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Land Rover Freelander
The Freelander is a
compact crossover SUV from Land Rover. Introduced
in 1998, during the preiod where Land Rover
was part of BMW group, it competes with the
Jeep Liberty, Toyota RAV4 and similar vehicles,
and in North America in 2002 where it pioneered
the premium compact SUV segment (since joined
by the BMW X3 and others). There are a variety
of models on the market, 3-door removable-top
(SE3) and 5-door versions, diesel and petrol
engines. Current US Freelander models are
powered by MG Rover K-Series V-6 engines,
and have mixed Auto/manual Tiptronic-style
gearboxes; most have air conditioning, power
steering, power windows and other amenities
standard. Diesel and 1.8 petrol Engines are
also offered in Europe.
While
the Freelander is quite suitable for moderately
rugged roads, it does not have a low range
gear selection to master serious inclines
or sufficient clearance for broken terrain.
Its ABS, traction control, hill descent
control features however make driving off-road
a pleasant experience.
While some reports show
the Freelander to be the most popular Land
Rover model in Europe, sales of the Freelander
in the United States have been slow. Just
5,430 were sold in 2004, adding up to just
over 33,000 sold in the three years the car
was offered in that market. Just 13 Freelanders
were sold in the entire United States in the
first two months of 2006, making it one of
the slowest-selling vehicles available.
Production
of the Mk I Freelander at the Lode Lane
plant in Solihull is currently being run
down, mostly due to the difficulty of obtaining
engines after the failure of engine supplier
and former sister company MG Rover. The
car is in process of being replaced within
the next 12 months.
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