[1,200 miles non-stop?]

Thanks for the replies, it'll be a long 2 days - now where did I put those I-spy books??

[1,200 miles non-stop?]

Bit of a general mechanical question.

Got a 1,200 mile journey to do in a short space of time. 2 people driving in shifts, good sleeping seat, 300 litres fuel capacity so other than an occaisional toilet break and leg stretch there's no obviously reason to stop.

But what's best for the truck mechanically ? My guess is continual running and a low-stress driving style is the best way to go, but is that really the case? Does an engine need rest? Any thoughts?

(2.8 international engined def 110 with 700kg trailer.)

[Sankey towing speeds]

If you are only concerned with stability and safety of the trailer, then loading it will be critical to ensure it behaves itself. I frequently towed a Sankey radio trailer, and getting it loaded correctly was very awkward. On one occasion it went badly wrong, and within a few seconmds the trailer was hopping from one wheel to the other, and I was lucky it didn't flip. The running gear should be tough enough as they were built for military use - wheel bearings etc are similar to series items. The radio trailer has Series 2 outer bearings, 750/16 tyres, and assisted brakes.

Les.

Thanks for this Les, I imagine it's a case of getting the load even, low and over the axle?

[Sankey towing speeds]

Cheers anyway,

For now and for calculations, I guess I'll assume a Sankey+400kg doesn't come apart over 55mph and is capable of safely cruising at 60-65mph when conditions allow.

[beefing up salisbury axles]

Thanks once more Will.

Good to hear that the gearbox gave plenty of warning before it expired! RE: front diff – I guess I'll just have to check with the bank.

RE: the gearbox temperature, I'm tempted to remove my (solid) steering guard, as I suspect this impedes the cooling. Otherwise it's a case of taking things easy, until I can afford that £5,999 box.

John, as Bushy said, ARBs are 4 pin so no problems there. IMHO, you should be fine without pegging as most R&P failiers seem to occur due to poor lubrication, excess wear on either the gears or in the pinion bearings or poor diff assembly. IMHO you shouldn't have issues on the axle front with that setup.

On the gearbox front, just keep the oil changes regular and keep an eye on it. You may well get a couple of years of good service from it. Mine never actually died it just got VERY noisey, sloppy, grindy and difficult to change gear with. I was, franky, astonished how long it lasted when it was, quite clearly, sha88ed!

Bobcat, this will open a can of worms I'm sure but I have never seen a propperly maintained CV in good condition break on a vehicle with standard shafts and an open diff - the shaft will always go first allowing you to creap home. I believe the same will be true for Ashcrofts CVs. I don't believe anyone will break the bell or star on these, all the off the shelf halfshafts will go first. Unless you get an uprated diff centre I really think it would be a good purchase to get uprated shafts or CVs. Surely, if the diffs new you could sell it and buy a 4 pin diff? IMHO it would be money well spent. On the R380, yes, Ashcrofts do a good build but you seem to sail very close to the wind using 2.8s infront of them. I'm not sure whether a cooler can be added to a non cooler box; you'd have to ask Ashcrofts. However, if you're going to tow heavily or use the vehicle in a high ambient temperature its a good idea to have a gearbox with a cooler.

[Sankey towing speeds]

evening,

without digging out the sankey manual, i think the military recommended a top speed of 45 mph, but thats not to say you cant tow one at the legal towing speed limit of the country you are in.

towing isnt about how fast you can go, more, what happens if you need to brake quickly, road surfaces,side winds,load stability etc, safety should be paramount, for yourself, and other road users.

cheers...

Thanks, but I'm still trying to work out what that safe speed is likely to be in order to schedule my journey. You're right about the recommended speed, however the idea of crawling along at 45mph when normally I would do 75mph is a little daunting!!

Just for the sake of theory, assuming the conditions were good to drive at 80mph (trailer-free) how fast could you safely tow a Sankey in the same situation?

thanks in advance

[Sankey towing speeds]

The max speed for towing in the UK is 60mph, unless the road has a lower limit, then that applies.

Ooops, should probably blow the dust of my highway code leaflet.

How about in a less regulated environment? Say 3,000 miles of straight desert road without speed cameras?

I've got a long way to go, so 5mph here and there is going to make a big difference.

[Sankey towing speeds]

Hi,

I'm planning on aquiring a 3/4T. Sankey Wolf trailer to tow behind my Defender (tdi/tgv).

Being new to towing I'm wondering what kind of (safe) cruising speeds can be managed on good tarmac roads. (It'll be carrying about 400kg).

Cheers

[beefing up salisbury axles]

Will, many thanks for this.

See your point on the front internals, although I'm still tempted to go with the new CV's/Half shafts at the front, partly because the existing ones have had a hard life, but also because a broken CV will leave me with an undrivable vehicle, whereas a broken diff will mean I can pull out the shafts and creep out in 2WD. (Someone please tell me if this is bad logic!).

Also, I'm loathe to replace a brand new diff without at least getting a trip out of it !

Had a chat with MD Eng. about their 242mm HD clutch (they're no longer doing the 250mm) , but at £370 for the kit it's a little painful on the wallet. A 130 clutch is under £100 – do you think the difference is worth it?

Your experience with the R380 is worrying me. Mine is an Ashcroft, with I seem to remember, "bigger bearings", what that means in practice I'm not sure. Would it be worth adding a cooler?

Rick -- Uprated back axle shafts are on the wishlist for next time, the Maxi drives look good, in the meantime I'll have to grab some new OE's to hit my deadlines.

Oiled bearings - sounds like a good option, is it really as simple as leaving out the seal? Anything else to consider?

Diesel Jim - does it come with chassi, engine, stereo etc.?

John - will PM

[beefing up salisbury axles]

Just running 265/75 bfg's no tractor wheels!

I'm looking at a set of HD CV's, halfshafts and drive members from Ashcroft for the front. I'm guessing these will hold up well.

The front diff is standard Rover, but only a few hundred miles old. Transfer box is recon (20k old). R380 is 40k old (from new).

I was thinking these last 3 components would hold! But reading Will's post I'm less sure...

Seems like there's a good argument for driving the TGV with a gentle right foot...

In terms of use: long motorway miles towing medium weights and then deep Saharan touring - think: soft sand, rocky tracks and extremely isolated locations.

Reliability is crucial, so I want to get this right, (but without breaking the bank). It sounds like a set of new stock shafts and members might be adequate for the Salisbury - although the Dana conversion would be nice!

Any other areas of drive chain concern? other things to think about or check?

[beefing up salisbury axles]

Call Dave at Ashcrofts, I spoke to him last week and he mentioned the HD Salisbury option, I did not ask him when they would be available but the inference from him was soon.

Rover HD's do not fit Salisbury's.

John

Thanks John, spoke to Dave and it's another couple of months before those HD shafts are likely to arrive. Looks like I'll be going with stock

Does anyone know of any rear prop options?

[beefing up salisbury axles]

I have a 130 clutch on order.

Still can't seem to find any HD halfshafts for the Salisbury... do they exist? Unless Ashcroft are putting something on the market this month, I'll have to keep looking.

Do the HD drive members for the rover axles fit the salisbury?

The other area I was thinking about was the propshaft - does anyone produce a beefed prop that would fit?

[beefing up salisbury axles]

Hi, I have a '96 110 (HD) with the salisbury rear axle. As it's done 150k and the vehicle is about to be fitted with a torquey 2.8 TGV, I'm looking to overhaul the axle and beef up the drive chain.

My first thoughts are drive members and halfshafts - what aftermarket options are available and recommended?

[weird electrical problem 300tdi]

Bad earths will often lead to starting problems, slow cranking etc. I had this for about two years on my old Discovery (very slow cranking, but always started so I never looked at it...) and then one day while looking at something else, I found one of the main earths broken off once fixed, normal service was resumed

I've actually got a lot of minor electrical glitches that seem to come and go. I'm wondering where else should I look for bad earths - which are the important ones?

[weird electrical problem 300tdi]

Sure is takin' a long time to see if the battery is flat

Sorry, had another problem, this time with BTbroadband! Thanks for the replies.

Cleaned the contacts on the relay which stopped it buzzing away as soon as the key turned - and then realised that yes, the battery was low (doh...).

Checked the earth strap, and that had come away from the chassi connection (still bolted to the gearbox though) so maybe that was compounding the problem?

[weird electrical problem 300tdi]

Hi, my defender won't start.

I turn the key and there is a 'buzzing' sound coming from behind the dash. Opening the bonnet the relay (?) screwed to the bulkead a few inches below the windscreen vibrates away, the dash lights flicker and nothing happens!!

Any ideas?