Did a little 3 wheel'n in my G Wagon today!

[So-Cal G]

here are some links that might be of interest to some of you regarding 3 link suspension:

basic http://pangaea-expeditions.com/resources/3linkcompare/index.html
technical http://www.fourwheeler.com/how-to/0909or-front-suspension-technology-link-basics-part-2/
universal kits http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/catalog/3LINKKT.html
youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AB-p5Dxeqo

Sorry Bill for the hijacking of your thread!

 

[toylandcruiser]

The g would need at least 2' of travel for that tire to be on the ground. Nothing stock would keep all 4 on the ground at that angle.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[zimm]

What is even more laughable, are the G-Wagen owners that attempt to convince you that the G does not need anymore articulation. It is my only complaint of the vehicle. Fortunately, my lockers have been flawless.

I will pull the anti swaybar after I get back from Baja. Even a 20-30% improvement in the front would make me content

if you have access to stiffer springs, experiment with my suggestion. i did it on my 100 (stiff springs, no sway bars) and i have great load ability, great, if a bit uneven articulation as the front is limited, and the only downside is a bit of lean on the highway in sweepers. the ome nitros are stiff on jounce and that seems to keep the body settled on an emergency lane change test. overall, its much better than the mushy stock springs, and severely limiting sway bars. i dont see why this wouldnt work on a G to get you the 20% you want, without trying to 3 link that truck.

note: the ome's seem to loosen up over time. what does one expect with a glorified monroe gasmatic. i have koni raids on the G and i may swap to those on the 100 and tune it in better.

 

[zimm]

what was the original tire on a G? a 29? 30? it was made to tuck with the much smaller, narrower tires of 70's vintage. the germans efficiently maximized that trucks chassis for the tire of the day. but now, due to the imitations of the original design, every redesign is a pain.

it is what it is.

 

[zimm]

and my personal opinion is, portals are a fashion statement. if i need 4" of lift for 35's on any given truck, and my choice is springs or portals, i'll take the springs. portals on stock springs and enlarged tires do nothing for droop or tuck and make articulation worse. about the only place portals excel is deep soft surfaces like muddy fields, or maybe sand. i say maybe sand, because if youre at 50% tire depth in sand, your float failed and youre likely digging no matter if the axles are in the sand or not.

i'll take articulation and keeping the tires on the ground over clearance i'll seldom need anyday. the portal trucks ive been in, designed as portals, mogs and pinz, have spooky handling when they lift a tire off camber.

 

[LeTechUSABill]

I always look very fashionable driving right over a huge rock that all the Jeeps in front of me had to maneuver over or around! No "spooky" handling with our Portals!

 

[LeTechUSABill]

Sorry Bill for the hijacking of your thread!

Not at all no problem! All good stuff! As I have stated in other threads I am a total newbie to the whole off road scene so I am learning every time I take this thing out on a run and read a thread like this! My background is all road racing motor sports endurance racing stuff. My primary business is a Porsche racing gearbox servicing business. The photo I started this tread with was taken about two miles away from my shop at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

That youtube vid is cool, you could reach in there and change that spring on that thing!

 

[LeTechUSABill]

I will pull the anti swaybar after I get back from Baja. Even a 20-30% improvement in the front would make me content

FYI

Did a little ramp test without a ramp, put my forklift under a front tire and raised it up until another tire lifted, with the sway bar hooked up I got up to 26", after removing sway bar I got up to 30".

Not quite 20% but it is something. Drove it around a little, doesn't feel much different, I am on 37"s so it always feels a little squishy. I'll see how it does on the highway on the way home tonight.

 

[swb]

A quote from this quite good review (W461):

Because the G-Class has a relatively narrow track width in relation to its high roofline, the vehicle is predisposed to bodyroll; thankfully, Mercedes-Benz has addressed this problem by fitting extra heavy-duty sway bars.

I have a friend with a SWB G who has removed the sway bars and has noticed much better articulation, but he almost entirely uses his G offroad in dense forests. Apparently quite scary on-road at speed.

 

[Scott Brady]

I have stiffer springs and have installed brand new Bilstein (firmer) shocks. Hoping that it all works perfect.

 

[hus55]

a friend of mine from the gwoa club in the uk rolled his 280GES after removing the front anti-rollbar..!! he was caught out on minor bend off the road. stability on the highway under a sudden manouver could be fatal...

i reckon if you guys could fabricate a jeep style quick disconnect front antirollbar it would be the best solution. and it would sell big time..!!

the has 2 major drawbacks , the lack of articulation and the lack of power in the older 460's.. BUT i love em ! and own 4

rgds hus

 

[LeTechUSABill]

a friend of mine from the gwoa club in the uk rolled his 280GES after removing the front anti-rollbar..!! he was caught out on minor bend off the road. stability on the highway under a sudden manouver could be fatal...

i reckon if you guys could fabricate a jeep style quick disconnect front antirollbar it would be the best solution. and it would sell big time..!!

Yeah I think a standard width track short wheel base G would be pretty diabolical with the sway bar disconnected.

Mine is not too bad but it also has an extra 100 mm of track added to each side with the Portals.

Working on a different drop link for easy disconnect right now!

 

[Titus Pullo]

I run my '88 for a long period of time without the sway bar on and off the road. NO difference, NO significant increase of the front suspension travel. NO problem on the road even with sharp high/er speed turns. With simple words - disconnecting the the front sway bar doesn't change anything. The front sway bar is the least limiting suspension travel factor. Did the RTI ramp with and without - the difference is almost non existing. All the rest stories are city legends.

 

[RMP&O]

Yeah, the G-Wagen wave (grin)

I am making it my personal mission to achieve an acceptable level of articulation with my G-Wagen. It is the vehicle's one fatal flaw.

You just made me not want a G and I have been interested in them since the 90's. I can't imagine paying $20k+ for one and then having to 3-link it.

Is it only the front that suffers? Is it due to the radius arm design? Radius arms are not know to flex much but in my 80, I don't think it is awful like I am reading/seeing here. Can anyone post pics of the front and rear suspension, please?

IMHO, two best things in any 4wd, traction and articulation. Horse power not needed, gearing helps a lot but not required. What good is articulation if the axles are open? What good are lockers if the articulation keeps a wheel off the ground?

Cheers

 

[swb]

What good are lockers if the articulation keeps a wheel off the ground?

:Wow1: