| Author | Message | ||
     Eric (Epuffy) New Member Username: Epuffy Post Number: 10 Registered: 07-2003 |
Hi everyone, My suspension sucks and I have the typical lean to my car. It's not a big lean, but it's there and it bothers me. The ride on my truck is really rough too. Can people point me towards some shocks and struts that will give me a better ride and maybe some better handling on regular roads? I DO NOT want to lift my truck because I don't really plan on doing any heavy-duty offroading. Everything i've read around usually point at the OME setup, but the lightest duty of those are said to give me a 2 inch lift. Are there other brands out there besides OME that are decent? Once again, ride and handling are the most important to me. Any help would be greatly appreciated! DWEB rocks! | ||
| Jason Walker (Dosed) New Member Username: Dosed Post Number: 37 Registered: 03-2003 |
Standard OEM LR stuff - sounds like it will fit the bill. | ||
| Alan Yim (Alan) Senior Member Username: Alan Post Number: 679 Registered: 09-2002 |
I've seen quite a few on here who have just replaced their shocks with Bilstein shocks and kept the stock springs and said it made a huge difference. | ||
| Eric (Epuffy) New Member Username: Epuffy Post Number: 11 Registered: 07-2003 |
wow. fast responses. thanks guys. Here comes a probably dumb question, but what component (shocks or springs) absorbs the bumbs in the roads? Do springs just hold the car at a certain height as the shocks kind of take the bumps? | ||
| Jason Walker (Dosed) New Member Username: Dosed Post Number: 38 Registered: 03-2003 |
NP. The springs do most of the work. The shocks dampen the rebound and compression of the spring, this gives smoothness. If your shocks are sacked out, your LR will feel really bouncy. If your springs are gone, you would be able to visually see some sagging. | ||
| Brent Fox (Bfox) Member Username: Bfox Post Number: 90 Registered: 10-2002 |
If you want some stock springs, I have a bunch in good shape with no sag when removed. I'll trade them for a 12 pack of beer (or cash equivalent) and shipping costs. Brent | ||
| Eric (Epuffy) New Member Username: Epuffy Post Number: 13 Registered: 07-2003 |
Hey Brent, Thanks for the offer! I have a 97 Disco, what are yours from? So what kind of shocks give a good smooth ride? I have seen alot of mxed reviews on the Bilsteins (some love em, some don't). And of course there are OME's. Suggestions greatly appreciated once again! | ||
| Brent Fox (Bfox) Member Username: Bfox Post Number: 91 Registered: 10-2002 |
My springs are from a 96 disco that were removed at about 50,000 miles. There was no sagging when I removed them. I've heard good things about the Bilsteins for on road ride and bad things about them off road. I know it's a little firmer than most others. If you're running original shocks anything you change to will probably be a huge improvement. | ||
| Eric (Epuffy) New Member Username: Epuffy Post Number: 15 Registered: 07-2003 |
Thanks for all the info. I think i'll go for the stock spring and Bilstein shock setup. Brent, What do you think it'll cost to send them to me? I'm thinking maybe 50K is a while for those shocks, and they might start to sag not long after I get them put in. What do you guys think? Maybe it's better for me to grab a new set? What's a good place to grab the OEM shocks and Bilsteins? Cheers! Eric | ||
| Chris Whybrew (Dcwhybrew) Member Username: Dcwhybrew Post Number: 65 Registered: 05-2003 |
Greetings everyone, I'm considering new springs as well for my 96 D1. Just put Bilsteins on back in December and I have stock springs now. I am considering OME 761 (medium duty) up front and OME 781 (medium/heavy duty) in the rear. Here are my questions: 1) Will the lift caused by these springs (1.2" in the front and 1.6" in the rear according to EE) result in my having to replace the rotoflex coupler often? 2) I am considering replacing my 225/75-16s with 245/75-16s (not sure what kind yet - will be ATs though), so is it necessary to lift the truck for the 245s? If so is the lift above enough? I really would prefer to maintain the truck's stock appearance, but I'd like to get some wider tires. I'm leaning towards the 245 series because they will enable me to get the wider tire that I'm looking for in an aggressive AT tread design (I'm leaning towards Big O X/Ts) and the stock 237/70s don't offer many options. Anyway, I have heard that it isn't necessary to lift the truck for the 245s, but I'm still skeptical. I would appreciate any opinions and experiences that you have had. Thanks | ||
| Eric (Epuffy) New Member Username: Epuffy Post Number: 18 Registered: 07-2003 |
Has anyone tried both the Bilstein and OME shocks? On Expedition exchange, they recommend the OME shocks because supposedly they give a better ride than the Bilsteins. Thanks! | ||
| One_Bad_Metro (Koby) Senior Member Username: Koby Post Number: 453 Registered: 02-2002 |
The Bilstein shocks are purportedly shorter in bore length than the OME shocks as well. If you're looking at just replacing springs, I'd look at OME even if you do not want to lift your truck. I think even with some of the shorter springs, you'd notice a substantial improvement over Land Rover Genuine springs. IF you want a minimal lift, I'd consider OME springs and Bilstein shocks. I don't know how much LR springs cost, but I'd guess they're more expensive than OME springs | ||
| Greg French (Gregfrench) Senior Member Username: Gregfrench Post Number: 523 Registered: 11-2002 |
Chris... I have 245's on mine with stock suspension. 120K miles with an ARB bumper. LOTS of sagging. No problems fitting the tires except a little rubbing when really flexed. | ||
| Peter Matusov (Pmatusov) Senior Member Username: Pmatusov Post Number: 949 Registered: 09-2002 |
Eric, I tried both, and stayed with Bilsteins because my D1 swayed too much with OMEs. However, since then things have changed - EE offers a whole lot more options as far as OME shocks go. Chris, most likely, you will not have any problems with OME MD setup. 245/75 will rub at full stuff, and if you're really unlucky, you'll mangle the rear quarters. However, if you follow Kyle's advice on how to push the rear quarters out a bit, you'll be fine. | ||
| John (Jroc) Member Username: Jroc Post Number: 134 Registered: 08-2002 |
On road, stock height = Bilstein NOTHING compares! I was amazed at the improvement. Off-road, raised suspension = OME Bilsteins are even shorter than Woodheads, not much but shorter. OME springs and Bilsteins seemed fine but I've been told that even the small lift that OME springs provide puts the bilstein shocks out of their optimal range. I never noticed until I raised my Disco 3 1/2 inches above stock, now I have virtually no up travel and a very harsh ride. John at EE has been a WEALTH of info! Never too busy to answer any stupid question I may have. Say what you want about the man, but don't criticize the service he provides! He appears to be a REAL land rover enthusiast and right on the money with everything he's recommended. If EE sells it, and I'm gonna buy it, I try and give them the business even if it means paying three dollars more! The cheapest price is not always the best price!!! | ||
| Chris Whybrew (Dcwhybrew) Member Username: Dcwhybrew Post Number: 66 Registered: 05-2003 |
Thanks guys for your input. Peter, hate to ask but who is Kyle? How can I get in touch with him? | ||
| noel Bond (93dico) New Member Username: 93dico Post Number: 19 Registered: 06-2003 |
chris, Forget Old Man Emu,we don't use them that much down here any more. Take a look at sum of the other brands. I'm using Tough Dog and they work just fine for me. Noel  | ||
| Eric (Epuffy) New Member Username: Epuffy Post Number: 19 Registered: 07-2003 |
Ok, I don't think I want to get stock shocks anymore. I have a bad feeling they're going to sag too fast, and that's really going to bother me. Anyone have any pictures of Disco's with the Medium duty shocks and springs? | ||
| Joe M. (Little_joe) Member Username: Little_joe Post Number: 137 Registered: 11-2002 |
Here's a picture of my 96 D1 with OME MD and 245/75R16 MTR's. Sorry it's not the best picture. http://www.4x4wire.com/rover/disco/tech/ome/postlift.gif I don't care much for OME MD, it's too bouncy onroad and off if you do not have a bumper/winch up front. Even w/ the lift, my MTR's rub up front at near-full steering lock onroad.  The page below has some good spring rate info, if you don't plan on carrying a lot of weight and just doing light wheeling you can find the stock spring rate and possibly something close to that rate from the aftermarket. http://members.shaw.ca/jbarge/springinfo.html joe | ||
| Ron Johnson (Chauner) New Member Username: Chauner Post Number: 31 Registered: 05-2003 |
LR stock spring and shock prices before any discounts: All the shocks are 44.02 RF spring- 61.01 RR spring- 78.73 LF spring- 130.00 LR spring- 78.73 |
