Discovery 1 Lift & Tire Size Recommendations?

dubiousgarage

New member
Mar 14, 2021
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San Francisco Bay Area
Hi I’m a long time Series Land Rover owner and new to coil sprung cars having just bought a 1994 Discovery 1. I want to build a great off road Rover that still drives safely on the road for the treks to the 4wd spots.

Any consensus about a 2, 3, 4” lifts?
Radius arms needed for j3” above?
What tire size is best for each lift?

Much thanks,

—Rudy

Instagram “DubiousGarage”
www.Oldrover.com.
1950 80”
1967 Series IIa 88 “LittleCar”
1970 “Late” Series IIa 88 “RatsNest”
1994 Discovery 1 “Sh!tty Sh!tty Bang Bang”
 

stu454

Well-known member
Dec 15, 2004
5,407
61
Atlanta, GA
Look under the Projects and Tech Tips heading for the thread Tires, Tires, Tires. It has some good information from the old forum.
 
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Blue

Well-known member
Mar 26, 2004
10,043
856
AZ
I want to build a great off road Rover that still drives safely on the road for the treks to the 4wd spots.


1994 Discovery 1 “Sh!tty Sh!tty Bang Bang”


A D1 doesn’t need anything more than 2-3” and some slightly larger tires. Maybe 245/75/16 or 235/85/16. A little trimming of the bottom of the rear quarter panel just aft of the rear tire and you’re good to go.

Bigger may be sexy but then you’re getting into driveline adjustments, castor corrected radius arms, and the whole can of worms.

Oh, and love the name.
 

bri

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Apr 20, 2004
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Both of the above will get you where you need to go. I didn’t need to do any trimming with my D1 setup.

245 and 235 *WILL* cat rear lip of rear wheel well/quarter panel. If you don't trim it eventually you will bend it.
 
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jymmiejamz

Well-known member
Dec 5, 2004
6,008
361
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Los Angeles, Ca
OME HD ~2” with D2 front spring isolator/shock stud rings, D2 isolators on the top in the rear. If you want more down travel in the rear you can get really nice lowered shock mounts from Expedition Exchange, but you will need to get retainers for the rear springs. I think 7.50R16 is the best tire size for this combo. 70EFB8A8-AC08-4214-901A-D6A8215ED4DA.jpeg
 

RVR OVR

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2004
342
105
IL
It really depends on how much you want to do. We all know that bigger lift and tires just lead to the next size boulders, then you need bigger lift and tires, and so on. My current rig has a 2" lift and 31" tires, which really isn't much of a lift considering that stock trucks come with bigger. It puts it almost on par my my FJ Cruiser in terms of clearances. However, the second you go to 33" tires and a 3+" lift, you get into more changes necessary to make it drive well. You get into double-cardon drive shafts to reduce vibrations, castor correction of the front radius arms to correct the angle, and potentially rear trailing links and other adjustments to make that right, with some fender trimming. I had a 97 with 33x10.5's that I did al of that to and it rode better than stock in my opinion, but that was in the early 2000's when 33's were a "big tire."

Of course, you can skip a lot of that if you are just driving a couple miles to go wheeling in your local spot. Again, really depends on what you want to do and what you want to set your limits at.

Tom
 

ERover82

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Nov 26, 2011
3,899
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Darien Gap
Hi I’m a long time Series Land Rover owner and new to coil sprung cars having just bought a 1994 Discovery 1. I want to build a great off road Rover that still drives safely on the road for the treks to the 4wd spots.

If I did it all over again, it sounds like our goals would be similar. I'd stick to 245/75 and keep it light. These days I'm more interested in where I can go, and how great the experience can be, rather than how big of a rock (or log, around here) it can drive over. Stock D1 suspension geometry is very well engineered and can take you far. Invest in your skills, maintenance, spares, and your recovery gear. If you reach the limit of its capability, it can be rewarding to find clever solutions beyond fitting larger tires and bearing the multi-faceted cost they incur.
 
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Jay Frem

Member
Nov 29, 2005
10
0
Hi I’m a long time Series Land Rover owner and new to coil sprung cars having just bought a 1994 Discovery 1. I want to build a great off road Rover that still drives safely on the road for the treks to the 4wd spots.

Any consensus about a 2, 3, 4” lifts?
Radius arms needed for j3” above?
What tire size is best for each lift?

Much thanks,

—Rudy

Instagram “DubiousGarage”
www.Oldrover.com.
1950 80”
1967 Series IIa 88 “LittleCar”
1970 “Late” Series IIa 88 “RatsNest”
1994 Discovery 1 “Sh!tty Sh!tty Bang Bang”


I had my Discovery 1 since 1996 and took it through 32", 35" and 37" since 2006.

If you want to keep it a nice DD i would not exceed 32" or 33" and i would invest in ARB lockers as they help a lot on rocks and climbs.
You would want to keep a light throttle tough as the stock drivetrain is weak. Good options from Ashcroft as you probably know since you owned lots of Rovers before.
 

CBiDrive

Well-known member
Sep 20, 2007
108
22
Parker, CO
My first one I did RTE 2" lift with 255/70/16 and had no problems went to 305/70/16 and had to cut fenders back a little also added in extended radius arms and rear links, went to 285/75/16 and had to add wheel spacers.

Current one with 5" lift on 315/75/16 was a whole can of worms but I like how it turned out. Mods for that were Defender 1.4 transfer case new DC driveshafts front and rear castor corrected and extended radius arms, extended RTE rear links and 50mm fender flares. I Dailyed this one till a drunk driver took me out and I am doing all that over again now plus some more upgrades.flexy2.jpg
 
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Swedjen2

Well-known member
Sep 12, 2018
594
127
California
Do stock D1's sit the same as stock D2's where the front is about an inch lower than the rear? Not like a 60's Funny Car, but noticeable. Rat Fink Gassers, Beatnick Bandits and all that.
If so, add the front spacer. You'll be happy you did.
 
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bri

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
6,178
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I’ve been running it this way for years, but OK.

Whatcha running? Find a big rock near a flat surface or a ramp and run a test. Back up so that one rear tire stuff into the wheel when and you will learn quick enough that it will hit the area for the "camel cut".
 

bnmack1

Well-known member
Apr 14, 2014
63
3
Ga
My first one I did RTE 2" lift with 255/70/16 and had no problems went to 305/70/16 and had to cut fenders back a little also added in extended radius arms and rear links, went to 267/75/16 and had to add wheel spacers.

Current one with 5" lift on 315/75/16 was a whole can of worms but I like how it turned out. Mods for that were Defender 1.4 transfer case new DC driveshafts front and rear castor corrected and extended radius arms, extended RTE rear links and 50mm fender flares. I Dailyed this one till a drunk driver took me out and I am doing all that over again now plus some more upgrades.View attachment 60843

Nice flex! Any rubbing? My plan is to fit some 315/75/16 dick cepek tires this year. Looks like there are lots of mods that I need to do.