Model Reports 5 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Land Rover Freelander 2013: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 73 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2013 Land Rover Freelander were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Track rod end (front).

Summary

A 2013 Land Rover Freelander passed first time about 2 in every 100 less often than the average of the 2012 and 2014 model years.

At a glance

How 12,621 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
73 in every 100
Did not pass first time
27 in every 1003,458 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
12 yearsabout 102,159 miles
First tests counted
12,621

What failed most often

  1. Track rod end (front)17 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Brake pads (rear)11 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Headlight9 in every 100 failed tests

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2013 Land Rover Freelander vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

Two faults. The strongest is the anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear): 26 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 3,454 of 3,458 failed first attempts (99.9%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)

Failed on 278 first tests26 times as often as similar carsStrong evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 158 first tests, 12 times as often as on similar cars.

Shock absorbers (rear)

Failed on 177 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Slight seepage that leaves a film of fluid on a shock absorber does not fail it. Severe leakage, or damage so that it does not function, is Major. A shock absorber missing or likely to become detached is graded Dangerous, though a missing one is only rejected if shock absorbers were fitted as standard.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Steering

One fault: track rod end (front), 3.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Track rod end (front)

Failed on 570 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play is Major, and one worn to the extent there is a serious risk of detachment is graded Dangerous. A dust cover that is damaged but still keeps dirt out is Minor, and one missing or no longer keeping dirt out is Major. Testers must tell wear from a joint's built-in clearance or spring loading.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Brakes

Two wear patterns. The strongest is the brake pads (rear): 2.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake pads (rear)

Failed on 389 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A pad worn down to its wear indicator, or contaminated with oil or grease, is Major. A pad worn below the set thickness limit, missing or incorrectly mounted is Dangerous. The manual treats an illuminated brake wear indicator as no reason for failure, although DVSA also lists an illuminated indicator as a Major row.

Brake discs (rear)

Failed on 106 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A brake disc or drum must be significantly worn before it is rejected, and being worn below the manufacturer's recommended limits is not a reason in itself. Significantly and obviously worn is Major, as is contamination with oil or grease. A disc or drum that is fractured, insecure, seriously weakened or missing is graded Dangerous.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Lamps and electrical

One fault and one wear pattern. The strongest is the headlight aim not tested (front): 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Headlight aim not tested (front)

Failed on 51 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Headlamp aim recorded as not tested, or unable to be tested, is a Major failure. These results must only be used where it becomes apparent during the test that the item cannot be tested, and this could not have been identified before starting. The reason must be included in the additional information box.

Headlight

Failed on 301 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

On vehicles first used on or after a set date, a halogen headlamp unit converted to take HID or LED bulbs fails for light source and lamp not compatible, which is Major. A complete unit built with those light sources is not failed for that. The precise position of the lamps is not part of the inspection beyond a visual look to see that they sit at about the same height and distance from each side.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.

Anti-roll bar ball joint (rear)

Noted on 35 first tests14 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

Transmission oil leaks (rear)

Noted on 26 first tests6.6 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake light (rear)

Noted on 102 first tests5.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Power steering pipes and hoses

Noted on 25 first tests5.2 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension sub-frame (rear)

Noted on 250 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Vehicle structure condition

Noted on 20 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Track rod end

Noted on 36 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
73in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
4in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
23in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 72.6% of 12,621 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 76.6%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 4 fixed and the 23 not fixed make the 27 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

4060801002000200520102013Older cars
406080100200020102013Older cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 74 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200057 in every 100311
200153 in every 100806
200254 in every 1001,590
200353 in every 1002,128
200452 in every 1003,403
200550 in every 1004,169
200652 in every 1004,699
200759 in every 10011,611
200859 in every 1009,318
200963 in every 1008,950
201064 in every 10012,962
201168 in every 10011,546
201271 in every 1009,941
2013 This car73 in every 10012,621
201477 in every 10011,171

If you are buying one

What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.

Mileage matters most on a 2013 Freelander.

Of 2013 Freelander vehicles with under 75,000 miles, 82 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 131,000 miles or more, 64 in every 100 did.

Under 75,0002,486 tests
82
75,000–94,0002,511 tests
77
94,000–110,000 Typical car2,521 tests
72
110,000–131,0002,535 tests
69
131,000 and over2,561 tests
64

What to check at your mileage

How often each fault turned up on a failed first test, by the car's mileage. Read it as: what is likely to need looking at on a car like the one in front of you.

Under 75,00094,000–110,000131,000 and over
Track rod end (front)2.85.06.3
Brake pads (rear)1.93.14.3
Headlight1.72.53.3
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)0.72.03.3
Coil spring (front)1.21.71.9

Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.

When a car fails

44in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

27in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

7in every 100

of all first tests had a defect the tester marked dangerous (unsafe to drive away).

Every figure here is a first-attempt MOT rate from DVSA open data for this model line, for cars of this model year tested in 2025. Each mileage band holds a fifth of the tests. MOTs do not test engine or gearbox internals, so this is a pre-purchase checklist, not a full reliability score.

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

A 2013 Land Rover Freelander passed first time about 2 in every 100 less often than the average of the 2012 and 2014 model years. In 2025, 72.6% of 12,621 first MOTs on the 2013 Land Rover Freelander passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 76.6%. Among 3,458 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (8.0% of those tests; 278 observed failures; about 26× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2013 Land Rover Freelander at the first attempt were Track rod end (front) (16.5%), Brake pads (rear) (11.3%) and Headlight (8.7%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) (8.0% of those tests; 278 observed failures; about 26× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (8.0% of those tests; 278 observed failures; about 26× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2013 Land Rover Freelander include Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear), Track rod end (front), Headlight. These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2013 Land Rover Freelander (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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