Box Rocket 1995 FZJ80 Build
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Box Rocket
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That’s a loaded question. Having owned both I personally think the 80 is better than the Disco in just about every way except for the drivers seating position and the seats themselves.
Even though the Disco has a V8 there’s not a big difference in power and there’s no comparison in terms of reliability.
Depending on how you intend to use it you could be very limited on lift and tire size with the Disco without some extensive mods. Factory f/r diff locks and slightly bigger axles/diffs along with the ability to fit 35’s comfortably with a 2” lift makes the 80 much more capable out of the box with very minimal investment in lift/tires.
Internal useable space is larger overall in the 80 is better a slightly longer wheelbase (IIRC) can make long trips more comfortable.
The Rover is a cool vehicle and definitely has personality. On the upside a Disco I is stupid cheap to buy used and can leave you with more money to outfit it. But in the long run you’ll spend more money just keeping it running right than you will being able to actually get out and use it. That’s been my experience with them and I bought my Disco brand new and it was never as reliable or capable as my 25 yr old Cruiser is now.
The 80 series has about 12 inches of wheel base on the Discovery 1. For performance, the 80 weighs 400lbs more and the 3F makes 33 less horsepower and ~16 ft.lbs less than the Rover V8, which I would consider a wash. A 2 inch lift, camel cut and optionally some spacers can tuck 33" tires no problem on the Discovery 1. I think with 35's you'll have to cut a little more and you'll lose more steering angle, but they will fit. There's a Discovery 2 that runs around here with 37's on it with a bit of trimming and fender flares. I think she has a 4 inch lift though.
Around here, I can buy an LR3 for the price of an 80 series Land Cruiser... or 3-4 Discovery 1's. So far both my Discovery 1 and Defender have been very reliable (although I did rebuild the Discovery motor because I mistakenly thought it had low oil pressure) and very cheap to work on when ordering parts from somewhere like LRdirect.
Anyways, that's a tangent. I've been really enjoying your thread as well as Summit Cruisers Jr's. Almost makes me want a 80 series...
Around here, I can buy an LR3 for the price of an 80 series Land Cruiser... or 3-4 Discovery 1's. So far both my Discovery 1 and Defender have been very reliable (although I did rebuild the Discovery motor because I mistakenly thought it had low oil pressure) and very cheap to work on when ordering parts from somewhere like LRdirect.
Anyways, that's a tangent. I've been really enjoying your thread as well as Summit Cruisers Jr's. Almost makes me want a 80 series...
Box Rocket
Well-known member
But the 3F powered 80's are typically not the preferred model. The later model ('93-97) have the 1FZ motor that has more power and is much better suited to the weight of the 80, although they are still no racecar. My point being that with the LR having a V8 you would expect better power. I found the motor in the Disco to be very disappointing. The newer LR3-4's are better.
Purchase price of a used Land Rover is definitely a plus for the LR, but it should also tell you something about what you can expect to a degree. There are a number of reasons the 80 will hold it's value so much better than a Disco. I'm glad you've had good luck with your LR's being reliable. How many miles do you have on them? FWIW, I had roughly 330K miles on my last 80 when I sold it with no rebuilds or any other motor work besides replacing hoses that got brittle. My current 80 has 265K miles with the original motor but has had the headgasket replaced around 200K miles.
As I said before, the Disco is a neat car but from my experience it's not in the same league as an 80 series Cruiser.
Purchase price of a used Land Rover is definitely a plus for the LR, but it should also tell you something about what you can expect to a degree. There are a number of reasons the 80 will hold it's value so much better than a Disco. I'm glad you've had good luck with your LR's being reliable. How many miles do you have on them? FWIW, I had roughly 330K miles on my last 80 when I sold it with no rebuilds or any other motor work besides replacing hoses that got brittle. My current 80 has 265K miles with the original motor but has had the headgasket replaced around 200K miles.
As I said before, the Disco is a neat car but from my experience it's not in the same league as an 80 series Cruiser.
200K on the Disco 1, 250K on the Defender and 65K on the Range Rover.
I think one of the problems with "luxury" brands is that the previous owners could afford to purchase the vehicle, but they could not afford it. A lot of these vehicles that have had problems have had zero maintenance... Simply not overheating the motor goes a long way in longevity!
I think one of the problems with "luxury" brands is that the previous owners could afford to purchase the vehicle, but they could not afford it. A lot of these vehicles that have had problems have had zero maintenance... Simply not overheating the motor goes a long way in longevity!
duvinclunk
Davin
Box Rocket
Well-known member
Thank you. As duvinclunk mentioned, I built the bumper myself so no issues with fitment.
Not planning to build anymore.
Box Rocket
Well-known member
Few recent mods to the cruiser. Maybe the most significant was new wheels and tires. Went up a size to 37x13.50 and it meant getting new 17" wheels. Toyo MTs and Icon Alloy Rebounds. Got a little rubbing to sort out but it's driving nicely.
IconWheels and Toyos by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
IconWheels and Toyos by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Also replaced the struts for the hood and liftgate. Bought some MaxPow struts on Amazon.
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Lastly, I found a small (but bright) LED at the parts store that fit nicely on the "foot" of the rearview mirror. 80 owners will know that the front seat area has a Map Light but not a true dome light that illuminates when the doors open. I tapped this new LED into the harness for the small lights in the door cards. Now I have a nice bright dome light that comes on with the doors open and didn't have to mess with any of the switching etc to modify the map light.
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
IconWheels and Toyos by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
IconWheels and Toyos by Adam Tolman, on FlickrAlso replaced the struts for the hood and liftgate. Bought some MaxPow struts on Amazon.
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on FlickrLastly, I found a small (but bright) LED at the parts store that fit nicely on the "foot" of the rearview mirror. 80 owners will know that the front seat area has a Map Light but not a true dome light that illuminates when the doors open. I tapped this new LED into the harness for the small lights in the door cards. Now I have a nice bright dome light that comes on with the doors open and didn't have to mess with any of the switching etc to modify the map light.
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
DomeLights and Struts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Box Rocket
Well-known member
I've received some new parts recently. I've got a power steering pump rebuild kit so I can address my leaky pump. I just received a Oil pump seal repair kit from Wits End last week so I can take care of the oil pump cover seal and the crank seal that have started to leak. Also received a full set of Timbren Active Offroad Bumpstops that I've wanted to try. I've heard good things about them from a couple people that have them on their 80s.
I've got a rear panhard relocation bracket to install and a bit more tweaking to make the 37's fit properly and I'll be good to go for the wheeling season. Now I just need to find some time to tackle all of it. :sigh:
I've got a rear panhard relocation bracket to install and a bit more tweaking to make the 37's fit properly and I'll be good to go for the wheeling season. Now I just need to find some time to tackle all of it. :sigh:
Box Rocket
Well-known member
On the topic of 37's and proper fitment. I started to address the bumpstops this weekend. Different suspension setups might need a slightly different solution but this will work well for the 3" Slinky suspension. Just to review, a 3" Slinky kit with 35's is an excellent combination and doesn't require a few extra mods that are necessary to run 37's. With 35's, no front bumpstop modification is necessary. With 37's, you want to have an additional 1" of bumpstop. That could be just adding a spacer to the stock inside the coil bumpstop, but there's an easier solution that doesn't require removal of the coil. The Slinky kit already comes with a 1" taller bumpstop for the rear (it measures 3.5") that is used with 35's. I got another pair of these bumpstops from Kevin at Endless Horizon Outfitters and it was a simple bolt-on bumpstop to the front frame. These add the necessary additional 1" needed to keep 37's for jamming into the wheel arches, but still maximize travel.
Here's the taller bumpstop.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Bolted in place using the factory threaded holes on the frame. Note: I think '93-'94 US spec 80s have the holes but not the captured nuts in this location. the '95 and later trucks should have captured nuts. I haven't verified this 100% but this appears to be the case, so if someone with an earlier model wanted to use these bumpstops, a captured nut would need to be welded in or the bumpstop could be attached with two short welds.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
3.5" total height.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
I have had some LCP swaybar disconnect brackets installed in this same spot and I had to remove them in order to use these bumpstops. I've found that with the Slinky kit there is very little difference in wheel travel with or without the swaybar attached. But I've still liked having the brackets. One example of why they've been helpful even if I don't regularly disconnect the swaybar, is while on a trip this past summer, the swaybar bushings at the axle came apart and fell out, leaving the swaybar eye clanking around on the pin. It was nice to disconnect the swaybar and pin it up purely for the sake of not having to listen to the noise, but also so I didn't damage the eyes or the pins with no bushing in place.
I plan to modify the brackets so that I can continue to have the option of disconnecting the swaybar.
Here's the taller bumpstop.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on FlickrBolted in place using the factory threaded holes on the frame. Note: I think '93-'94 US spec 80s have the holes but not the captured nuts in this location. the '95 and later trucks should have captured nuts. I haven't verified this 100% but this appears to be the case, so if someone with an earlier model wanted to use these bumpstops, a captured nut would need to be welded in or the bumpstop could be attached with two short welds.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr3.5" total height.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on FlickrI have had some LCP swaybar disconnect brackets installed in this same spot and I had to remove them in order to use these bumpstops. I've found that with the Slinky kit there is very little difference in wheel travel with or without the swaybar attached. But I've still liked having the brackets. One example of why they've been helpful even if I don't regularly disconnect the swaybar, is while on a trip this past summer, the swaybar bushings at the axle came apart and fell out, leaving the swaybar eye clanking around on the pin. It was nice to disconnect the swaybar and pin it up purely for the sake of not having to listen to the noise, but also so I didn't damage the eyes or the pins with no bushing in place.
I plan to modify the brackets so that I can continue to have the option of disconnecting the swaybar.
Box Rocket
Well-known member
The other swaybar related thing I tackled this weekend was to replace the front swaybar spacers. I have been running a set of spacers that were on my last 80 with the OME kit. When I did the Slinky kit on my current truck it wasn't exactly purchased as the standard kit and I didn't get the f/r swaybar spacers since I already had them. The old front spacers were only 1.5" tall. They worked fine with my OME kit, but with the Slinky kit they have resulted in some contact with my DC front driveshaft at full droop. So I picked up a set of the spacers that are part of the Slinky kit to replace my old ones.
Old vs new.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
where the swaybar has contacted the driveshaft. Not a big deal since it's just the dust cap but a good thing to take care of.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Old vs new.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickrwhere the swaybar has contacted the driveshaft. Not a big deal since it's just the dust cap but a good thing to take care of.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Box Rocket
Well-known member
OK last piece of the puzzle regarding bumpstops. I got a full set of bumpstops from Timbren. I've heard good feedback from @woody and others who have Timbrens and since woody also has the Slinky suspension I was particularly interested in his opinion of them. He's a fan, so I got some to address the rear, but was also sent a pair for the front if I want to try them. Here's what I got from Timbren.
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
The short ones are the fronts. They would need to have the bracket trimmed a little so that they don't contact the coil during compression. But when compressed they should be the same height as the Slinky bumpstops I just installed so if I decide to use these they should work fairly easily.
Front:
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
The rears are another story. I don't know how Timbren is designing these for the rear with that massive bracket. Even with a 6" lift these would be too tall. But at least its a simple cut and weld to shorten the brackets. These also would need to be trimmed to not contact the spring and tire in the rear but I can get these set to add the additional 1" to the rear for the 37's. My initial calculations end up with a bracket that's roughly 1.5" tall. I'll post an update when I get them modified and proper fitment is confirmed.
Rear:
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on FlickrThe short ones are the fronts. They would need to have the bracket trimmed a little so that they don't contact the coil during compression. But when compressed they should be the same height as the Slinky bumpstops I just installed so if I decide to use these they should work fairly easily.
Front:
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on FlickrThe rears are another story. I don't know how Timbren is designing these for the rear with that massive bracket. Even with a 6" lift these would be too tall. But at least its a simple cut and weld to shorten the brackets. These also would need to be trimmed to not contact the spring and tire in the rear but I can get these set to add the additional 1" to the rear for the 37's. My initial calculations end up with a bracket that's roughly 1.5" tall. I'll post an update when I get them modified and proper fitment is confirmed.
Rear:
Slinky Parts by Adam Tolman, on Flickr