Freelander II v Subaru Outback v .....?

[hornetrider]

My old man has let me know that when he comes out of his company car in August he's going to be looking at about 20 bags worth of diesel Freelander II. Now, as I'm 'into my cars' he asked me if this is a good idea and I duly told him I'd do a bit of digging and help him out.

Now, as far as I'm aware the first Freelander wasn't all that well made - but I'm not overly sure on this. Discos of the same era certainly get a panning for reliability. What are they like?

A few years ago he almost went for a Legacy Outback (which I consider the preferable choice here) but at the time they chose a Rav 4. I really like the new shape Outback and think it looks a cracking buy, and it's the car I'd recommend.

Their requirements are 4x4 but not really requiring major offroading ability - its for snowy winters in the depths of Wales and a bit of load carrying capacity.

So... at 20k ish what are the good, intelligent options? Only proviso is no more than 3 years old, 4 at a push if it brings up something special, and should be diesel.

[GravelBen]

I wouldn't even think about a Freelander(or RAV4) if the Outback was an option. Forester is really more comparable to the FL or RAV than the Outback is though.

[Cecil]

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2885360.htm

[missing the VR6]

Skoda Yeti?

[swamp]

Mitsubishi Outlander.

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2579748.htm

[paddyhasneeds]

A lot of the Land Rover reliability stuff seems to boil down to Solihull vs. Halewood. Freelander 2's are made at Halewood and are supposed to be the most solid/"ironed out" Land/Range Rover in terms of reliability.

I've had one for around 3 months and really rate it.

No idea on the FL2 vs. Legacy comparison other than to say I do think Subaru make some of the lowest rent interiors I've seen for the price of their cars - they'll never break but they don't seem very nice places to be for £20-30k.

[GravelBen]

paddyhasneeds said:

No idea on the FL2 vs. Legacy comparison other than to say I do think Subaru make some of the lowest rent interiors I've seen for the price of their cars - they'll never break but they don't seem very nice places to be for £20-30k.

Have you been in a Legacy or Outback later than around 2000? Agreed that some Imprezas and Foresters can seem a bit plasticky though.

[paddyhasneeds]

GravelBen said:

paddyhasneeds said:

No idea on the FL2 vs. Legacy comparison other than to say I do think Subaru make some of the lowest rent interiors I've seen for the price of their cars - they'll never break but they don't seem very nice places to be for £20-30k.

Have you been in a Legacy or Outback later than around 2000? Agreed that some Imprezas and Foresters can seem a bit plasticky though.

Yes, around 6 months back when I was considering a Forester, but I but did have a quick look in the Legacy whilst in the showroom.

As I said, very well put together, just didn't seem very plush in terms of the plastics and instruments. A bit "Casio".

[hornetrider]

Thanks for feedback so far. I've had a word and done some digging and it looks like the Outback is out as they don't do a diesel auto, he wants an auto. What others are in the mix? They also considered an XC60 a while back - are the XC90s any good?

Sorry this topic is wandering a bit isn't it I'm more concernced with FL2 feedback tbh, I don't want him buying a money pit and spending my inheritance on head gaskets

[rfn]

FL2 is a good car.
Get a high spec (HSE?) and it comes with loads and loads of toys, it's a good drive and good offroad too.

[Lefty]

I know 3 people with FL2s.

Two of them love them, one of the absolutely hates it and has had a really crappy experience with the car and the dealer. She's had it for 9 months and it's been into the garage maybe 8 times.

[bikemonster]

paddyhasneeds said:

Yes, around 6 months back when I was considering a Forester, but I but did have a quick look in the Legacy whilst in the showroom.

As I said, very well put together, just didn't seem very plush in terms of the plastics and instruments. A bit "Casio".

I bought a Foz in March, and I love it. Yes, the interior is not earth-shattering, but it's all functional and the car (truck?) feels nicely solid. Mine has leather (heated) seats, and after years of owning small cars and sports cars, I am really enjoying it. So nice to be able to fold seats down at the push of a button, and fold them back up almost as easily...as compared to the fiddle that it was with a Pug 206.

NA engine is adequate.

A lot of the reviews I read before pulling the trigger talked about 'dull, hard plastics' and similar. It's not an issue unless you have a predilection for dashboard fondling.

[hornetrider]

None as yet (in this round of car buying). He's overseas at the mo and is looking to buy when he returns - the FL2 is what's ticking the boxes (on paper) so far. I just want to help him come to the right decision (ie not buy a money pit that will spend more time at the dealer).

[Mark Benson]

Why go for the Outback if he doesn't need the ground clearance?

The standard Legacy still has the AWD but sits at normal height. We had one for 3 years (petrol auto) and it was faultless, only needing consumables (be aware though, some components are dealer only at eye-watering prices, £700 for a centre section of the exhaust and £300 each for the 2 tailpipes).
They do a diesel Legacy (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/carreviews/2750790/Boxing-clever-Subaru-Legacy.html) and if it's half as good as the petrol one we had, it'll be a very satisfying car to own.

When we came to replace it, we were also replacing our Defender at the same time, so needed more towing capacity. We looked at the Freelander - we were expecting a mini Range Rover, but we found the interiors, even on the HSE looked low-rent for the money Land Rover wanted to charge - too many buttons and gizmos we didn't care about (stop-start technology for instance) and not at all what we were hoping for.
In the end we surprised ourselves and ended up with a Nissan X-Trail (thanks to a great deal on a 1 year old car) which we're very happy with (although I still prefer the Legacy if I'm honest).

[hornetrider]

Mark Benson said:

Why go for the Outback if he doesn't need the ground clearance?

TBH they are getting on a bit and Dad has dodgy knees from his rugby/squash days. I think they want to step 'into' rather than 'down to' the seats, if you see what I mean. Also they have a couple of dogs, do a lot of tip runs, house renovation etc. The higher driving position appeals.

[Mark Benson]

Fair enough, my olds are beginning to think the same way, my dad was looking over our X-Trail at the weekend but the sat-nav-voice-command-bluetooth stuff scares him.

X-Trail might be one for your folks to look at, my wife liked it because the seats are comfy.....

[paddyhasneeds]

bikemonster said:

I bought a Foz in March, and I love it. Yes, the interior is not earth-shattering, but it's all functional and the car (truck?) feels nicely solid. Mine has leather (heated) seats, and after years of owning small cars and sports cars, I am really enjoying it. So nice to be able to fold seats down at the push of a button, and fold them back up almost as easily...as compared to the fiddle that it was with a Pug 206.

NA engine is adequate.

A lot of the reviews I read before pulling the trigger talked about 'dull, hard plastics' and similar. It's not an issue unless you have a predilection for dashboard fondling.

I'm afraid I do fall into that category. To some it's a consideration, to others it's not.

I'd agree with the chap who said the Freelander 2 isn't a mini Range Rover as well. It's nicely put together but if you go to it expecting one of those you're going to be disappointed.