Viggen
Just here...
Took the Disco out on a camping trip last weekend. Had a great time running some pretty fun trails. Was originally trying to find a specific spot but had no idea how to get there so my GF and I just started following random trails. After bashing through some low hanging branches (putting my home made risers to work) and turning down some random trails, we ended up at the base of a small, rutted climb that looked like it could lead to a cool site so put it in 4 low and just let the truck do all the work. Got to the top and was greeted with a superb spot to set up. Here are a few (Blackberry and real camera) pictures.
Right about here is where I say to myself, hmmm, that drip wasnt there before.
Walk over behind the truck and notice that there are about two trails of gear oil going down the inside of the passengers rear tire with some small puddling in the rim of the wheel. Camp is all set up, miles and miles away from anything, so I decide to deal with it in the morning. Wake up, after a crazy night of seriously high winds (downside to the literal top of the mountain in a clearing) and a "deer" heavily sniffing the tent around 1 a.m. (I say "deer" as if I told my GF, whose side of the tent was being actively sniffed, what it really was, she would never go camping with me again) I walk out and check the truck.
No active leak, puddle is the same size and the trail hasnt gotten any bigger. Popped the rear diff guard off and checked the fluid level and it was good so we packed up and drove home. I live in an apartment but my parents live about 30 minutes away so I pulled into their driveway and immediately got to work with parts I had stored away in their garage for install on a later date. Bearings, inner and outer seals, gaskets, discs and Ferrodo pads, lock nuts and washers and the Ashcrofts HD axles (holy crap these make the stockers look like toys) and hubs and I was done. Laughed a few times as the job wasnt that hard and that the person who had done this before did both side differently. The side that was leaking had both seals and no blue locktite on anything and the side that was fine was missing the seals but everything had thread locker. Weird how that side wasnt actually leaking. All that in less than 4 hours. It is such an easy job. Got to love full float rear axles.
Buttoned everything up and got into the truck to drive home. Slight smell but nothing out of the ordinary considering that they were brand new discs and pads. Got to a stop light several miles away and noticed people in the car next to me staring at my truck. Nothing out of the ordinary since it happens a lot but for some reason I decided to look back. It was then that I discovered smoke drifting by. Poked my head out the window and instant panic ensued as I notice smoke pouring out of the drivers side rear wheel! Im sitting in the left lane of a 3 lane road at a red light but instantly make the decision that it is time to cut everyone off and get into a parking lot as soon as possible. I cut across the intersection and into a parking lot, grabbed my extinguisher off the floor in the back seat and jumped out ready to do work. Thankfully, no fire but really, really hot rotors and pads. I grabbed a water bottle and dumped a small amount on the discs and it instantly sizzled and evaporated. Well, Im not driving her with, what I thought was, a sticking rear caliper as the heat could fry the new bearings and seals I just installed so it was time for the first use of my insurance roadside assistance (12 years and numerous daily driven British vehicles and I never used it).
The truck was driven up the bed and then strapped down. Several mini heart attacks later I had it parked in front of the repair shop. The mini heart attacks came from the numerous visions I had of the Disco flopping onto the road. The suspension is very flexy and with every turn, the truck leaned and I swear it was going to fall off. No amount of chains was going to keep that thing on there. Turns out that there were no issues with the install or newly sticking calipers. End float/ bearing load and everything were set up perfectly. The issue is with the Atlantic British rear brake rebuild kit I installed. Apparently the discs are thicker than stock. Combine that with pads that are thicker than stock and you make a wheel that will turn but pads that will drag. No damage done to bearings, seals, or discs and a new set of thinner pads were installed (had to go to the shop as I had no time or daylight to do it myself).
That was the end of my camping weekend...
Right about here is where I say to myself, hmmm, that drip wasnt there before.
Walk over behind the truck and notice that there are about two trails of gear oil going down the inside of the passengers rear tire with some small puddling in the rim of the wheel. Camp is all set up, miles and miles away from anything, so I decide to deal with it in the morning. Wake up, after a crazy night of seriously high winds (downside to the literal top of the mountain in a clearing) and a "deer" heavily sniffing the tent around 1 a.m. (I say "deer" as if I told my GF, whose side of the tent was being actively sniffed, what it really was, she would never go camping with me again) I walk out and check the truck.
No active leak, puddle is the same size and the trail hasnt gotten any bigger. Popped the rear diff guard off and checked the fluid level and it was good so we packed up and drove home. I live in an apartment but my parents live about 30 minutes away so I pulled into their driveway and immediately got to work with parts I had stored away in their garage for install on a later date. Bearings, inner and outer seals, gaskets, discs and Ferrodo pads, lock nuts and washers and the Ashcrofts HD axles (holy crap these make the stockers look like toys) and hubs and I was done. Laughed a few times as the job wasnt that hard and that the person who had done this before did both side differently. The side that was leaking had both seals and no blue locktite on anything and the side that was fine was missing the seals but everything had thread locker. Weird how that side wasnt actually leaking. All that in less than 4 hours. It is such an easy job. Got to love full float rear axles.
Buttoned everything up and got into the truck to drive home. Slight smell but nothing out of the ordinary considering that they were brand new discs and pads. Got to a stop light several miles away and noticed people in the car next to me staring at my truck. Nothing out of the ordinary since it happens a lot but for some reason I decided to look back. It was then that I discovered smoke drifting by. Poked my head out the window and instant panic ensued as I notice smoke pouring out of the drivers side rear wheel! Im sitting in the left lane of a 3 lane road at a red light but instantly make the decision that it is time to cut everyone off and get into a parking lot as soon as possible. I cut across the intersection and into a parking lot, grabbed my extinguisher off the floor in the back seat and jumped out ready to do work. Thankfully, no fire but really, really hot rotors and pads. I grabbed a water bottle and dumped a small amount on the discs and it instantly sizzled and evaporated. Well, Im not driving her with, what I thought was, a sticking rear caliper as the heat could fry the new bearings and seals I just installed so it was time for the first use of my insurance roadside assistance (12 years and numerous daily driven British vehicles and I never used it).
The truck was driven up the bed and then strapped down. Several mini heart attacks later I had it parked in front of the repair shop. The mini heart attacks came from the numerous visions I had of the Disco flopping onto the road. The suspension is very flexy and with every turn, the truck leaned and I swear it was going to fall off. No amount of chains was going to keep that thing on there. Turns out that there were no issues with the install or newly sticking calipers. End float/ bearing load and everything were set up perfectly. The issue is with the Atlantic British rear brake rebuild kit I installed. Apparently the discs are thicker than stock. Combine that with pads that are thicker than stock and you make a wheel that will turn but pads that will drag. No damage done to bearings, seals, or discs and a new set of thinner pads were installed (had to go to the shop as I had no time or daylight to do it myself).
That was the end of my camping weekend...
