rear trailing links?

chuckn

Observer
I recently upgraded the suspension on my 97 d-90 with OME heavy duty springs and shocks. My axel castor (front and back) is now off. I have noticed that alot of people install new trailing links to correct the rear axel only. My question(s) is why only the rear axel, why not both?? Will I need to replace my drive lines if I do both? What other affect will this have on my vehicle.

The d-90 is used for overland travel only. I have really enjoyed the information that this site provides. This is my first post!!!!

Thanks,

Chuck.
 

chuckn

Observer
I have noticed that the rear end is more ridged than is was before, even when fully loaded, and that I am getting some driveline vibs.

Chuck.
 

RonL

Adventurer
Because the rear ends are a four link style. You can correct the pinion angle by changing the length of the links. In the front, it is control arms with a panhard bar. Changing the length of the arms does not change the angle. You have to change the location of the four mounting holes on the axle or use arms which are bent.
 

chuckn

Observer
Installed the lift myself. Have done this on two other rovers in the past with no problems. Bought it from Ho @ expedition exchange. I did use expeditionware spring isolators in the front and back which I have not done before. Driveline vib is not that bad at high speeds. Notice it more around 40-45 mph when I let off the accelerator. Maybe I'm just being to picky, however, if I'm on a long trip I don't want to worry about this.

Chuck.
 

chuckn

Observer
Work done so far on the d-90:

OME 751 springs front
OME 764 springs Rear
n155 shocks front
n44 shocks rear
Land Rover rubberized spring isolators front and rear
Land Rover rubberized shock towers front
Expeditionware spring retianers rear

Looking to make this as trouble free and simple as possible, but reliable.
 

R_Lefebvre

Expedition Leader
Your rear castor is not a problem, because there really isn't such a thing as castor on a rear axle. Castor refers to the angle of the steering axis, when your rear axle is not steerable, therefore, castor angle is meaningless.

What you're probably worried about is the pinion angle, which can cause driveline vibration. The other reason for replacement rear trailing arms is for very long travel systems, where the arms can bind by crashing into the frame, therefore bent arms are used for clearance.

People do sometimes replace their front arms as well. This is to correct the castor angle, and the pinion angle would follow. Probably not many people do this because it's expensive, and not really required for moderate lifts (~2").

Now, one question is, why did you buy spring retainers? Unless you have long travel shocks (which you don't appear to) then you don't need them.

Secondly, why did you buy the spring isolators? See, the spring retainers completely eliminate any benefit from the isolators. The isolators are supposed to eliminate metal-metal NVH pathways between the axle and the frame. So you put rubber between the spring and axle, but then the retainer bridge that gap with more metal.

I have a 2" OME lift on my D2,, along with the HD shocks. I haven't corrected the castor or anything like that. Steering is slightly less precise, but I haven't noticed any effects worth worrying about. I do know that when I put my motorcycle on the hitch rack, which end up dropping the rear and lifting the front a bit due to the tongue weight, that the steering does start to enter the "spooky zone", but not so much that I can't live with it.

As for the rear... well... that's what HD suspension is going to give you. No way around that. Even fully loaded, those stiffer shocks will create a stiffer ride. Lastly, the spring rates are not different from one side to the other, rather, the spring load rating differs, but not nearly as much as has been reported. I measured the difference at closer to 1/4" as opposed to 1".
 

tinker trek

Observer
I installed a OME lift on my 96 D1 about two months ago.
I was getting some vibration/noise.

I replaced the rotoflex & u joint on the rear drive shaft, took care of the problem. I rebuilt the front drive shaft as well while I was at it.
 

chuckn

Observer
Thanks for all of the info. I'm going to go for the new rear links and see what happens.

On a side note, I took my d-90 in last week for it's annuel safety/emissions inspection and it failed because it didn't have mud flaps. I have had the vehicle for 3 years now and this is the first time this has happened. Has anyone else had this same problem or is it just a Utah thing? Bought a set of mup flaps from Rovers North but have not put them on yet.

Chuck.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
189,917
Messages
2,922,169
Members
233,083
Latest member
Off Road Vagabond
Top