failure prior to 2004 (or at least that is the official line) on D4D version. Put simply they just don't like towing. Land cruiser or Hilux don't have same issues.

My friend has one that gets no abuse and is used primarily to commute and once or twice a year tow the caravan. First one (2002) shed flywheel at 44K just 3 days before end of warranty. Dealer persuaded him problems were solved in 2004 > model and he was talked into buying new one (2005). 2 weeks before warranty ran out clutch started shuddering again. Dealer found no problems and it appeared to stop. Guess what - flywheel failed after warranty expired, mileage 47K - bill £1680.

Have made some enquiries with the dealer network (via the back door) and it seems flywheels are still an issue on these cars but Toyota won't admit to it. Surprisingly I am a Toyota fan and would buy an avensis, land cruiser (my ultimate dream tow car) or hilux tomorrow but would never recommend a RAV4 if you want to tow with it.

PS - I was getting rid of my Freelander for same reason - Clutch, slave cylinder, fuel pump and viscous coupling all in one season - got my money out of the AA last year. But listening to what i was being told from the trade, (and bearing in mind it had 120K when these all happened) this car would be good for another 70 or 80K. Based on this and what another 4X4 was going to cost I kept it and decided to drive it until the next major failure then scrap it. Cost this year - 6 litres of oil and 2 filters.

I did also buy a small run around (£400 with tax and MOT) that gets used from Nov to May when I dont need the freelander and swap insurance and tax as required. Probably an ideal solution for me.

Quote: Originally posted by fortracfan on 19/10/2009

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Have made some enquiries with the dealer network (via the back door) and it seems flywheels are still an issue on these cars but Toyota won't admit to it.

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Quote: Dual-mass flywheels are problematic IMO full stop. Search the 'net for "dual mass flywheel failure" etc. and you'll find that it isn't just the RAV4. Many cars with these flywheels have problems - and they always seem expensive to fix.

Thankfully, older 4x4s and "proper" automatics don't have DMFs.

Geoff

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Yes I know its a common problem but was commenting on the thread of this post whereby they had narrowed the search to either RAV4 or Freelander 2. I dont believe the freelander (and most other 4X4's) have a dual mass flywheel. They tended to be mostly on diesel cars ie mondeo, vectra, 307, 407 etc but could be wrong.

I know we are now running off thread a bit (maybe we should start a thread on DMF) but I spoke to my landrover expert and he said no DMF in freelander but dont know any dealers round here to ask. One other point (or well kept secret??) is that Toyota do make a conversion kit for the RAV4 (even for the models not supposed to have a problem) that does away with the DMF. Big problem with this is that its £650 and you need to split the gearbox off to have it fitted. Solves a lot of problems if you want to tow with it though.

If I could get a cheap one with a failed flywheel i would take it and get my mate to fit the mod kit. Then use it to tow my caravan. Wouldn't turn down a Land Cruiser at a good price either.

Quote: Originally posted by fortracfan on 20/10/2009

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... but I spoke to my landrover expert and he said no DMF in freelander but dont know any dealers round here to ask.

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Quote:

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Dual mass flywheel friction plate
Diesel-powered Freelanders with manual gearboxes have always featured a dual mass flywheel to ensure engine refinement at start, stop and low speeds. A new Polyetheretherketone friction control plate has been developed for the Land Rover Freelander TD4_e. This is able to withstand seven times the pressure of the outgoing plate, to ensure greater levels of refinement under even greater start and stop demands.

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