Disco < 1993 front axle w ABS under series III <1980?

[xychix]

Hello All,

I've been offered a Disco <1993 front axle (10-splines) with disc brakes and ABS.

Is this any use for putting under a series III 109? or is there that much work involved that I'd better just start my restoration and think about these kind of odd projects lateron (or never)?

[FridgeFreezer]

It can be done, generically any thread about putting a coiler axle under a Series will give you some idea of the work involved - it's not a nuts & bolts job by any means, and you'd need a diff of matching gearing for the back axle, which on a Series 3 means finding a Salisbury diff & fitting it (not super-easy) or complete Salisbury axle & converting it, unless you find a Stage 1 V8 back axle which will bolt on.

[xychix]

thanks. In that case I'll leave the axle where it is. It will have a better life than in my back yard for the next 5+ years

[Gazzar]

Damn, now you got me thinking about retrofitting ABS to a series.

That's not good.

How difficult can it be with a stand alone ABS system? And could it be reprogrammed to have HDC and TC?

Told you it wasn't good.

[FridgeFreezer]

Gazzar - Some Freelanders have a very standalone ABS system, mine (early TD4) has pretty much the whole thing in one unit, that's ABS & HDC. Don't know what inputs it needs other than wheel sensors & HDC switch and maybe clutch up/down and "in gear" / "in 1st/reverse" switch, the RAVE manual may well give you all the clues you need. The units are about £100 2nd hand, but you really want to get the huge connector & as much length of wiring as possible to join to if you're hacking something about.

[Bowie69]

The RRC system is pretty much standalone as well... and very late RRC's had TC on the rear as well.

As above, you would probably find that Freelander stuff works similarly enough to connect it up to the RRC/Disco ABS axles.

[Gazzar]

Now don't go encouraging me!

It is tempting to have a 1969 LWB with HDC! I'll have to get the workshop finished soon.

Seriously, though, I think I'd need something close to the weight and wheelbase of the 109 so the system from a LSE would be ideal.

One day.

[Snagger]

Back to the original question, there is no point fitting a Discovery (same as RRC and for all intents and purposes D90) front axle unless you have a suitable rear axle to go with it - they are about 6" longer than Series axles, and it's not just going to look odd with different track front to rear, but could have some peculiar handling. At least being 10 spline, you can swap the Series diff straight in to keep the gearing normal.

I have a Discovery front axle and 110 Salisbury rear (converted to discs) with a complete Discovery 300Tdi non-ABS brake system, It works well, though there are some issues with the conversion. The rear axle is easy to modify and fit, but setting the saddle height and orientation to get the correct caster angle and track rod clearance makes the front axle much harder to set up.

Things to consider are that the reorientated diff axis puts the front UJ close to the engine mount, and will foul on heavy braking if you have a 12J/19J/Defender200Tdi engine and mount. It also sets up harmonic vibration at 55mph in the prop because the rear Uj is straight but the front fairly heavily deflected. I'm going to see if a vibration damper from a RRC helps (I have a spare), as double-cardan prop shafts cost about £200.

[FridgeFreezer]

Seriously, though, I think I'd need something close to the weight and wheelbase of the 109 so the system from a LSE would be ideal.

Freelander is 100" wheelbase, not a million miles off (and Series are lighter than coilers, probably half way between a RR@2t and a FL@1.5) and I don't see why the HDC would care overly much. I'd expect the FL system to work better as it has more R&D behind it than the LSE.

[Gazzar]

Probably better in a separate thread, but something I will pursue when closer to the build. Unless the @#$£&£$#ing wife decides to move again.

G.