FirstDrive/Land Rover Freelander: They say the new Freelander has been given a fresh rugged pedigree. Michael McAleer, Motoring editor, took it to the Scottish Highlands to see.
Where else to test the new Freelander than on a 20,000-acre estate in the heart of the Scottish highlands. Surrounded by pheasant, stags and deer, it's not quite the traditional setting for the previous model, despite the dreams of many an owner.
When Land Rover came up with the replacement for the Freelander it clearly decided to bring the new model into the premium fold. That's something its predecessor never really achieved. For a start it never really cut the mustard with the off-road set.
That's not to say it wasn't successful: in its first years of sales it was the best-selling SUV on the market.
It arrived at the dawn of the soft-roader set and school mums started to see the attraction of arriving at the college gates in something that hinted at landed gentry, and even the slightest suggestion that once the offspring were collected, they were off to the estate. For most the estate was actually full of replica houses on 1,500 sq ft of land, but there's no need to spoil the illusion.
Sadly, the tweed coated image didn't last very long and the Freelander started down a road that led more often to the service bay than the gymkhana.
While Ford, the owners of Land Rover these days, are facing enormous financial problems, one element is undoubtedly the extra costs incurred for repairs under warranty for Freelanders.
As for the owners of Discovery, they never really regarded the diminutive sibling as one of their own. And Range Rovers would rather run them over than acknowledge any family lineage. Cometh the hour, cometh the supersized replacement and this time the Freelander has had a complete makeover. Bar the name, there's little in the way of similarity.
Where the old version was rather dinky, if a little tough, this version appears much more rugged and in keeping with the new brand principles. Of course all the dimensions have increased - as you expect now with every new car - but even then the proportions seem a lot bigger than they are.
The look is taken from the Discovery - though obviously on a smaller scale. The boxy rear look is actually more stylish than it is on the Disco and the thick plastic bumpers that made the old one look so dinky-like have given way to a proper grille, albeit one that could do without the shiny chrome finish.
It's also inherited the "sporting" side air vents on the front wing, serving no purpose other than aesthetic but in that task they do the job well.
The changes are not just aesthetic, however. While entry-level models come with an upgraded suspension, Land Rover has also fitted all other versions with its Terrain Response system that can be adjusted at the turn of a knob to four settings depending on the type of surface.
Where the Discovery has five settings, this Freelander offers the choice of general driving, grass/gravel/snow, mud and ruts, or sand.
Under each setting the car's engine response, gearbox, centre coupling and chassis adapts to meet the particular demands. It also controls the car's stability control system, traction control and introduces the hill descent system when the gradient becomes particularly steep. The latter uses the car's ABS system to allow driver input in steering but you effectively take your feet off all the pedals and the car keeps you steadily progressing down 30 degree gradients.
It can also manage to wade through up to 500mm of water, pretty impressive on the flooded tracks we crossed.
As you start to appreciate, this is much more than your typical soft-roader. Thanks to a new centre coupling unit, it's a full-time four-wheel-drive and even from start, if the system encounters wheel-slip. Basically, it will leave the other soft-roaders stuck in the mud.
Of course, it does have its limitations. During our highland trek through dense forest and on barely passable tracks in the pouring rain, we did encounter some hairy moments. We were in the company of a Range Rover in case things got hairy and at one stage one of the others had to guide us over a set of sizeable rocks that seemed just a little too much for the car in question. Yet it mastered them and more. While it was child's play for the Range Rover and would be for any full-grown SUV, it was pretty impressive for something of Freelander class.
Over 600 miles of road, dirt track and rocky passes we had the chance to test both diesel and petrol engines. Of the two, the petrol obviously felt more powerful on the open road, but the difference wasn't really enough to persuade us that it would be worth the €8,000 extra.
Of course most owners don't have 20,000 acres to roam; they're lucky if they have 20,000 blades of grass. On road, the bodyroll was never a problem, at least nothing that a current soft-roader owner wouldn't encounter and while there was a lot of play in the steering wheel, again it's not at a level that would turn you off the Freelander.
The revamped cabin is a lot better than its predecessor as well, and though the plastics wouldn't match those of a €40,000 executive saloon, it has the beating of its competitors, including the current BMW X3. And it's this vehicle that Land Rover has really set its sights on. With a €10,000-plus price advantage over its Bavarian counterpart and a far better off-road capability, the ill-thought out BMW is nearly certain to lose out to the new Freelander.
We can't dispel the concerns over build quality that plagued the early days of the previous model, even if they were quickly rectified when the facelifted version came out some years ago. However, we'd be happy to give it the benefit of the doubt in this regard, particularly given the determination of Land Rover executives and engineers to get this one right.
A few days in the Highlands would suggest they've done just that and the new Freelander sets a marker that others will now have to follow if they really want to claim they are anything other than large metal toys for those who dream of private estates.
Factfile
DIMENSIONS (mm)
Length: 4500
Width (excl. mirrors): 1910
Height: 1740
ENGINES
3192cc in-line six-cylinder petrol engine outputting 229bhp @ 6,300rpm and 317Nm of torque @ 3,200rpm
2179 cc in-line four-cylinder diesel engine outputting 158bhp @ 4,000rpm and 400Nm of torque @ 2,000rpm
FUEL CONSUMPTION
3.2-litre petrol - combined: 11.2 L/100km (25.2mpg)
2.2-litre diesel - combined: 7.5 L/100km (37.7mpg)
0-100KMH/TOP SPEED
petrol: 8.4 sec/200km/h (124mph)
diesel: 8.9 sec/181km/h (112mph)
PRICES
2.2 TD4 €41,990
2.2 TD4 S €45,995
2 2.2 TD4 SE €50,900
2.2 TD4 HSE €55,100
3.2 i6 Petrol SE Auto €58,100
3.2 i6 Petrol HSE Auto €62,300