Unimog 404 Portals

[bmhor]

Does anyone know whether 404 axles can be fitted to a 90 or will be wasting my time?

Bob

[pugwash]

yes they certainly can

i'm not the person to offer advice though- dirtydiesel, moglite, bill van snorkle etc etc etc are the lads to ask.

what sort of thing did you want to know?

[bill van snorkle]

Does anyone know whether 404 axles can be fitted to a 90 or will be wasting my time?

Bob

Whether or not the exercise will be a waste of time depends on what you want to do with the vehicle.if you want to transform your 90 into a tractor then Mog axle assemblies may be worth fitting. If all other things remain the same as before, re engine/gearbox/transfercase/ tyre diameters etc, the Unimog axles will cut your road speed and cruising speed in half. They have plenty of reserve strength to permit much larger tyres to be fitted to compensate a little for the reduced road speed, but to get it all back you would need to run something like 65'' diameter tyres which would be ridiculous.

To do a proper job of fitting a Mog front axle into a 90 you should really have the axle cut and shut to move the differential over to the right handside. This expense in addition to the cost of a pinion conversion would probably be considerable in the UK. the Mog pinion is still pretty long and may require slight engine/transmission relocation to provide working clearance. Some US Mog axle users have reported portal hub overheating when cruising on the highway. Apparently a di$c brake conver$ion alleviates this problem. In summary if you want your 90 to remain a versatile all rounder, suitable for daily use with the ability to do the occasional long distance run, but still want the grounclearance and strength that portals offer, then I'd suggest you track down a set of 5.99:1 Volvo C303 portal axles. They have the appearance of being almost designed for a LandRover, are easy to fit, much lighter in weight, and due to the use of straight cut gears in the drop boxes don't generate excess heat over long distances in hot climates.

Bill.

[pugwash]

Bill, you can alleviate gearing issues by using 40" tyres, and a 1:1 t-box from a three speed auto RaRo mated to a four or 5 sped box. You end up with 8 completely seperate gears- low first is equal to a 90 with a luw UNDERDRIVE second, and high fourth is half way between a range rover high 3 and range rover high 4 (on an auto). So you needn't kill your gearing as long as you do some thinking about it.

Mog pinions are a bloody pain in the arse though!

[edited to say- I know you said gering was an issue if everything else stayed teh same, but if you are going to the trouble of portals then changing a t-box is tiddle easy and 1:1 t-box can be had for £10-£40, i now have three as i'm collecting them]

[bmhor]

Bill, you can alleviate gearing issues by using 40" tyres, and a 1:1 t-box from a three speed auto RaRo mated to a four or 5 sped box. You end up with 8 completely seperate gears- low first is equal to a 90 with a luw UNDERDRIVE second, and high fourth is half way between a range rover high 3 and range rover high 4 (on an auto). So you needn't kill your gearing as long as you do some thinking about it.

Mog pinions are a bloody pain in the arse though!

Thanks for the info guys. I'd been offered a set but I think I'll let them pass.

Anyone got a set of 303 axles lying about?

Bob

[bill van snorkle]

Bill, you can alleviate gearing issues by using 40" tyres, and a 1:1 t-box from a three speed auto RaRo mated to a four or 5 sped box. You end up with 8 completely seperate gears- low first is equal to a 90 with a luw UNDERDRIVE second, and high fourth is half way between a range rover high 3 and range rover high 4 (on an auto). So you needn't kill your gearing as long as you do some thinking about it.

Mog pinions are a bloody pain in the arse though!

[edited to say- I know you said gering was an issue if everything else stayed teh same, but if you are going to the trouble of portals then changing a t-box is tiddle easy and 1:1 t-box can be had for £10-£40, i now have three as i'm collecting them]

Yes of course you are correct Jim. 90's are like rocking horse poo over here and I wrongly assumed because of their lighter weight and smaller standard tyre fitment than 110's, that they would have the higher t/case ratios as standard. I still think the mogs wrong hand front diff offset and pinion length issues alone are enough to discourage all but the most dedicated enthusiasts from considering them, particularly when Volvos are available and so suitable for the job.

Bill

[pugwash]

having gone down the Mog route, next time i would go down the 303 route! This is purely based on the fitment to the vehicle that i am trying to build and not from a strength, price or any other sort of question mark.

I still beleive mogs have some advantages over volvos though.

Ideally you go an dtalk to portal tech, but i don't think there are that many people in the UK wiling to spend quite that amount of money on a set of axles!

[Br00n1e]

Bill, you can alleviate gearing issues by using 40" tyres, and a 1:1 t-box from a three speed auto RaRo mated to a four or 5 sped box. You end up with 8 completely seperate gears- low first is equal to a 90 with a luw UNDERDRIVE second, and high fourth is half way between a range rover high 3 and range rover high 4 (on an auto). So you needn't kill your gearing as long as you do some thinking about it.

Mog pinions are a bloody pain in the arse though!

[edited to say- I know you said gering was an issue if everything else stayed teh same, but if you are going to the trouble of portals then changing a t-box is tiddle easy and 1:1 t-box can be had for £10-£40, i now have three as i'm collecting them]

Jez had a set for sale dunno if he still has them, you will to wait for his and the HOFS teams triumphant return fae Russia tho'

[CosZuki]

yep, Jez (aka Dollythelwt) has got a pair for sale