[Ricky_63]

Hi

I would like to share with fellow members, that I had been looking to buy an AT 4x4 for sometime now. Not for hardcore off-roading, but mainly for city use & a one off run in the mud & water.

It had to be a comfortable vehicle. I went around looking at the Koleos, but the Dealership experience was no short of PATHETIC, their only selling point was the BOSE AUDIO, the sales guys knew precious little of the vehicle. Finally got to test drive one after a month's wait. Comfortable, decently finished, but when you drove it I found it wanting in the power department, possibly the up & down shifts of the autobox were the biggest disappointment. 27L on road Gurgaon & the option was closed without a whimper. Not worth it in my opinion.

I was trying for a under 30 !! Tough call, still went & checked the Freelander 2, inspite of a steepish price tag, the vehicle spelt quality from the word go. The SA insisted I drive over the pavements & go over any & everything. The vehicle drove like a charm, no complaints whatsoever..My mind was stuck on the Freelander - but heart / head conflict started right there.

The only thing against it was the price point ( it was way above what I wanted to spend)

As luck would have it - no Freelanders were available in the after market. Other than one which had 1500 on the odo & was as good as new. But the guy wanted 42 for it so it went out of contention sooner than it came in.

Then luck smiled at me all over again. A friend who had got a CBU version, amongst the first few in Delhi NCR, decided to sell his in favour of the Discovery. The vehicle was cared for & other than the customary scratch here & there, it was absolutely in good nick.

So my mind was made up, though I did not much care for white, I was willing to compromise as I had known the car from the day it was driven out of AMP Motors Delhi/NCR dealer for JLR

From the original invoice, to repairs, to service bills, there was everything in front of me in a file

The only issue was the price. The tyres need to be replaced, that is an immediate expense in my books. Other than that a dryclean & exterior / interior detailing later it would be hard to tell if this is old or not

So after the initial discussion we agreed on a price which was pushing my budget - but then what the heck, you only live once.

Got it on Friday, have been tyre hunting since, the only options are Bridgestone & Apollo 235/65/R17, but neither look like they are for an SUV, sadly, Yokohama Geolanders do not sell in the size, BFG not available.

So that is the story thus far.

The ride & build quality is as good as the best or better. The AT behaves very well, up & down shifts are reasonably quick, no sweat. The Sport mode is another story - for another day. It is very very quick, the iCommand is the mode in which you can if you want shift at will, but if you overkill, the gear selection moves up or down, so as not to strain the engine, so you are always in the power band.

The rear end could have been better. The front looks nice. The inside is great. Front seats are electrically adjusted, driver & pasenger. The ORVM's fold in when one locks the car, & on unlocking they throw down light (puddle lamps) Panoramic sunroof, not needed, would have been very happy WITHOUT IT, and of course saved some money in the bargain, but it is there. So enjoyment for the kids is ensured. The sound of the Alpine Audio is good enough. There is bluetooth phone connectivity

Xenon Headlamps for the low beam are bright BUT I'd have preferred a more yellowish light, front & rear fog lamps, cruise control, Phone control on the steering. Multiple airbags including one knee airbag for the driver.

Key fob functions :-
# Lock & Unlock
# Unlock just the boot
# Turns on the Headlights
# Turns on the hazard lights

Driving Impression :

As good as it gets. In my books I call it superlative !

Enough power for city & highway. Very responsive gearbox, very good suspension, soaks up the potholed Gurgaon Roads as if it were driving on NH-8. Excellent brakes, a very confidence inspiring drive. Overtaking in pretty much any situation is a breeze. On the red light IF one floors the pedal the LR takes off like it wants to fly, gear shifting smoothly each time the gear speed limit is reached. It is quite a fun machine. Traction is very good in any situation. Quite honestly I have not had the option of many varied terrains yet as it is just 6 days I have had it & driven it for only 3. The Pajero & Swift get their chance on the road at least once or twice a week.


Interior :

Fabric & leather combo, nice. Decent Audio system, nothing fancy, but does the job well. Footwell in the front is lit when you unlock the car, as are puddle lights under the ORVM. There is a sub in the trunk, Audio / phone / cruise control on the steering is nice. Superbly put together but nothing outlandish (which is how I like it), everything falls nicely in place EXCEPT for the power window & ORVM operation switches. The ORVM's fold themselves up, when ignition is cut off & car locked.

One drawback was a missing armrest in the front. It should have been there. Another would be no storage which is not visible from outside the car. The trunk should have had a tray on top (removeable/ foldable) to keep people from peeping into the boot.


Exterior :

Looks the look, understated, elegant, purposeful, enigmatic. Has Xenons and halogens, light the road up brilliantly. Headlight washers operate if the lights are on, if not then only the windshield is sprayed & wiped. There is stone guards along the length of the car, nice touch.

Suspension works brilliantly. One feels it behave differently in different terrain control modes.

Enjoy !!

[black12rr]

Ho congrats again .How about a customary line of cars as usual .At least keep this for a long time . Ride safe and more pictures please .

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by black12rr

Ho congrats again .How about a customary line of cars as usual .At least keep this for a long time . Ride safe and more pictures please .

Intend to keep it for a relatively long time. Maybe remap it after the warranty

[Akshay1234]

Congrats on the FL2. Its a great car and will take a lot of abuse I'm sure. Can you post some pics without the filters and also of the interiors?

This seems to be the 150bhp engine, have you driven the 190bhp version? Big difference?

[asdon]

Congrats Ricky, I see this one often here in Electronic City, BLR, when its taken for test drive from the Hosur Rd showroom, the vehicle is super cool!!! You did not reveal how much was the price for this GEM

[arup.misra]

Thats one mean machine you got yourself Ricky. Congratulations for finding an impeccable one. Is this the 150bhp or the 190bhp one.

The odo is just 1500 and you are wanting to change the tyres. Finding this a bit odd. Are you looking to upsize this one?

Do post some interior shots as well. This certainly is the first FL2 on the forum. Hope she serves you very well.

[HappyRoadie]

Congrats on the first freelander 2 on the forum. Really a very good choice and only 1500 kms on the odo. Thats really an excellent deal. Do post some interior and exterior pictures. And please keep this thread updated. Wish you many happy and safe miles.

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by black12rr

Ho congrats again .How about a customary line of cars as usual .At least keep this for a long time . Ride safe and more pictures please .

Thanks for you comments & wishes....(hopefully) this I should keep for a long time.

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Congrats on the FL2. Its a great car and will take a lot of abuse I'm sure. Can you post some pics without the filters and also of the interiors?

This seems to be the 150bhp engine, have you driven the 190bhp version? Big difference?

Yes Akshay you are spot on, it is the SE version with a measly 150 Bhp on tap, mated to a fantastic 6 speed autobox. But who says a remap is not on the cards ? ;-) The 2 versions have identical engines & trannies, so a remap or tuning box is all it takes...shall do that only after warranty lapses.

Yes I drove the HSE with the 190 Bhp engine..it sure feels the extra 40 horses. But then like I said, post warranty a remap shall set things in order. Paying 5 lacs extra did not make sense to me.

Originally Posted by asdon

Congrats Ricky, I see this one often here in Electronic City, BLR, when its taken for test drive from the Hosur Rd showroom, the vehicle is super cool!!! You did not reveal how much was the price for this GEM

Thanks a new one is 41 OTR, I got it at a depreciated value.

Originally Posted by arup.misra

Thats one mean machine you got yourself Ricky. Congratulations for finding an impeccable one. Is this the 150bhp or the 190bhp one.

The odo is just 1500 and you are wanting to change the tyres. Finding this a bit odd. Are you looking to upsize this one?

Do post some interior shots as well. This certainly is the first FL2 on the forum. Hope she serves you very well.

Thanks Arup,

It is the 150 Bhp, believe me it is never left lacking in power or torque. The car has done 23500 kms..the tyres can do an easy 10-12k kms, but I want to have fresh ones asap.

Will do



The car has done 23500 kms, the day I bought it the odo was at some 23300 kms..the one that had done 1500 kms was one that was available - but I did not buy that, as the value quoted was just 1 under showroom OTR price so it made no sense !

Will post more pics. The interior drycleaning is what I was waiting for !

Originally Posted by HappyRoadie

Congrats on the first freelander 2 on the forum. Really a very good choice and only 1500 kms on the odo. Thats really an excellent deal. Do post some interior and exterior pictures. And please keep this thread updated. Wish you many happy and safe miles.

Thanks - I think it is the first on the forum..all your querries are addressed above - right ?

Thanks for the wishes



Cheers

[wanderernomad]

Its always nice to buy a known car. Wish you a lot of fun and happy safe miles. But please do post some extensive inside and outside pictures.

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by wanderernomad

Its always nice to buy a known car. Wish you a lot of fun and happy safe miles. But please do post some extensive inside and outside pictures.

This car I have driven practically from day 1, so I know it well. Just posted some pics. Will post more as we go along




Cheers

[hellstar]

Excellent choice , very capable vehicle ..No intention to hijack your thread here , but here is a Freelander i was lucky to be associated with for about 4 days .. this was the SD4 HSE , 2.2 Lt 150 BHP 6 Speed Automatic version with Command Shift . The vehicle truly aced every terrain we threw at it





Quite a fuel guzzler though !!!

[Ricky_63]

Originally Posted by hellstar

Excellent choice , very capable vehicle ..No intention to hijack your thread here , but here is a Freelander i was lucky to be associated with for about 4 days .. this was the SD4 HSE , 2.2 Lt 150 BHP 6 Speed Automatic version with Command Shift . The vehicle truly aced every terrain we threw at it

Attachment 905709

Attachment 905710

Quite a fuel guzzler though !!!

No problemo Hellstar !! That is exactly what I have - but the HSE here comes with 190 Bhp



Cheers

[anantnehru]

Congratulations! Been drooling over the Freelander2 for a long time!

Originally Posted by Ricky_63

But who says a remap is not on the cards ? ;-) The 2 versions have identical engines & trannies, so a remap or tuning box is all it takes...shall do that only after warranty lapses..

Hahaha.. the moment I saw this thread, I was wondering when and what you'd be doing to it to make it go faster!

[BlackPearl]

Congrats Ricky, an awesome car that you have got. It is an absolute beauty. Please post some more pics when you get a chance.

[lsp]

Ricky Sir, you continue to impress me with your choices - GV, W124, Pajero, Pajero, Vento and now the Freelander. Will keep an eye out for your new ride in Ggn.

Your knee must be enjoying the relaxation. Wish you enjoy many many thousand miles with her.

OT: Is the Paj still with you?