What’s not?

• The 2.2-litre diesel engine sounds a bit rough and noisy when you start it up, and it even sounds rattly when accelerating hard – out of keeping with its more premium uplift feel.
• The SD4 187bhp engine doesn’t come with stop/start either, one of the factors that make this facelifted Land Rover one of the least efficient cars in its class, with figures of 40.4mpg and 185g/km.
• That means a company car tax bill that’s around £500 higher than for standard rate buyers of a Q5 2.0 TDI S Tronic.
• Handling isn’t a strong point, with the kind of slow, ponderous responses you’d expect from a Land Rover. It does promote a relaxed, slow place of driving, and that’s not necessarily such a bad thing.
• The automatic gearbox is a bit hesitant to get the car moving in traffic so you could find your head bobbing back and forth, too.

Business Car Manager road test verdict

The facelifted Land Rover Freelander does look the part and it’s still comfortable and relaxing to drive. But, Land Rover had the chance to make the Freelander even more appealing and they haven’t quite taken it.

The engine sounds far more rattly and noisy than the equivalent diesel engines in the Audi Q5 and BMW X3. And the automatic gearbox seems a bit slow to react, unlike Audi’s dual-clutch S tronic gearbox.

But, the biggest downside for company car buyers is the fact that Land Rover hasn’t cleaned up the engines. Your company car tax bill is going to be around £500 more in a company car comparison with the more efficient – and very impressive – Audi Q5 and BMW X3 models. Pence per mile costs will be higher, too, and both the Audi and BMW have cheaper list prices.

If you want a facelifted Land Rover Freelander perhaps look lower down the range than this HSE Lux range-topper. Some of the lower GS and XS trim level models are cheaper than their rivals and still come well equipped. None – except for the two-wheel drive ED4 model – will solve the high running costs, though.

[nggallery id=34]

Land Rover Freelander 2 2.2 SD4 HSE LUX 190hp Auto – the low down