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Freelander2: Safety Features
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By MartinW at 2007-12-13 09:06
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Thursday, 22 June 2006
The Freelander 2’s long list of primary safety features – not least its responsive handling, strong brakes and 4x4 system – helps the driver avoid hazards. The high ‘command view’ seating position provides visibility over traffic and a clearer view on rain-lashed roads.
Secondary safety starts with the strong monocoque body and its inner ‘safety cell’. Front and rear crumple zones are designed to help absorb as much energy as possible during an impact. Side-impact protection is further assisted by the ultra-high-strength steel door beams, the strong and deep door sills (bigger on a 4x4 than on a conventional car) and the raised seat position. Other key features include strong facia cross-rails, which help minimise the risk of the A-pillars spreading during an impact, and the new Roll Stability Control system.
Front seat belts have pre-tensioners, and all Freelander 2 models feature seven airbags. The driver and passenger front airbags are designed to help provide head and chest protection and the front side airbags to protect against side impacts. Full-length curtain airbags in the roof side structure are designed to help protect against head injury and roll-over ejection for front and rear occupants. An inflatable knee bolster helps protect the driver against leg injury from the steering column.
Exterior Protection
Freelander 2 uses 100 per cent double-sided zinc-coated steel panels, as part of the most sophisticated anti-corrosion and paint treatment ever used on a Land Rover. An unlimited-mileage, three-year paint-surface warranty and six-year anti-corrosion warranty are provided with the vehicle.
As a true 4x4, Freelander 2 is designed to be able to brush off knocks and scuffs. Vulnerable areas of the car, including the sills and lower doors, are coated in a tough thermoplastic cladding. The cooling pack is protected by a strong thermoplastic undertray, while a structural steel undertray protects the engine. Bumpers are made from high-pressure injection-moulded mineral-reinforced polypropylene. They have excellent stability in very hot or cold conditions, and good scratch and impact resistance.
Jewel-Like and Effective Lamps
The wrap-around headlamps of Freelander 2 are handsome and rugged, and offer a choice of different technologies.
The standard halogen lamps have impact-resistant polycarbonate lenses, and offer a lifetime resistance to scratching (invaluable when off-roading). The lens is bonded to the lamp body to guarantee a watertight seal. The headlamp units have a Gore-Tex™ membrane, which allows ventilation without letting in water, to help avoid condensation when wading. H7 halogen bulbs are also available, giving a light output closer to natural daylight.
Freelander 2 is also available with High Intensity Discharge (HID) projector lamps, creating crisp blue-white spectrum light. The bulbs are filled with a mixture of noble gases (including xenon). HID lights produce 200 per cent more light than a halogen unit while consuming only half as much electrical power. They also last up to 10 times longer. The HID system includes headlamp powerwash and automatic headlamp levelling, to ensure the optimum light pattern irrespective of vehicle load.
Optional Adaptive Front Lighting (AFS) is designed around the xenon units. The lamps swivel with the direction of travel, to help improve the driver’s view of the road ahead.
Rear lamp units are chunky one-piece clusters, incorporating tail-lamps, brake lights, indicators and reversing lights. As with the headlamps, the design is jewel-like, an impression heightened by the high-gloss polymethyl methacrylate lenses, which also offer excellent scratch resistance.
Large Glass Areas
The generous areas of glass on Freelander 2 offer excellent all-round visibility. Front and side windows are wide and deep. An optional two-part panoramic sunroof increases the bright and airy feel of Freelander 2’s cabin. The front section lifts and slides back over the second-row glass roof panel.
Large door mirrors (powerfold available) further improve the field of view. The front screen is available electrically heated, with rain-sensing wipers that work via infra-red technology, and heated washer jets.
Large and Powerful Brakes
The Freelander 2 has large vented discs front and rear, providing stopping power comparable to that of a good compact sports saloon. The large front discs – 316 mm on the petrol model, 300 mm on the diesel – are ‘reverse vented’, so they draw cool air into the disc over the central bell, which is then vented out from the rim of the disc. This approach improves thermal stability under severe braking. Rear brake discs are also substantial – 302 mm in diameter, for both diesel and petrol. The handbrake is a drum-in-disc device featuring two shoes per wheel. This achieves superior hill-hold performance compared with conventional disc-only systems.
The electronic modulator at the heart of the stability control systems on Freelander 2 constantly monitors and, if necessary, adjusts both braking and engine traction to ensure the driver maintains control of each wheel. As well as reducing brake pressure, as in a conventional anti-lock (ABS) braking system, the modulator is designed to help generate positive hydraulic pressure to increase braking force in an emergency.
In addition to the latest-generation four-channel anti-lock brakes, the modulator also controls Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), which balances the distribution of braking force between front and rear, Emergency Brake Assist (EBA), which boosts pedal pressure when full braking is required, and Corner Brake Control (CBC), which enhances rear-end stability when braking in corners. It also helps to control the Hill Descent Control, Electronic Traction Control and Dynamic Stability Control systems.
Roll Stability Control
Roll Stability Control is the most sophisticated roll-over prevention technology ever fitted to a Land Rover. Gyroscopic sensing allows this system – linked to the electronic modulator – to compare the rate of change of body roll angle with the steered course. If necessary, incremental brake force is applied at the outer wheels, widening the turn radius to help prevent the roll.
Gradient Release Control
Another innovation which makes its debut on Freelander 2 is Land Rover’s patented Gradient Release Control system. Linked to the Hill Descent Control, this system ensures that, when releasing the brakes on extremely steep hills, brake-line pressure is released progressively, helping to maintain full driver control.
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