2002 Chawton White - A Buildish Thread

  • Thread starter Thread starter ZG
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Good to hear David, do you have them on the front too? BTW - DroverRover on here is getting an engine with CV8 per your recommendations.
 
Only minor maintenance before I leave:

HD axle shafts
New Y pipe gaskets
New abs sensor
Front and rear brake pads
Front and rear axle fluids
Ne tires on, alignment
Possibly the landy lubber breather kit for all the breather lines
Engine oil


Just the normal before-a-trip stuff. The last time I left on a trip, I did front and rear diffs and prop shafts.
 
Looking good Zack! I always loved your Disco. Sounds like you're doing your best to make it unstoppable. I'm interested in seeing the direction it goes. Makes me miss my '01!
 
Nice ride homz. Good looking rig. I do think that long travel, way flex suspensions are a thing of the past........Lately it seems I spend more time lowering trucks and shortening suspensions and making things actually work than I do building things up.

The only other advice I always throw out is "high performance" actually means "maintenance required". Take a look at the oil in those 7100's after 1 season of use (if you can, the other part of the 7100 experience is the difficulty of service, but you'll have them off any way to replace either the hiems or the ****ty bushing kit they sell). Especially with the 400 /100 dampening which is (IMO) a bit much for that shock. They get hot and fade and cook the oil. Most people never notice as it is difficult to monitor. I honestly think the OME standard shock is a better unit.

Plus, unless you are a Marchand or live in Arizona, 7100's have the worst finish ever.
 
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Looking good Zack! I always loved your Disco. Sounds like you're doing your best to make it unstoppable. I'm interested in seeing the direction it goes. Makes me miss my '01!


Thanks very much!

Nice ride homz. Good looking rig. I do think that long travel, way flex suspensions are a thing of the past........Lately it seems I spend more time lowering trucks and shortening suspensions and making things actually work than I do building things up.

The only other advice I always throw out is "high performance" actually means "maintenance required". Take a look at the oil in those 7100's after 1 season of use (if you can, the other part of the 7100 experience is the difficulty of service, but you'll have them off any way to replace either the hiems or the ****ty bushing kit they sell). Especially with the 400 /100 dampening which is (IMO) a bit much for that shock. They get hot and fade and cook the oil. Most people never notice as it is difficult to monitor. I honestly think the OME standard shock is a better unit.

Plus, unless you are a Marchand or live in Arizona, 7100's have the worst finish ever.

Thanks Matt, I agree with you quite a bit. I agree, there is less of a point having a flexy suspension especially when I already have lockers, but I really want to reduce some stress on the vehicle by keeping all the wheels on the ground. My decision to go with Bilstein 7100s was because of their build quality and a lot of good experience with the Bilsteins ride. 400/100 is what everyone that I talked to about them told me to go with. I understand that there are easier shocks to deal with, but none of the ones I've found for Rovers are long enough for my travel. We will see... I will know more when I get them.
 
Funny how things change as you get older. I once built a Range Rover for Mr Vollers that rode on 37's, with 16" 7100's (they might have been Foxes as I use them a lot and I forget) point is the thing had ridiculous travel and could drive easily off the top of our old articulation Ramp (now permanently at MAR or whatever that is now) It had all custom suspension links, axles, lockers gearing ...the thing pretty much (and still does) kick ***. It's only issue was the more built it got the more work it required in terms of maintaining and repair.
Does it go any better than the almost stock Taco he is driving now. Maybe a bit but in reality I think not, depending very much on what you want for the long term, and how you define performance.
I'm not debating the merits of what you are doing and being connected with RN as you are I'd be doing the same. This is one of those moments that I realize how frigging old I'm getting as I sound just like the old duffs that used to give me **** about my rigs and I'd give them **** back and now I sound a bit like them........and as with so many things in life I am finding that the old advice about listening to the old duffs is so true and yet so impossible (for me ) to do. I still WANT to put my Series one on 40"s.
So, my advice on this ramble is dont pay much attention to this (my comments) and keep doing what your doing and hopefully I'll still be around 15yrs from now and we can laugh around the campfire about all the silly things we did to our trucks vs. all the silly things we did in them.

That and I'm insanely jealous that you just get to work on the cool bits. I get to spend hrs doing stupid **** like making my drivers door so it will open from the outside!
I'm starting to think that cutting the roof off, while being a bit extreme, will yield a more consistent ingress / egress than the Land Rover door handle.
 
Haha! That was a great post, true and very funny. I completely agree with everything you're saying. Unfortunately I will not have the will-power to say "I don't need 37s/lockers/6" lift" until I've done it and reaped the consequences. Right now I'm at in my opinion the perfect mix between highways and medium trail romping. 255/85s, 3.5" or so of lift, selectable lockers, MD springs. I really do not want to go with 35s or larger, but I'm sure something stupid will convince me I "need" them and that they'll "drive just fine" at 75 on the highway.


All I can say is that I can't wait for my next Rover, as I will build it correctly the first time.
 
Right on. When the not so rotten bit of my brain kicks in you are right on. If you cant get there on 255 85's you shouldn't need to be there.
 

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