vavu Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Hi everyone hope you dont mind me picking your brains. Relevant Replaced Parts: Both Front Swivels - Bearings Seals, Wheel Bearings Drag Link and Both Ball Joints Front Monroe Gas Shocks Front Springs 200tdi Steering Damper Delphi De Carbon Rear Radius Arms Genuine Landrover and Genuine Rubber Bushes General Grabber UHP 235 70 R16 All Round Panhard Rod Bushes Genuine PolyBush Red Rear A Frame Bushes Genuine PolyBush Red I brought this 300tdi from a friend of mine 2 years ago, Its a standard GS Spec No Aircon My friend had Bearmach Blue HD Springs and Monroe Shocks fitted to the rear in 2004, Ideal for him as he used to carry his trials motorbike on the back. As the Photo Shows the Back end is quite a bit higher than the front. About 6 months ago I felt the handling of the vehicle was becoming very spongey especially on corners felt like it was wanting to steer to the left and a fair amount of body roll so i decided to change the front shockers which looked original, I opted for Monroe's as I had put these on my old 200tdi years ago and was very pleased with them. I also wanted to level the vehicle up so on speaking to my local landy parts people we decided on front springs from a 200tdi. I Also fitted a Delphi De Carbon Steering Damper at the same time. This did a perfect job of making the disco sit level and I felt the ride seemed better. Later on that evening the Rear Off Side Radius arm snapped, Why im not too sure maybe it was on its way out but it sheared off by the front bush, So I replaced both radius arms with genuine ones and genuine bushes. Following that I decided to start replacing the bushes starting with rear A Frame and Panhard Rod. The Ride felt ok but corners and roundabouts still didnt feel smooth. And I certiainly dont feel confident about throwing it into a corner like I used to 12 months ago or like the 200tdi or the Td5 Disco's I had. Im not sure what is causing it to feel like this, Also I have concerns that maybe the steering box is developing a fault as sometimes the steering wheel feels slack, I have tightend the steering box up a month ago which initally kept the steering tight but still ocassionally it feels slack. There is no sign of any leaks on the box and as far as I can tell the UJ on the Steering column seem ok. Where should I be looking to Improve the handling? Is there anyway to test the steering box and the Column Joints? I am also thinking of replacing the following parts although there is no obvious sign of wear. Track Rod Ends Front Radius Arm Bushes Anti roll bar bushes and links Many thanks for any help it is very much appreciated. Regards Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discobandit Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Hi VAVU, I'm afraid I'm not going to be of much help here but I have almost the same symptoms and have carried out the same remedial actions with the added new steering box. Nothing has changed. My intentions for next weekend are to recheck torques, preloads, and tighten as required in the hope that things have just been bedding in. One thing I have noticed though, is that when towing the caravan the symptoms disappear??????? Could it be rear axle related? That's where I'll be looking next. Gary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolly Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Just out of curiosity, in the photo your rear arch looks to have a flat at the top. Never seen that before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vavu Posted February 24, 2009 Author Share Posted February 24, 2009 Thanks Gary I will have a thorough look through as much as I can, Let me know if you have any joy. I had MOT on it today and it passed with an advisory on NSR wheel bearing so gonna check these too. Rolly not quite sure wat you mean about the rear arch. Cheers Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu2985 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 My disco 300tdi runs on bearmach HD blue sprigns front and rear and standard size monroe adventurer shocks. I run 265/75/17 tyres and with the lift i get from both it can feel a bit wobbly sometimes especially when not loaded up as the springs are designed to cope with a heavier load Does it still have HD blue springs at the back and standard ones on the front ? May well be front or rear springs knackerd. I personally wouldnt mix and match springs (especially if they different strengths) If the vehicle is lifted higer it can put extra pressure on steering and radius arms. Some people who have 2" plus lifts replace these with castor corrected items or bushes. May be worth getting your springs checked all even slapping on a new set Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Comical Engineer Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 Yes, think I'd be tempted to go back to standard spring set up all round as a starting point. Mixing and matching springs can cause all sorts of problems because the front and back of the car can get out of sync with each other. Having a rear lift certainly won't help cornering. Check also your tyre pressures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vavu Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 Stu yeah it still has the Bearmach springs on the rear. I changed the front springs to new ones from a 200tdi as i was told these were stiffer than the 300tdi ones and they did a good job of making the disco sit level. The handling is strange sometimes it is ok like today it seemed fine. I am going to check the steering box as much as i can tommorow when i finish off my serivce. I am tempted to swap the back springs as i dont really need the lift, its mainly an on road vehicle which tows now and again and has to go through the odd flood or two. I also have a new set of rear monroe shocks left over from my old 200tdi disco so i might swap these too. Cheers Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vavu Posted May 2, 2009 Author Share Posted May 2, 2009 Just to update everyone and Thank You for all your help. Took the disco to local landy specialist about a month ago who kindly looked over it for me, They suggested the following could be at fault, Tyres Over Inflated O/S/F Anti Roll Bar Link Worn Lower Rear Shock Bushes Worn Gas Steering Damper So came away with all the parts including a Britpart Standard Steering Damper, Fitted them all and noticed such a difference but was holding judgement till I had towed the horse trailer, Pleased to say I can't pick a fault with the handling now!! I think to be honest the biggest fault was having a Gas Steering Damper. As the A/R Bar Link and Bushes didnt look too bad when I took them off. Does anyone else have any experience with gas steering dampers? Does anyone want mine, its a Delphi Decarbon and its only 6months old. Cheers Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stageonesimmo Posted May 2, 2009 Share Posted May 2, 2009 I'm sure someone more knowledgable than me will shoot me down - but, I'm not a fan of gas dampers on the steering as they have a positive pressure (however small, its still there) in one direction and thus will always want to expand putting pressure on the tie rod which to my mind will only lead to problems. So, no, not for me thanks! I recently renewed the front ARB bushes on mine as they'd gone soft and it made a big difference to the turn-in and lean on corners - just need to junk the procomps on the front in favour of the Terra_firma's on the rear............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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