Land Rover Freelander 2 TD4_e (2009-) Review

Town-based owners of 4×4s and SUVs get a bad rap, with plenty of negative media publicity, name-calling - ‘Chelsea tractors’ - and campaigns by environmental groups and activists. Many a Freelander owner has returned to their vehicle to find a ‘Poor Vehicle Choice’ ticket on their windscreen, the work of a group called the Alliance Against Urban 4×4s.

Land Rover has, wisely, risen to the challenge - not that it has much choice, with the consumer tide turning against large fuel-thirsty vehicles anyway - and come up with a version of the Freelander 2 that, if not quite as eco-angelic as the ‘e’ in its name-badge implies, is considerably less polluting and more efficient than the models previously offered. And of course, this model is in no way compromised in its off-road ability, should you actually wish or need to leave the tarmac.

The Freelander 2 TD4 _e uses the already-economical Peugeot-Citroen 2.2-litre diesel engine, as in the outgoing TD4, but adds a stop-start system to automatically cut the engine when idling. This forms part of an integrated starter-generator unit, with a regenerative braking function to capture energy otherwise lost under deceleration or when coasting. This energy is stored in super-capacitors, which can release it very quickly to power an additional 24-volt electrical network for the starter-generator. This network is supplementary to the standard 12-volt system to power the vehicle’s other electrical functions.

This is a relatively lightweight, compact system to add to a vehicle - no large heavy battery packs or motors as in a full hybrid, for a start - which goes some way to bring useful fuel savings. Though at the moment it is only fitted in the manual-transmission, diesel-engined Freelander (as standard, at no extra cost) ultimately Land Rover will offer it in many more versions and in its other models.

Read on more for the facts and figures, and the low-down on how this system feels in real-life city driving practice.

This article was taken from: Channel 4