|
|
 |
Land Rover Discovery 300tdi: An off-road conversion - Part 4
9th Sep 2009
UNDER THE CHASSIS
Suspension
The Discovery is already quite a tall vehicle, so I only wanted to lift it enough to fit my larger tyres without compromising (too much) the centre of gravity. Two inches (or 5cm) are sufficient for the job.
GwynLewis (www.gwynlewis4x4.co.uk) Challenge suspension kit, you just cannot beat it in term of quality versus price. Everything you need is included.
The kit will give you a simple 2in lift, but will also provide a brilliant articulation thanks to modified shock mounts and long travel shock absorber (OME 11in travel).
One of the aspect to consider is what make the kit so good. Gwyn uses OME as the shock and spring suppliers (even if I have to admit that I fitted some TJM springs which are very similar, but were a gift from a friend). I like the OME Nitrocharger shocks as they are soft when you travel at low speed, but quite firm at speed, which makes them perfect all rounders.
Propshafts
Gwyn also asks GKN (www.gkndriveline.com) to build his heavy duty wide angle propshaft. GKN have always been known for superior quality products, and it show in these items.
Some of the specs are:
- Made to a very fine tolerance,
- Premium quality heavy duty 30 degree wide angle universal joints and sliders,
- The slider ends are plug welded to stop water ingression and to push grease up the slider splines,
- Dynamically balanced to BS G 6.3 which is a very high standard,
- They can be made to any overall length that is required,
- All of them come with Morris K48 grease…
Tyres
The choice of tyres was not obvious. Too many to choose from. The one thing I knew I wanted was the size – 235x85x16 – which is also the standard for a lot of off-roader and maybe the most common size for 4x4 world-wide. I’m sure that you can find it in the middle of the north African desert (yes… there are some villages with small garages over there). My previous “shoes” were BFG Mud Terrain in 245x75x16. This was a very good size for the discovery with a standard gear ratio and only 1in lift. As I knew I wanted to work on my diff (so potential time to change the ring & pinions) and was going to fit 2in lift springs.
I also wanted a tyre that would last and be as multi-purposed as possible. That meant exit the extreme tyres (Simex style) or the All-Terrain (which are really only very good on stony track – dry country style -). In addition I’m not a great fan of remould tyres. Some are very good, but I saw some nasty accident because of them. They are cheap and very good off-road when you do 30mph max. But I also want to be able to drive my Discovery on motorways.
My choice was then limited to mud pattern, from a well know brand doing 235x85x16. I could have gone back to BFG, but (1) I wanted to make a change, (2) this design is a bit old and I believe that other tyres could beat the “king” and (3) I learnt later that BFG Mud are not virtually impossible to find in all the common size.
Cooper Tires (www.coopertire.co.uk) have released the Discoverer STT a little while ago. Some of my friends are using them and rate them highly.
Without going too technical about the tyre itself, it is worth noting that it is a 3-plies construction which should give plenty of protection against cuts, bruises, etc. Cooper call that the Armor-Tek Carcass. There is one thing I’m eager to test is the tapered stone ejectors. Apparently the stone and debris are easily ejected thanks to this rib that runs downs from the centre lugs to the buttress blocks. We’ll see about that later in May. Looking at the tyre in detail seems to confirm it, but nothing is better than a true test.
I fitted my STT on black modular wheels. The modular wheels give and additional 1in off-set compared to the standard LR wheels, so be careful when you fit them as they will rub the arches and you will have to do some trimming. However, it gives the vehicle a very nice look and provides a better turning circle.
The STT in that size are not big – I’ve seen almost 2in difference between some tyres marked as 235x85x16!!!!! . They are true to the “what should be the real size”.
I’ll give a more detailed report later on how they perform, but I’m just back from the Landmania show in southern France, and I can say that they were good, very good indeed!
 Top of Page
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
|
|
|
|
