Overland Journal Project Land Rover Discovery 4 (LR4)

[mpinco]

In my case, the problem was totally resolved by grinding the caliper ribs rather than sanding the inside of the wheel. .......
As mentioned earlier, the modifications to the ribs solved the problems (to the extent that I was tempted trying installing the rims without spacers...).

Agreed on ribs. Another item I did not mention are the balancing weights applied by the tire shop. For me Discount used the strips of square tabs taped to the inside of the wheel. That needs to be carefully located or the caliper will sheer them off.

Stay warm ! :sombrero:

 

[axels]

Agreed on ribs. Another item I did not mention are the balancing weights applied by the tire shop. For me Discount used the strips of square tabs taped to the inside of the wheel. That needs to be carefully located or the caliper will sheer them off.

Stay warm ! :sombrero:

Thank you. Yes I'm not totally satisfied with balancing of the wheels. I'll check on that once I'm back in Boston.

 

[mcieplinski]

2005-2007 all had a bolt on Outrigger. 2008+ LR3 and all LR4's have a weld on Outrigger. The weld on one gets in the way on 31.5" and larger. It just barely kisses it at 31.5"




While this will stop the rubbing for on road driving, it won't change the fact that as the suspension articulates it will rub. So if you take it offroad it will rub a plenty. Only real solution is to cut/weld.

Hi All,

I just installed LR3 wheels on my 2011 LR4 and here are my initial impressions:

30mm spacers do not 100% clear the caliper and some very minor grinding is required

265/65 BFGs (31.7 diameter) will rub at full lock against the ends of the body frame at front wheel (body frame end knob sticking out at the bottom back of the wheel inner fender well). I had these end knobs cut to flush with the inner fender (as these are ends of the body frame I don't think any of the frame structure strength was impacted but please let me know otherwise as then I will need to make some adjustments) and now it doesn't rub but now I have two open holes to my body frame which will accumulate dirt if I go offroading.... I will have to have it welded shut if I find someone willing and able to do it.... As for the offroading with these tires I can already see that they may rub even with these alternations unless you are at the offroad height with additional lift (Johnson rods or IID tool but I am not sure how much they will rub )

As for the ride quality - it is definitely stiffer and less comfortable than 19in coopers

All in all - if you are serious about offroading going to 18 in is a must but boy... It is suuuuch a pain for LR4s......

 

[axels]

Hi All,

I just installed LR3 wheels on my 2011 LR4 and here are my initial impressions:

30mm spacers do not 100% clear the caliper and some very minor grinding is required

265/65 BFGs (31.7 diameter) will rub at full lock against the ends of the body frame at front wheel (body frame end knob sticking out at the bottom back of the wheel inner fender well). I had these end knobs cut to flush with the inner fender (as these are ends of the body frame I don't think any of the frame structure strength was impacted but please let me know otherwise as then I will need to make some adjustments) and now it doesn't rub but now I have two open holes to my body frame which will accumulate dirt if I go offroading.... I will have to have it welded shut if I find someone willing and able to do it.... As for the offroading with these tires I can already see that they may rub even with these alternations unless you are at the offroad height with additional lift (Johnson rods or IID tool but I am not sure how much they will rub )

As for the ride quality - it is definitely stiffer and less comfortable than 19in coopers

All in all - if you are serious about offroading going to 18 in is a must but boy... It is suuuuch a pain for LR4s......

It's good to read that you got the outriggers cut. Did you use a saw for that?

In my situation the car is now much more comfortable than with stock 19s Continentals as my tires are not E rated and weigh about the same as the original ones. The BFGs are way over 50lbs each (56lbs according to tirerack) which was one of my main turn offs (as well as the pretty bad reviews on wet pavement...).

In any case, it's good to see that a few of us are following this route, I think it makes a lot of sense as LR3 rims are pretty easy to source and fairly "cheap".

According to Sasquatch. Rods and Johnson Rods there will be no rubbing and no need for alterations when using rods so you should be all good now.

 

[Mack73]

265/65 BFGs (31.7 diameter) will rub at full lock against the ends of the body frame at front wheel (body frame end knob sticking out at the bottom back of the wheel inner fender well). I had these end knobs cut to flush with the inner fender (as these are ends of the body frame I don't think any of the frame structure strength was impacted but please let me know otherwise as then I will need to make some adjustments) and now it doesn't rub but now I have two open holes to my body frame which will accumulate dirt if I go offroading.... I will have to have it welded shut if I find someone willing and able to do it.... As for the offroading with these tires I can already see that they may rub even with these alternations unless you are at the offroad height with additional lift (Johnson rods or IID tool but I am not sure how much they will rub )

Can someone with an LR4 take a quick photo of the bracket at the rear of the front wheel wells. Here is a shot of my weld on ones from the 08-09 LR3. I would be surprised if they are substantially different.

.
Clearance shot with BFG AT's

.
.
Oh and maybe "kiss" was a little deceiving. They rubbed pretty good for the first couple thousand miles. I had to paint where it rubbed several times as the tire would rub off the paint and could start rusting. But once the tires worn down a little the rubbing stopped.
.
Thee parts are simply to prevent the tire from moving rearward in an accident and crushing the foot area. Cutting it off won't cause any structural issues (other than reduced accident protection)

 

[axels]

I will take a picture ASAP. Currently still in Montreal and car is with the voiturier as they call it here.
From memory it does look slightly different on the LR4. I wish I'd be able to unbolt it rather than cutting and welding.

 

[axels]

Here are 2 pictures from the driver side front wheel well. Mine is a 2010.

 

[iowalr4]

I may have hit the sweet spot with my setup. I have 18" compomotives on my 2013 LR4 with 265/65R18 Goodyear Silent Armors. Tires are fairly quite, 41.7 pounds, plenty aggressive for the off roading I have done.

At stock height they don't really rub. I can get them to kiss if I really articulate, but it has not seemed to be more than a kiss. They are ~31.5".

I know people are down on the cost of the compo's but i'd say its worth it. I didn't have to deal with the brake issues, don't have to worry about spacers, they look good and they are sturdy. The powder coat must be pretty good also because I nailed a rock not long after I got them and it barely made a mark.

 

[axels]

At stock height they don't really rub. I can get them to kiss if I really articulate, but it has not seemed to be more than a kiss. They are ~31.5".

It makes me wonder what you mean when you write that they don't really rub. Also what do they "kiss"? Plastic inner fender or frame horns. Are the wheels straight or turned?

In my situation, they barely rub when I'm at full lock right or left. I can avoid it by simply not going all the way right or left but it decreases my turning radius which in a city like Cambridge (Boston) is quite an inconvenient when parking. The rubbing doesn't stop the truck from turning but I hate the feeling of it.

I do not believe there's anything wrong with the Compomotives. They are a great and simple (logical) choice. What I was mainly bothered with was the fact that everyone who goes off-road with a LR4 has a set and I wanted to go a different route (on top of this Barry didn't have any satin black left). I initially was going to use aftermarket rims but didn't want to take the risk as I couldn't have returned custom drilled rims.

I'm really happy wih my setup though and in the end I didn't mind the slight modifications I had to do (get done really, I park on the street). I believe I mentioned it earlier but price difference for 5 rims with spacers, powder coat, light work on calipers and installation was about $500 which isn't much of a difference (about 25% less).

The tires I picked are fantastic so far however they have a 10.7" section which is the main culprit in rubbing the frame horns... Easier to cut the frame horns than trim the tires

 

[Eniam17]

If you guys are talking about rubbing the frame horns, I assume you would be rubbing at normal height or at offroad height (or with a 2" IID tool lift, 2.5" rod lift, etc.) correct? Because those lifts aren't actually moving the tires away from the frame. Thanks

 

[mpinco]

If you guys are talking about rubbing the frame horns, I assume you would be rubbing at normal height or at offroad height (or with a 2" IID tool lift, 2.5" rod lift, etc.) correct? Because those lifts aren't actually moving the tires away from the frame. Thanks

Hmmmm .............. the various height settings raise the body/frame relative to the tires. This increases the clearance between the interference points and the tire.

Axels interference issues are the same as mine, although I did also have issues with front tire leading edge plastic and the Phillips head screws that hold the various parts together. Maybe the difference between my 285/60-18's and Axels 265/65-18's?

 

[axels]

Hmmmm .............. the various height settings raise the body/frame relative to the tires. This increases the clearance between the interference points and the tire.

Axels interference issues are the same as mine, although I did also have issues with front tire leading edge plastic and the Phillips head screws that hold the various parts together. Maybe the difference between my 285/60-18's and Axels 265/65-18's?

Agreed, the height does play a quite important role (the tire on a horizontal level only has 1 widest spot).

I do believe that the difference between 265 and 285 is the reason why your tires are touching the front. I have to say that mine come pretty close as well but there's about 1cm worth of space.

 

[Eniam17]

Ok I was unclear as to what level people are rubbing at, I thought it seemed as though people were having same issue at off road height which was really confusing me. Thanks for clarification. Sorry we gave basically hijacked this overland journal lr4 thread at this point.

 

[Scott Brady]

Narrow width is the key to fitting the largest diameter possible.

The wheel well of the LR4 is designed for full compression with a 255-265 tire. I believe the real advantage with a different tire is to gain diameter in the tire and a reduction in diameter in the wheel, not width of either. The LR4 needs ground clearance much more than traction or flotation, so my tire fitment was entirely positioned for increased diameter.

 

[A.J.M]

All you people are busy cutting up your cars to fit wheels and tyres..
I'm just sitting here with my 19s, quite happy with them.... Haha.

That and I'm stuck with them due to the brakes... Ah well.

How are the new locking diffs working?