Mud-club
Vehicle & Technical => Discovery => Topic started by: Iain C on February 27, 2007, 23:02:58
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Says it all in the title really, just wondering if it's worth the effort for 2"??
Does it really mess up the on-road handling that much? Does it really make a difference off road, and if so in what conditions, breakover angle only? Thanks!
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hmmmm, where to start :lol: . i originally didnt want to lift my disco and as such i only fitted HD springs. i did alot of other mods while leaving the suspension alone apart from +2 procomps to replace the old standard shocks. it handled well.
after going out on variouse lane days and play site i seemed to get stuck ( left high and dry ) where my mates just breezed through.... so the lift went in. i have never looked back since. the handling on mine has remained very good with no adverse effects..... i belive they are all different in that department.
i now clear my diffs over most things which is such a change.
the top pic is how she was with standard shocks and springs with 225/70/16's
the bottom i have the lift,+2 procomp shocks and 265/75/16 fitted.
i do have a lot of weight in the boot in that pic..... :wink:
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I am doing mine this weekend, watch this space for photos (i'll also let you know how hard/or not it was)
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Denviks hit the nail on the head, each car seems different once lifted.
One problem is that when new the castor coould be abywhere between plus 1 degree and plus 3. A 2" lift takes 3 degrees out so if you do the maths, some cars are almost unsafe, others will still drive ok.
Have a look at my galery, Blue has a 2" lift that's starting to sag with all the extra weight, the red rangie has a set os HD police spec and they seem to have added at least an inch. This car suffered badly with steering feedback (lack of it) as did the blue one, which has now been comprehensively modified.
the change is most noticeable in a EAS equiped vehicle, my LSE is a cow to drive in high profile but really nice in standard/low where the steering feedback comes in.
If you want a lift, buy the springs and dampers and see how it goes, you should change the brake flexis to cope with extra droop. The you need to see if you like it or not.
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Excellent, thanks for the advice, I have the 2" lift does look good. My only concern would be if due to budget the lift came first followed by big rubber at a later date, would it look a bit daft on the standard tyres?
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Looks are a matter of taste, I had mine on 225/75R16 for about 2 years with the lift. Yes big rubber does look nice but it also slow the thing down. I also found that my 235/70R16 remoulds were halfway between the size of 235/70 A/T and 235/85 M/T anyway. You'll see inmy galery some pictures of the car in snow, well those are the tyres. Don't look stupid do they? not as bad as those white things I had on for a while (sprayed them silver, they looked great on my sister's car then).
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I have some before/after pictures (299 and 300), although in 299 i'd done the front and not the back, that day, that's why it looks so daft. It wasn't that hard to do, hardest bit was the old shocks had rusted in solid and I had to drill / chisel off the bolts. That said, it only took a weekend.
It's totally worth it - look at the last picture! So much more articulation with +2".
Yes, the tires look a little lost in those big wheel arches, but not completely ridiculous. It is the next thing on the list though
:roll:
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Would help if I added the pictures...
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been having a few issues with the 265 tyres catching while articulating. so a mate popped over today with his jiggy saw.... she looks a little different now :wink: .... if you have a 5 door then be prepared for scarey stuff..... :wink: here is the before and after
(http://www.plcuk.co.uk/files/cimg5061_medium_128.jpg)
(http://www.plcuk.co.uk/files/cimg5069_medium_138.jpg)
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Omara that looks the nuts, right, I'm sold!!!!! That's only 2"???
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Before
(http://members.mud-club.com/galleryimages/857863b90c8799934a93f0403e6697d3.jpg)
After
(http://members.mud-club.com/galleryimages/ab5b721ffa292db0a0f712a584db1b31.jpg)
If your going to fit a lift go for the best kit you can.
Old Man Emu springs and dampers are the best.
I've driven a 2" lifted disco with OME kit fitted and it handled like it wasn't lifted.
Very firm on the road and nice and flexy off road.
8)
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Omara that looks the nuts, right, I'm sold!!!!! That's only 2"???
Yes mate - Britpart springs and Pro-comp 9000 shocks. £235 IIRC.
Just watch it though, as you need to fix the rear springs top AND bottom. On full articulation (and I mean only on full) they can drop out. Talking from experience here!!
If you're careful it'll be fine. Either that or fit dislocation cones (next task!!)
It radically changed it's offroad usefulness. Haven't been stuck (touch wood) since!!!
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I think those 2 trucks (Jake & Omara) look fine with the rubber they have. What's the point of lifting it to get extra space under the wheels if they are still stuffed into the wheelarches. Of course if they were 205R16 then yes they would look lost, nut don't be rushinng out with cash burning a hole in your pocket to buy new tyres.
BTW, omara, I can see in you after pic that you have no castor left in you steering. How does it drive?
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RRB - I think the photos are a little misleading - the wheel isn't too far off centre. But either way, it drives ok, and there's no castor correction. Or at least as well as you'd expect. It hardly measures up to my hot hatch, but you accept the fact that it's an offroad vehicle and live with it.
Combination of the lift and the tires means it's definitely more squidgy when you chuck it into a bend, but you learn to get around that by turning in earlier, and the old girl shifts her weigt across and round you go :wink: Sometimes the vagueness of the steering can catch you out, but like i said if you want a car that handles, don't give it squidy tires and suspension!
The tires aren't too bad in the wet either, but i'd like a more agressive and slightly taller tire.
Overall it's 100% worth it, because the offroad performance is significantly better.
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It's not the position of the wheel but the angle, when you've messed around with a few you can tell the difference. You should see the wheels on the LSE when it's sat on the bumpstops :wink:
Anyway, handling is as much about expectation as performance if you can handle the car and like driving it then job done in my book :)
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Omara, just done my lift today, glad you mentioned about the back springs, saves me putting a thread on about it, how did u secure the top of the back springs, just with a piece of flat steel like the bottom?? Mine definatley dropped out on full articulation (don't know why but expected the springs to be 2" longer :oops:
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On a standard car the blad that forms the outside of the spring hanger is a sort of relocation device. It stops working when the axle is further away from the chassis though. If you secure both ends of the spring then make sure you use HD spring bars or they just bend.
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No pics of my disco as standard.
only a pic of the old girl with the lift on it
3" suspension lift/2" body lift. 33" tyres
heavy dutysprings/ procomp shocks /stainless brake lines
corrected arms front/rear/ polybushed./dislcation cones
spacers on both props.
still runs on standard front prop with no vibration
once you start the spending never ends!!!
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No pics of my disco as standard.
only a pic of the old girl with the lift on it
3" suspension lift/2" body lift. 33" tyres
heavy dutysprings/ procomp shocks /stainless brake lines
corrected arms front/rear/ polybushed./dislcation cones
spacers on both props.
still runs on standard front prop with no vibration
once you start the spending never ends!!!
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Here you go, fresh out of my workshop, 2" lift with 265/75/16 BFG Muds on, its 4 1/2" taller then when it was on its original springs!!
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Hi guys some really 8) photos posted i have a 300tdi with abs and have been looking at getting the complete 2 inch lift kit from paddocks :D that uses the britpart gear its about 370 notes and i have a set of GOODYEAR 245/75/16 can any one recommend this one or one similar plus will these tyres fit with out cutting the arches back.
thanks
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afaik 245/75R16 is the biggest you can safely go without cutting your arches.
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thanks jake thats good news as i have already got the tyres :roll: