Land Rover recalls thousands of its Freelander models

Tens of thousands of Land Rover Freelanders are being recalled amid safety concerns.

This is after handbrakes on certain vehicles failed to engage fully.

It will affect the owners of 68,838 models built before March this year.

Officials from the company, based in Solihull, West Midlands, are asking people to take their off-roader back to dealerships for routine safety checks to be carried out.

They said in a statement: "In extreme circumstances, this (the handbrake problem) could mean that the handbrake could release if it received a vigorous jolt, such as the slamming of a car door.

"To ensure that this is rectified, all models within the affected range will have the handbrake assembly replaced."

A separate problem has also been identified with the seat-back mechanism in three-door models built towards the end of last year. This fault could mean the mechanism may fail to latch correctly when the seat-back is returned to its rest position and could move during braking. The seat frame assembly will be replaced if this is the case, the company said.

A third fault in models built towards the end of 2000 concerns the detection of wear on the engine harness which passes under the fuse box. Extra protection for the harness could be needed if chafing on the damper turret affects electrical functions such as the headlamps.

"The seat lever recall affects 4,391 vehicles and the harness recall 12,361, although the total community of vehicles recalled is reduced by the overlap," said Land Rover bosses.

"The hand brake recall involves 68,838 vehicles. The affected vehicles will be reworked free of charge and alternative transport provided where required to minimise any inconvenience to the customer."