Johnson rods, good or bad?

[A.J.M]

I asked on the "Show us your lr3/lr4 thread" back in February about Johnson rods.

Lr's being Lr's however, wanted a cash sacrifice to the Gods of reliability so blew that idea out the water for a bit.

Now, back to thinking about getting these rods for off roading, thanks to work, my mileage has gone up more to 18k a year roughly, i do use it off road but due to work and also the annoying fact in Scotland, there are no legal trails you can drive on, so you need to organize through a club for permission to use private land for off roading, it's barely left the tarmac this year bar a couple of days in March.

However, i'm hoping to change that, a new job is planned so more free time. :sombrero:

Now, how many people run these rods on their cars?
I know that they will change the handling but how far does it go from stock?
Does your mileage suffer or stay the same?
Is it better to go with steel ones or hardened plastic versions, are there any plusses or drawbacks with either make?

I have another off road competition this November and planning ahead for what can be done to the D3 to make it a bit more capable but not ruining the manners of the car. I will be putting new tyres on it before then, and hopefully shall have some form of plates for the fuel tank and air compressor as they both took knocks last year.

The car has a few more Defender drivers to annoy by placing higher than them, i got 23rd out of 67 and 19th in my class, beating 4 of my mates in their Defenders and they have all said they are gunning for me..

 

[JimBiram]

Johnson Rods are great, and I used to use them and swap them when I went offroad. Once I got my IID Tool, I just keep them in case I need them or if another buddy needs them. Once you get the hang of it, it only takes about one minute per wheel to swap them out. Some silicone spray is really helpful and I used a golf divot tool to pry them off.


Every Day is a Good Day Surfing...Some are just Better Than Others

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[Angry_Man]

They're great. Every LR3/4 should have them.

 

[DiscoNels]

I use Johnson Rods and have zero complaints. Super easy to install (just make sure you've got a good forked tool. I use a trim removal tool). I keep them on full time now as I've got a Nanocom to lower my truck via software when I'm not off roading. As far as mileage and handling goes, the height will have an effect but you get used to it quickly. Of course mileage will suffer ever so slightly but not so much as to break your bank.

If you plan to keep them on full time year round I suggest you get a 4 wheel alignment as raising the vehicle changes the geometry of the wheels and we all know how much D3's love to eat rubber.

 

[Magnus]

I have the Johnson rods set in the off road position all the time. And I have done 4 wheel alignment. Handling is ok, I have gotten used to it. But I will probably lower my D3/LR3 next time I drive in windy conditions on roads with my RTT. It doesn't exactly improve the handling...