cheap modifacations

[gavfurn]

hi fellas,

i've had my disco for a bit now, bog standard.

i'm looking to start the mods, any suggestions where to start?? and cheapest?

not cheapest parts but mods, then work my way up,

many thanks gav

[ejparrott]

I'd say suspension or boots myself, but the question is what kind of mods are you looking to do? Are you looking to make it an an adventurous off roader, or an everyday car that can tackle some pretty rough greenlanes?

[teabag]

LED bulbs in the interior lights is a brilliant one also upgrade your headlamp bulbs.

[landroversforever]

Best way is get out and drive it. Then you'll find out what needs/wants changing

[ejparrott]

^^ very true! They're very capable as built

[Adam001]

Rip off the anti roll bars! Free!

[gavfurn]

It's in every day use, but it will be used for off roading now and again, so maybe extream greenlaning, eventually be used as an off road toy permintally,

[gavfurn]

I know I wanna get rid of the front bumper, but to put in its place I don't know??? Then there's the 2" lift but wanna build to that, when the money's in a bit more of supply,

[ejparrott]

Right, on that basis, yeah anti roll bars is free, but don't chuck it, you might not like the feel of it without them. Then I'd go for tyres. You can put all the lift on it you like, but if it can't grip, it still ain't going anywhere.

[teabag]

Shame u don't say what engine u have. but for me the only mod I wish I could have is to remove my engines rev limiter

[gavfurn]

It's a 300tdi

[benthng]

Hi if u like to experiment with controlling turbo boost for more power u can install a Dawes Device manual boost controller. See link for a DIY http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=103279

Do fit a boost gauge to help adjust so u won't overdo the boost and a exhaust temp gauge would be useful if u need to tune air fuel mixture to make the best use out of the MBC. Cheers

[Tanuki]

Here's what I'd do:

New shock-absorbers and steering-damper of a known good make [i like Konis and Bilsteins. A lot of the stuff sold to the off-road market is more for show than go].

Replace all suspension bushes [i prefer OEM rubber to Polybushes]

Replace brake discs, flexi-hoses, calipers and pads. It's amazing how crusty they can get after 50,000 miles: vented discs in particular suffer from rust in the cooling-passages - if these get blocked with rust or mud it will lead to uneven cooling, distortion and judder which even the best ABS will find hard to suppress.

New quality tyres [Pirelli, Michelin].

Then after that lot, perhaps an EGR blanking kit?

Not all of this is necessarily cheap - a lot of it does come under the heading of "routine maintenance & repair" though.

"Make it steer, handle and stop: Once it does all those three well, only then think about additional power".

[landroversforever]

I don't know how experienced you are at driving offroad. But get out there and drive the truck as standard. You'll end up far more capable if you learn in the standard motor. You'll then find out what you want to upgrade to get you further.

[gavfurn]

Thank you all for the advise and tips, I'm not to experienced in off-roading done some greenlaning, going a place in stoke for the 1st time next weekend in my truck, so will take it from there I guess,

Thanks again and anymore suggestions are welcome

Thanks gav

[Mr Noisy]

If you're going to Silverdale in a standard truck, good luck!! You will be stuck most of the day

The best way as above is to use/break/establish fault/repair&upgrade each component as you go.

That way you work out what you need.

Mine has taken 3 years of the above to establish a plateau but I'm around 10k in!

[gavfurn]

I was, was told about a place in Lycett near Scott hay, outskirts silverdale,???

[Anderzander]

The best modification must be driver training.

When you see where they got the little Series 1's on those 50's expeditions .....

If you've some AT tyres on then get out with people who know what they are doing and read up on good technique and learn ::

[TheRecklessEngineer]

It is quite simply staggering what a standard 4x4 is capable of. LRs especially so.

There does seem to be a trend to bolting on extra goodies for little other reason than it looks good. You aren't going to need a lift, knobbly tyres, a snorkle or a sticker that says "One life, Live it" for green laning - even the difficult ones.

I'd do what Tanuki suggests - make it a good solid reliable vehicle first. Then take it out, see what it'll do (and what you can make it do) and if you want to push it further then, and only then, start upgrading things.

First on my list would be tyres - unless you're going to bury it up to the bonnet in mud you don't need anything more than a good set of ATs. Anything more aggressive will severely compromise road handling and just rip up the green lanes.

[gavfurn]

Any cheap suggestions for head light up grades???

[ejparrott]

Clean all the contacts, make sure the bulbs are clean, make sure its got good earth, and perhaps upgrade the wiring with brand new fused feeds direct from the battery, controlled by relays activated by the exisiting wiring. That alone made a huge difference to the headlights on my 88"

[teabag]

Any cheap suggestions for head light up grades???

Bulb wise this also applies to the 300 series http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=85054

[axlechorus]

As other have said, keeping a vehicle standard and learning to be a competent driver is the best and ultimately most satisfying and certainly safe way in my opinion.

My shopping list in your position informed through the ownership of a Discovery for several years until recently would be;

Reliability

- Makes sure its had a good service including checking and tightening all the bushes in the suspension and ball joints in the steering. Suspension bushes and that the springs are properly secured. Simple things but you will be giving it a lot more flex off-road than the supermarket car park speed bumps offer. Also ensure you have your wading plugs and the required Allen key with you in the vehicle and that they screw in easily encase you need them! In addition ensure that you can smoothly get from high to low and visa versa along with a positive diff lock action - These mechanisms can stiffen up with lack of use and become sloppy from overuse which can lead to miss-section and a frustrating day!.

Recovery

- Its inevitable that you will probably need a helping hand at some point so lets ensure your safe in doing that. Up front a pair of Jate Rings with a braddle will suffice in the first instance and at the back a tow ball with a draw pin will ensure that you can be safely pulled backwards and forwards. These items are fine to buy as good second hand and should be achievable for about £20 each.

Also go and buy yourself a pair of shackles and a good length ~3m recovery strop so you always have the equipment needed.

Protection

- Just encase I would provision a simple wrap around diff guard (about £15 used) and a simple steering guard (around £40 secondhand). This will ensure that your protected from the front end principally the more vulnerable diff pan and the steering rods upfront.

Opportunity - To combine the front recovery points & steering guard with a steering guard with integrated recovery points depending on what you can find on the market.

Tyres

- As has been said a good set of boots is essential. ATs should be adequate for you and are ideal for Greenlaning to balance on and off road ability. A slightly larger size 245/75 or similar will fit with standard suspension nicely and give you a little more clearance. Again you can buy these used as a part worn set BFG All Terrains are the pick of the bunch and last for years!

Finally - Go and Enjoy! you can add other items later but the setup above will serve you well and is what I ran on my DIscovery for several years slowly adding to it as time and finances allowed.

Hope this helps.

Best Wishes

[FridgeFreezer]

What Anderzander, Tanuki, and TheRecklessEngineer said - don't rush in, learn what the truck can do & how to drive it, and think before you modify.

Almost every mod has trade-offs associated with it, and there's a large section of off-roaders who are more concerned with the image than effectiveness / usefulness of any particular mod.

IMHO the most under-rated thing is vehicle prep & servicing, there are so many people who have spent thousands on mods only to have their vehicle break down for lack of basic maintenance - either proper repairs, servicing, cr*p parts fitted to save money that's then thrown at pointless mods instead, etc. etc.

It's also the case that the more modified your truck appears, the less impressed anyone is by your driving skills. If you put a standard truck where the last guy failed to get his modified one, your driving-god credentials go up considerably

A decent set of tyres is about the biggest single difference you can make to performance off-road.

[ballcock]

Any cheap suggestions for head light up grades???

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