NHTSA Complaint #10289998 — 2003 LAND ROVER FREELANDER

COOLANT LEAKS INTO THE ENGINE IN THE 2003 LAND ROVER FREELANDER. PROBLEM STARTED AT 25,000 MILES AND WAS DISMISSED BY THE LAND ROVER DEALER (FRANKEL LAND ROVER- HUNT VALLEY) WHO I BOUGHT THE CAR FROM. I BOUGHT IT BRAND NEW. EVENTUALLY AT ABOUT 60,000 MILES THEY TOLD ME I WOULD NEED A NEW ENGINE AFTER THE WARRANTY EXPIRED. I CONTINUED TO FILL THE COOLANT CHAMBER DAILY AND DROVE IT UNTIL IT COMPLETELY FAILED AT 103,000 MILES WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON THE BALTIMORE BELTWAY (695) AT 60 MPH. FREELANDER K-SERIES ENGINES HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO DROP THE CYLINDER LINERS INTO THE BLOCK. BECAUSE THE LINERS ARE STEEL AND THE BLOCK IS ALLOY, THE LINERS BEING HARDER, WORK THEIR WAY INTO THE BLOCK. THIS IS DUE TO THE ENGINE BLOCK AND CYLINDER HEAD BEING COMPOSED OF DIFFERENT MATERIALS THAT EXPAND AT DIFFERENT RATES WITH HEAT GENERATED DURING RUNNING OF THE VEHICLE. THIS CAN CAUSE THE HEAD GASKET TO FAIL. THE HEAD GASKET/CYLINDER LINER DESIGN FAULT HAS NOT BEEN CLASSIFIED AS A RECALL. *TR