Aragorn Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 Having been out in the disco a few times i think it really could be doing with some new shocks. I have a set of Bilstein yellow rear dampers in the garage which i was considering throwing on, then finding something similar for the front. I'm worried that they'll be TOO stiff though. With the dampers on the floor its very hard to compress them (like all my bodyweight required), and i'm just wondering if this is normal for landrover spec dampers, or if i should be able to compress them easily. If its normal then i'll get some new front ones and get them fitted! Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcwcooper Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 They will be hard to compress by hand dont forget they have to dampen 2 ton of landrover! Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iomlt Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 They will be a vast improvement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn Posted November 16, 2009 Author Share Posted November 16, 2009 Thats good to know! I guess i'm more accustomed to car dampers, which as you say are damping half the weight so are much easier to compress. They were fitted to the rear of my 90 when i baught it, but it made it handle really oddly becuase 90's are inherantly stiff at the rear anyway due to the spring rates and the two shiney stiff dampers were just too much for it since it was still on the standard soggy front springs and dampers. I'll find some new fronts and try and get them all fitted at some point. I also want to change the spring rates a bit on the Disco, its an early V8, so has super-soggy 133lb front springs and god knows what on the rear (its certainly not the usual disco progressive rate items!), and the missus doesnt like the wallowing! I've got a set of nearly new 90 front springs which i think should be a nice improvement, just need to select something suitable for the rear end. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobyone Posted November 16, 2009 Share Posted November 16, 2009 gubbed shock usually weep, or if they have no oil left they have staining on them. yes, standard ones are not nearly stiff enough for off roading. and new standard ones are not worth getting when a good set of old man emu's or something are begging to be fitted. by all means fit the 2 you have, but you will have a sloppy setup if the others you dont swap are also gubbed. besides you should look in the for sale section on here mate... loads of garage clearances and the like. richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn Posted November 16, 2009 Author Share Posted November 16, 2009 Aye i certainly wont be fitting just the rears, as i said the 90 was like that, and the combination of soggy fronts and a tight rear end just felt nasty. They're not weeping, but theyre probably 20 years old looking at the state of them, so they're undoubtedly gubbed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iomlt Posted November 16, 2009 Share Posted November 16, 2009 if you purchase new springs at the same time i think you will find the ride fairly stiff! if your happy with the ride right all round why not try just fitting the shocks? and then if your still not happy then buy springs.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aragorn Posted November 16, 2009 Author Share Posted November 16, 2009 I'm not happy with the ride, its a wallowy mess! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted November 16, 2009 Share Posted November 16, 2009 Gas shocks won't weep, so the easiest way to tell if they are ok is to try and compress them. Gas shocks come already compressed - with a length of wire to keep them in that position. You release the wire and shock expands fairly quickly. If oil shocks have been stored on their side or upside down, then the first few presses will seem weak until the oil is settled at the bottom. Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teabag Posted November 16, 2009 Share Posted November 16, 2009 We must not forget that "gas dampers" are oil, but with a pocket of gas, the damper technology involves keeping the oil under pressure, which prevents it from foaming when temperatures and loads are increasing. As a result, full damping power is retained even when the system is placed under extreme stress. Bilstein yellow dampers are heavy duty for fast on/off road driving, Bilstein also do a normal road bias gas damper(black). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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