Mike Brownlie

Im watching with interest, I have just bought 5 new 235x65x17 all terrains and curious to know if they will hit the spring cups. The top part of the tyre is tapered so unsure if it will clear. Going to get the spare fitted with new tyre tomorrow. Really dont want to go down spacer route if i have to. *2003 Td4 Kalahari (Standard)

I have on the winch... RED - Live Black - Earth Blue Green Yellow White I have no idea what the solenoid is, it looks stock and is mounted on top above the drum... pics to follow!

motor or clutch side first?? or just strip and lube the whole lot ?

motor or clutch side first?? or just strip and lube the whole lot ?

this is too much... http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150326411026420

Can anyone help me with getting this working? I have it wired up as per usual with +12v and ground but there was no remote supplied so need to wire it up to a cheap ebay wireless remote. I have googled and cant seem to find a wiring diagram with the colours. The cheap ebay wiring kit has colours that seem to match but on the Superwinch i have two left over.... green and blue. The motor is getting HOT and the relay/solenoid clicks but no joy..... It has been abused and I think its possible for it to be seized / full of mud so not sure on my next course of action.... Help! Mike

I always use paypal and then claim if there are problems that way.

I think the honda CRV did the same and went from a 2.2 to 2.0 engines as did the x-trail. Power levels were same but fuel economy went up too.

use whatever gearbox you want then make the lt230 remote with custom propshafts. easiest route by far.

Would it not be easier to fit the r380 and lt230? Use a defender 300tdi/td5 gearbox tunnel ??

What about adapting Land Cruiser axles instead ? strong axles with electric lockers. Easier to adapt ratios to something usable and the yanks run them on HUGE tyres for rock crawling. Mog axles are HEAVY expensive and drum brakes on the 404s.

Escort is possibly a wrong example but for general trailers, caravans etc B+E does not always apply. I sat the B+E and the trailer was a tow-a-van twin axle behind a transit. I then sat my cat C LGV and my employer wanted me to tow a mini excavator behind a 10ton truck, again this was a problem as I was only allowed to tow 750kg!! So they sent me for C+E (artic) and now I can tow a trailer behind most things!! I have sat a theory test for Motorbike, Car, Truck and also a practical test for motorbike, car, car towing, LGV, HGV !!! Its a bit of a joke.!

Im sure that LR Special Vehicles tune the TDCi as I had a 130 cherry picker at work which was faster than a 110 TDCi and bang on 3500kg. Transits are available in all different power variants and im sure its a chip/ecu/boost mod ???

stick with 3.9 and go for turbo or supercharger ?? bigger displacement = thin cyl walls ????

seen a renault 5 in france towing a caravan!! :unsure:

lol that will be a no then.... doh!

Does the axle have indespension units on it ? can these not be shimmed or washers applied to resolve the toe/camber ?? Just a thought as im sure the units are held in place by 4 bolts ??

Towing with a van/4x4 is more stable, vehicle weight and aerodynamics come into play?? I could tow my caravan at 55mph behind the Mitsubishi Lancer before it got messy, but it would sit happy at 65-70 behind the Transit.

Grandfather rights are "closed" which means existing licence holders can retain and use them however, if you loose your licence and have to re-sit your test you revert to current standard and have to sit towing tests, C1, C1+E etc... Its all about MAM, you can tow a large or braked trailer without a B+E as long as the added MAM car and trailer does not exceed 3500kg. If the vehicle has a MAM of 3500kg then the maximum permissible train weight is 4250kg otherwise B+E applies. Using the escort with a MAM of 1800kg and a trailer of MAM 1500kg, the trailer un-laiden is going to be less than the car weight, and the trailer loaded is going to be less than the weight of the car. Generally a normal family car and a standard 2-4 berth caravan does not require B+E. All this is from the DVLA website;

I like it a lot, very clean. The only thing I would do differently is EFI the engine for drive-ability and fuel consumption. But thats just because I hate tuning carbs, stripping carbs and less to go wrong.! I like the interior too

you are paying for the lithium polymer batteries thats the majority cost of the device!

Lithium Polymer are wide used in all sorts of applications but they tend to be in MP3 players or Iphones or devices with very small current draw. They do not like maximum current draw for long durations so im surprised that they chose this type of battery for this use. An A123 pack or Li-Ion would be much better. A123; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcvmvrmTMMk

I use high discharge lithium polymer or lipo batteries in radio controlled applications and I would avoid for this type of application. There is another system out there that adopts the a123 battery and this is more suited to high discharge and re-charge. Lipo batteries tend to explode and puff up if over discharged and recharged.

how are you progressing with the lovely weather we have been having ? I remember seeing a series 2b restoration where the guy used a cummins 6bt. I think he was called lefrog or something similar. It made me want one! I would love to do a modern take on the FC with coil suspension etc but that will have to wait until I have space to do so!

Just reading this thread and although I have passed a towing test its not needed for all caravans. B+E is when the train weight exceeds 4250kg with a vehicle of MAM 3500kg. This is where people need to read the DVLA website because; A Ford Escort with a MAM of 1800kg can could tow a trailer/caravan of 1500kg (if manufacturer book states) giving a train weight of 3300kg which does not require the B+E entitlement. A defender 90 has a MAM of 2400kg so a trailer of 1100kg could be pulled with no B+E entitlement. A defender 110 has a MAM of 3050KG so a trailer of 750kg could be bulled with no B+E entitlement.