champlo Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 First of all id like to say Hello to everyone, I'm a new owner of a 110 2010... I got the car used with low mileage on it and in good condition, the car has something with the steering like when moving the steering left and right it has an empty area when going straight,,, i drove it on the road and when i was over 100kph ( and even on 80kph) i noticed the car was very unstable and any small change in the road would make it swerve, to the point where it swerved hard that it went out the lane and somehow it adjusted when i tried thankfully... any ideas where i should start to fix this problem? I'm worried that the car has a problem with it..as i don't think defenders could be that unstable on road. excuse my ignorance as this is my first defender.. thanks in advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eds Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Check for play in the steering ball joint drop arm and the track rod ends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elbekko Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Also check the steering shaft splines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daan Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 sounds like panhard rod bushes to me. Daan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Panhard bushes or loose drop arm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Another vote for panhard bushes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champlo Posted December 4, 2014 Author Share Posted December 4, 2014 will check for these and update back... thank you all for the info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Did you not test drive it ? Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelw Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Did you buy privately or through a dealer? at 4yrs old in any country it should have had it's first safety test by now? So question is, when was the last inspection? Is there any warranty on the vehicle? Out of curiosity, how many Defenders did you test drive before you settled for, and bought this one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidat19 Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Loose steering box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ejparrott Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 Well the first think is to stop using it! It obviously isn't safe. You need to give it a very thorough going over from top to bottom. For the sake of consistency, I would start by checking the steering wheel is on properly, even that it's the right one, then move down the steering shaft to check the UJ's and splines, then check the steering box is still bolted up tight and check it's adjustment, follow the steering rods down and make sure the TRE's are good, then check the swivels are all tight. Move to the suspension items then and check all the bushes on all the components front and rear. If you find something amiss, fix it and move on until you've covered them all. I'd put money on it being Panhard rod bushes, but by the sounds of it you need to check everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snagger Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 I had similar issues on my RRC. Replacing the tired bushes on most of the suspension helped a bit, but the main problem was tracking adjustment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mad_pete Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 I had some tired bushes and it was like the steering wheel wasn't really connected to the wheels. Not recommended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champlo Posted December 6, 2014 Author Share Posted December 6, 2014 i test drove it and it was fine and i didn't notice it as the road was much better and wasn't going that fast with it for while , i bought it direct from seller so not a dealer and no warranty…the car has been parked for over a year, last inspection on it was 1 yr and half and report was completely fine..it just had old tires 7.5 in front and 235 in back so i thought that was a big cause but now i realize is bigger than this... yes i stopped driving it till i fix the problem, will have to lift it and go through all these stated.. I had similar issues on my RRC. Replacing the tired bushes on most of the suspension helped a bit, but the main problem was tracking adjustment. how would i go about dealing with the track adjustment, this sounds like it could be the problem for me as well…. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigelw Posted December 6, 2014 Share Posted December 6, 2014 Tracking adjustment is done by a tyre specialist, you could try the string thing but if you are unfamilliar with it then just go to the tyre center. Which country are you in? I only know of Germany where the TUV is bi-annual? An odd thing there, a 4ry old car on dissimilar tyres? unless you are familiar with the in's and out's of the truck then go to a well known and reputable specialist, failing that, put it in for a new safety test and see what they come back with. Dare I say that I don't like the sounds of this problem, a 2010MY, parked up for a year, 18mnths since last safety inspection, dissimilar tyres on a still very new car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted December 6, 2014 Share Posted December 6, 2014 7.50's on the front and 235's on the back ? even if they are all radial ply it would still have an effect on handling , and if they are mixed construction then you are probably lucky to not have had a major off are the wheels all the same ? mixing offset's side to side is not good either . Sort the tyres out first . As for checks , I'd start with kingpin slack and/or ineffective steering damper , but really on a 4 yr old road used Defender none of these mechanical things should have failed . cheers Steveb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champlo Posted December 7, 2014 Author Share Posted December 7, 2014 Im in Egypt, the car was for a safari company, they got 3 cars and didn't really end up using it as much as they thought they would, so i got to pick one and this was the finest of them, or at least it seemed to be.. so you think it all could be mainly from the dissimilar tires? i will do a whole check again and replace they tires and go from there..when i checked the car the specialist told me the car is in good condition apart from being parked for a while. hopefully i can get it to be proper and get to enjoy it since I've been constantly worried every time i drive it.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanT90 Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 I had similar issue when I got mine the pan hard had been replaced and one of the track rods. Only when I did a close inspection from the front I noticed the wheel alignment was out obviously not corrected when the track rod was done. Tracking cost me £7 at local garage best £7 I ever spent not worth getting my hands dirty for that price. Steering was much improved doesn't wander anymore. However I have got some wheel bearing wear on near side could even be top swivel housing pin which is giving me some play in the wheel. Aa I plan to fit a new swivel housing seal etc in new year all that will ger sorted. I would get tracking checked first and then jack up the front and check for play in both wheels. That will give you some idea where the play is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tacr2man Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 tyres can make a defender almost undriveable , eg 7 50 r16 michelins , and 265 BFG MT at different ends . JMHE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RustyNissanPrairie Posted December 7, 2014 Share Posted December 7, 2014 7 50 and 235's have a different rolling radius - your transfer box wont be happy. All 4 tires (including the spare) should be the same size on a permanent 4x4 vehicle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champlo Posted December 8, 2014 Author Share Posted December 8, 2014 ^ yes i understand this, but i got it like that, and I didnt want to fit the new wheels and tires till i checked the other stuff first..it didn't cross my mind that the tires could be the major problem with this swerving Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 Had another thought? What state are the rear trailing arm chassis bushes? I had some stability issues that went away after a knackered bush was replaced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve b Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 Of course check all the trackrod's /susp. bushes/kingpin's/rear axle balljoint and all the nut's and bolts that hole these parts together and the tracking too - I'd do all this regardless of any problem's or not with a new to me vehicle . A good set of matching tyres will still be needed after this imho for predictable , safe handling. Keep us updated as you get on , it will be interesting to hear how the investigations go cheers Steveb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tacr2man Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 7 50 and 235's have a different rolling radius - your transfer box wont be happy. All 4 tires (including the spare) should be the same size on a permanent 4x4 vehicle. Depends what type of permanent 4wd , even then you are only talking about 6mm in rolling circumference , which you could get from a new and worn version of same size , from a driving point of view carcass construction , and ply rating are more of a factor , in respect of handling . HTSH if you want a almost exact match for 750 r 16 then 265/75 r16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champlo Posted December 9, 2014 Author Share Posted December 9, 2014 specialist checked all and said all was fine except the ball joints that need to be replaced, and 60% of problem is tires... so im working on these and waiting to see... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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