DF1 Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 I have a '06 110 commercial. I use it mainly for commuting to and from work. Therefore off-road handling is not my primar concern. I find the suspension very hard and have tried various different seats etc. Just wondering if I could fit a set of lighter coil springs or something to soften the ride. Getting to the stage where i am considering changing it but dont really want to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishbosh Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 I suspect you are not carrying any load in the truck? You might want to try some softer rear springs, but be aware that will lead to worse road handling and more body roll. Take a look in the tech archive - there is a wealth of springs info in there. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdF Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 Hi, I find the springs in standard 90's much too hard and I put softer springs in the front and back of mine (and on my last 90). I used this spring chart where you can find the spring lengths and ratings fitted as standard and maybe some alternatives. http://members.shaw.ca/jbarge/springinfo.html Kindly supplied by a forum contributor. I found the ride much improved, but although the spring heights given in the chart may seem okay and comparable to standard, I found that the ride height of the vehicle can be affected. I had a thread about springs going on here some months ago and got some strange ideas being aired, for instance, one guy thought my 90 would 'throw itself off the road' with softer springs. There also seems to be a widely held opinion that 90's and 110's need heavy duty springs fitting, which I've never been able to comprehend, but if you look at the chart carefully you'll find they already have heavier duty springs compared to, say, a Disco. The Disco heavy duty springs are what is fitted as standard to a 90, and a Disco weighs another 400Kg! Disco's have softer springs than a 90 and weigh more and you don't see many of them in ditches. I think I put Rangie Classic springs on the front and Disco rears on the back.. The front is 'just right' as far as comfort is concerned, the standard springs were bone-jarringly hard, but it does ride a bit higher at the front now, and you'd think it wouldn't! Also, the Disco springs were better on the back, but perhaps too soft with a load carried and it rode lower, and as I started towing a trailer with a very heavy noseweight, I put the standard springs back on the rear. So, I don't think they were ideal for ride height and I would have changed them for something else. I can't tell you which to put on as a 110 is different to a 90 but yes, I think it's worthwhile if you can figure out which ones to use, and as the man said, it depends what you carry in the back. Paddocks are your best source (IMHO) and some are so cheap if you get it wrong it won't break the bank. Changing the back springs takes about a half hour a side, the fronts take longer.. (To change the back springs I carefully support the chassis on axle stands, remove both rear wheels, both shock absorber top bolts and drop the axle one side after another, don't usually need spring compressors.) I've changed shock absorbers before, but on a previous 90 Koni adjustables made so little difference (on soft setting) I leave the standard cheap an' nasty ones on these days. I haven't noticed any difference at all in body roll. Perhaps if cornering at 90mph, I would, but I don't... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 I have a '06 110 commercial.I use it mainly for commuting to and from work. Therefore off-road handling is not my primar concern. I find the suspension very hard and have tried various different seats etc. Just wondering if I could fit a set of lighter coil springs or something to soften the ride. Getting to the stage where i am considering changing it but dont really want to. What tyre pressures are you running ? They make a big difference to 110's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DF1 Posted August 3, 2008 Author Share Posted August 3, 2008 What tyre pressures are you running ? They make a big difference to 110's. I just had a check and the front is at 30 psi and the back at around 45 psi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 It probably wouldn't be wise for high speed road work (speed limits here are low) but I run my 110's tyres at about 22 front 25 rear most of the time ... largely because of comfort! I think you could safely drop them a bit from what you are using though, and a few psi out of the tyres makes a huge difference (as does the type of tyres fitted - some are much harder ride than others - what have you got?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DF1 Posted August 3, 2008 Author Share Posted August 3, 2008 It probably wouldn't be wise for high speed road work (speed limits here are low) but I run my 110's tyres at about 22 front 25 rear most of the time ... largely because of comfort! I think you could safely drop them a bit from what you are using though, and a few psi out of the tyres makes a huge difference (as does the type of tyres fitted - some are much harder ride than others - what have you got?) The tyres fitted are general grabbers, 235/80 x 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmgemini Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 On my SW i run my pressures at 30 front 36 rear fully laden. mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JST Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 try the rears on 30/32 for starters see if that helps or load some cement into the back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveG Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 I had a thread about springs going on here some months ago and got some strange ideas being aired, for instance, one guy thought my 90 would 'throw itself off the road' with softer springs. As EdF was referring to my posts, I'll add the same comment again. Be very careful putting softer springs on a Defender if it doesn't have anti roll bars and has shock absorbers on the soft side of damping, such as standard LR ones for example. IIRC EdF's Defender has front and rear arb's. Giving refernces to heavier RR's and Discoveries is not really relevant as both of these vehicles left the factory with arb's front and rear or ACE on Disco II. Not all Defenders have arb's as standard. By the way I run standard LR springs, OME N73 shocks all round so it's me not advocating Heavy Duty springs. Cheers Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treebloke Posted August 3, 2008 Share Posted August 3, 2008 or load some cement into the back! No No No, you should use logs then if you break down or get stuck you can light a fire to send smoke signals, keep warm and make a cuppa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DF1 Posted August 4, 2008 Author Share Posted August 4, 2008 As EdF was referring to my posts, I'll add the same comment again. Be very careful putting softer springs on a Defender if it doesn't have anti roll bars and has shock absorbers on the soft side of damping, such as standard LR ones for example. IIRC EdF's Defender has front and rear arb's.Giving refernces to heavier RR's and Discoveries is not really relevant as both of these vehicles left the factory with arb's front and rear or ACE on Disco II. Not all Defenders have arb's as standard. By the way I run standard LR springs, OME N73 shocks all round so it's me not advocating Heavy Duty springs. Cheers Steve Just had a look, no anti-roll bars fitted. Why on earth are they fitted to some and not others ? Suppose that rules out lighter springs ? Few bags of cement it is so !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DF1 Posted August 4, 2008 Author Share Posted August 4, 2008 Can arb's be retro fitted ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveG Posted August 4, 2008 Share Posted August 4, 2008 Can arb's be retro fitted ? Yes easily, the mounts are there on all late Defenders. They can be bought on ebay, from breakers or you can easily source new from likes of paddocks etc. Make sure you get the correct ones for a TD5 as the rear mounts are different due to the rear fuel tank. If you use your 110 mostly on road and don't need maximum articulation off, anti roll bars are a good mod to fit. Cheers Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DF1 Posted August 10, 2008 Author Share Posted August 10, 2008 On my SW i run my pressures at 30 front 36 rear fully laden.mike I've adjusted pressure to 32 on rear. Makes a big difference. Just a query, can i do any harmto tyres at this pressure ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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