Freelander 1 rubbing noise when turning corners

BoarHunter

Hi guys,

I purchased a freelander TD4 03 a while ago. I noticed a noise when turning right from the left wheel area. It was really rattling like an empty can. Nothing when turning left or going in a straight line. I replaced the 4 tyres this morning with balance and tracking done.

Now i can clearly ear a rubbing noise ( as if the wheels were touching something when in full lock ) on both side. I checked the CV joints this morning while the guy had the wheels away and i couldn't see any crack or notice any loose in the shafts.

anybody with identical experience ?

101sean

You will get it to certain extent on full lock, especially in reverse and it's because of the way the transmission works, The rubbing noise is the tyres scrubbing but if it's very bad and noticeable, your VCU in the rear propshaft is on the way out. Were your front tyres badly worn with saw tooth edges?

Basically, your front and rear axles have slightly different ratios and are permanently coupled together with the VCU slipping to cope with the different speeds. The VCU seizes eventually causing excessive tyre wear and if ignored, the Intermediate Reduction Drive (IRD) or the rear diff will fail under the strain.

Short term fix is to remove the rear propshaft leaving you with front wheel drive, there are dozens of Freelanders running around here like that.

For an idea of parts costs, you'd better be sitting down! - http://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.uk/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=13

BoarHunter

Hi Sean,

Thanks for the reply. The guy I bought it from had the Prop shaft off and I inspected it before we put it back. He garantied me it was in working order ( I know you can't trust anyone but hey ... ) but he had it off for gas economy purposes. I have no noise from the rear diff and the transmission is doing is job.

Would the noise not come from underneath the car where the VCU is ? the front tyres were actually better than the rear one but I was concious it's better to put a set of 4 identical tyres in order to relieve the VCU so I changed the whole lot.

I might do a test drive with the prop shaft off to see.

Any other other idea ?

By the way I have no noise whatsoever in reverse

101sean

In that case, try with the prop off and see if the noise is still there, it would eliminate it as the cause of the noise.

Just remembered, mate of mine had a similar problem with his Freelander and it made a rubbing noise but only under certain conditions, turned out to be the the propshaft carrier bearings. They are rubber mounted and the rubber perished allowing the prop to move around too much. Easy to check and cheaper to replace than a VCU!

Telling buyers the prop was removed for economy is usually a cover to avoid telling you its fubared, in your case he may have been telling the truth.

Tommy_Vercetti

Sound more like the VCU, if the bearings were gone you'd here a whining/whizzing noise from under your feet when driving at speed.
Look up VCU test on youtube, a lot of people swear by it, but the tyre marking and rubbing seems to point in that direction. I changed my VCU about a month ago, easy enough job. Also what mileage is up on it? and have you any record of it being changed before? Anything from 50,000 to 70,000 for a new one but from what I have read they can go a lot sooner.
Good luck with the Freelander, everyone will tell you there awful but if you have any bit of a DIY mechanic in you you will be able to fix or at least diagnose a lot of the problems early.
Also check the Landrover forums they have loads of good advice from people with first hand expierence.

101sean

The bearings were fine in my mates Freelander but they are resiliently mounted in a rubber moulding which perished. The entire bearing and carrier had to be replaced,

Tommy_Vercetti

Your right, its the rubbers that perish, the steel mounts are fine, from my own expieriance and from what I've read its the whining under your feet that are a more common sign of them going. If it is only the bearings it would be a good thing as its an easy fix, again, plenty of internet guides on changing them.

BoarHunter

OK guys, first of all thank you for your answers. I have carried on the troubleshooting and it appeared that this annoying noise came on as I started the car with wheels straight yesyerday :eek: and oh weird ! i turned off the ventilation and it disappeared !!!! I did a test drive without air con or ventilation and the noise had totally disappeared. I could turn corners without a pip.

Seems I have some belts issues so . I know I can just cut off the AC belt and still drive however the fact that it was triggering it when turning at start... would this mean the noise could come from the crank pulley damper and act as well on the main belt ( the one that activate alternator, powersteering, etc ) ?

I might just start by playing with the pulleys of the AC belt and see if any tensionner is gone ....