backball

Has anyone tried this on an 88' or 109' and has pictures? As I'm about to embark on my axle swap for my 88' I may want to consider this

Was looking for info on parabolics and found this thread. What caught my attention was the stabiliser. Eventhough it's not a Land Rover it seems interesting as a concept as I'd assume it helps in increasing traction on the elevated wheel in an offroad situation. http://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wagons/1...ic-springs.html Is this the intended use for this and could this be applied for Series vehicles?

Is the addition of track the same for Disco 1 axles, RR classic axles and Defender 90/110 axles; i.e. about 6 inches? Also are the track rods connecting the two wheels in front for all three types of axles? Asking as there seem to be significant challenges with track rod clearance on leavers... cheers

interesting, the PM didn't arrive anyway txs I shall watch out for the pix; I'm sure there are a ton of other members keen ...

I'm looking for pictures for a truck cab extension conceptually like Les Brook's. Unfortunately the pictures of his thread (http://forums.lr4x4.com/index.php?showtopic=7006) seem to be gone and unfortunately I can't get any response on what happened. I want to reuse my existing bulkhead but inverted (i.e. the angled area will slant backwards as opposed to forward as in the standard position). As there's also some work involve on the tub my mechanic can't really picture this and hence I'd like to pass him some pictures as guide. Any hints? thanks

Did you get any response from CPC? Also what's this concept of revolver? RPR also mentions this on his Tonk? Is this essentially a dislocating mechanism much like on coilers to extend articulation? Afternote: I guess I just an answer to my first question... a revolver is an extended "shackle" with a moving link in between from what I see which brings me to another question. Wouldn't body roll not be prohibitive on road unless the revolver is firmly locked onroad?

So you're saying that going for a Series look I could use a standard 90 rear tub to fit the extra 4 or so inches? I still would retain the Series bulkhead and all the rest of the front (bonnet, rad grille, wings). Hardtop's not a problem as I'm running c truck cab. Of all the good advise so far I haven't heard yet whether the mounting points for the bulkhead and other key mounts are the same for the two chassis (except the wheelbase). I found a 90 chassis diagram but didn't find an 88'.

Do you have any chassis dimensions/diagrams? I thought not only is there a diff in wheelbase? 88 vs 92.9 but also a longer overhang at the back (as per the comments from yellow). I haven't gotten the D90 (from scrap yard) so it's not a case of having two fully working vehicles and chopping them apart. The end result will have to have character (hence retaining the Series look). The question of path is not necessarily one driven by sanity only but also ease of achievement. Don't we all love our Land Rovers as this gives us "an excuse" to spend our time ? If I have a different wheelbase not only would I assume there's (significant) body work but also mechanical changes like drive train changes, prop shaft... I've read various posts about going the RR route as a base vehicle but never saw the Defender route to-date. So if you put yourself in a situation where the cost is not a deciding factor between RR (100') and D90 base would you still go the RR route?

I might have the option of getting my hands on a D90 military spec. I'm playing with the idea of giving my 88' SIIa a mechanical "facelift". For this I'd get a "rolling D90 chassis" based on above D90 with the following components: - chassis - axles (discs all around) - suspension - power steering - engine (provided it's a 2.5L petrol) - (brake servo) And build a hybrid around this as follows: - cut chassis to 88' dimensions - (existing) SIIa front bulkhead - (existing) gearbox and drive train - (existing) SIIa bonnet, wings and radiator panel - (existing) SIIa rear tub I don't have chassis dimensions of both a D90 and 88' to compare but like to believe the D90 chassis could be cut so that the various holding/mounting points would be the same for the above existing components to be mounted on. Figure there would be two cuts: one after the front cross member and the second to shorten the "overhang" at the end. Anyone done this before? Comments? Pitfalls?

muddy - would you mind showing those photos of the supercharged S1?

You're right a number of people do that given trucks are much cheaper in Malaysia and real offroading takes place only in Malaysia. We do go offroad in Malaysia and have good friends up there (Johor 4WD club, LROM). I haven't take the 2.5 route into account but have written to ACR to understand the power/torque of a built up 2.5 engine. As this is a long term project I carefully evaluate the options.

The ACR 2.8 is built from either a 2.2 5MB or 2.5 5MB Land Rover engine. In fact you can upgrade a 2.2 engine to 2.5 by changing the crankshaft and conrods.

Bill, you can't import anything older than 3 years here - unless it's in component form (if I recall correctly) in which case it has to be to used for the same type model... another dead end. I'll still try the route of approval via certification from Land Rover when I get the time if I can get the local Land Rover agent (since Land Rover global dooesn't seem to be interested in this) to provide this. The actual engine could come from Malaysia as there's a sizable Land Rover population

Phil, good point. In fact that was my first option. When I looked at the cost involved I thought this kind of money buys me a V8 which has more upgrade potential than ACR's 2.8p. I still might come back to this if the V8 route proves too hard to climb

that's a good one...

Things are expensive in Singapore. You even have to get a license from the government to buy a car. A license can be anywhere between S$5000 to S$30,000 (many years back - although this is not likely to occur in the near future anymore). Add to that the cost of the rig itself. After carefully considering my options I'll eventually make a move - and selling the trusted SIIa is not on the list - at least for now. We had many exciting trips in south east asia on this rig... something most of you can surely relate to. Back to the topic, I'll try to write in to the local authority and let you know the outcome... thanks anyway for the various ideas and views Bill - there's a small second hand Defender market here - you pay anywhere between US$25k to US$40k. Can't remember having seen any classic RR here

As indicated in earlier posts I'm considering a conversion to a V8 for my SIIa 88'. The local transport authority needs a formal certification from the manufacturer (i.e. Land Rover) that fitting this engine is ok and the rest of the rig is built for it. I would state a conversion to a stage 1 V8 as this is relatilvely mild at 90hp (compared to the 70 odd of the 2.2L petrol). Has anyone done this before and if yes, how/where did you contact Land Rover? What cost are involved? Also I heard before that you can request formal production data of your own rig if you supply engine no./chassis no. to Land Rover cheers

very nice job... especially the steering damper. Also the issues discussed earlier with track rod clearance can be controlled by the height of spring mounting saddles althrough there's a trade-off to ground clearance as outlined by Bill. Could you reuse the original U-bolts or are they custom? I figure these are classic RR axles, right?

Well, I see myself as a Land Rover owner who likes to go off the beaten track (like many of us I'd like to believe). It's a hobby and part of it is looking for alternatives to improve my rig and have fun along the way - and exchanging my trusted Series for a Defender is not part of that script - However, I appreciate every bit of info from the community as this will certainly enhance the final outcome...

Thanks for the clarification. So does this mean I could reuse my current diff? If I stay with the disco diff then my offroad-ability would be compromised given the lower ratio, right? Onroad driving might also be a problem as the engine revs lower at the same speeds. Is my understanding correct?

I'm considering Disco 1 axles for my 1962 SIIa 88' petrol for mainly two reasons: 1. give it that extra few inches of track 2. disc brakes; I love that feeling on drum brakes after a decent river crossing I know you probably could achieve both through other means (e.g. wheel spacers, disc brake conversion kit) and some might argue cheaper means but this shall not be the topic here as it really depends on how cheap I can get second hand axles. My key concern/question is the change in overall gear ratio (if any). I want to keep my current gearbox and transfer case (if it ain't broken don't change it). Would disco 1 axles change the ratio assuming I'm on an original gearbox and transfer case? btw, on a side note how can I tell whether I still got the original gear box/transfer case? First and second gears are not synchronised thanks

I read somewhere that the SIII Stage I V8 had the front cross member moved to fit the V8. Was this because the Range Rover gearbox was fitted to the Stage I V8 and hence if you stay with an original SIII or SII gearbox this is not required? You mention some bulkhead work. How significant is this? Are there any pictures to outline this? Lastly the Stage 1 V8 had a flush front grill while I've seen "original looking" conversions like the Tonka. Do standard conversion kits require a flush front grill?

thanks guys for the useful tips... My current thinking is that I leave the window rear section in place but move it back accordingly. To re-use the bulkhead by just inverting it (as per Les Brock's rig) is an interesting idea as it let's you reuse otherwise wasted material and also gives you that much needed add'l space for seats etc. This takes care of the rear section which leaves me with roof and side extension. I kind of like the idea of a mold although this might not be required as I probably seperate the roof where the door currently ends. This would give me an opportunity to create a one piece "inverted U-shape" extension which either holds windows on the sides or is plain. Do you have any issues using rivets on a roof? I'd assume sealing it would be quite an issue. Another idea spinning in my head is to use acrylic plastic for much of the roof which can be removed via a simple mechanism as I like the idea of an "open" rig. Don't know whether this could even be molded? mudplugger - interesting description, do you already have some pictures of your setup?

I've seen various pictures of D90s with extended cab tops much like a double cab or crew cab. This nicely extends the cab freeing up space for other stuff while still leaving a good area open. Do any of you know how this is done? If it's a standard D90 cab top you'd have to extend the roof and relocate the rear windows with some additional panels between the doors and the original window frame. Or do these conversions use tops from other models like 110s/130s? Any hint appreciated. cheers

Guys apologies for the double post... was quite late when I posted this yesterday so please just ignore it (eventough I don't really have a solution yet) ... wasn't intended