Discovery Lift kits, what is the best way...

hi,

i want to lift my discovery a couple of inch for a bit of light offroading and just becaus i think it looks good, and i have been looking for a kit to do this (mostly on ebay).

i see theres springs, bushes, spacers etc.. and the price varies from 40 quid up to 200 ish

i dont think i will be hardcore offroading so i dont want to pay for the full springs and shocks if theres another way of lifting it.

any help and advice is much apreciated thanks

bigwillis2000 said:

hi,

i want to lift my discovery a couple of inch for a bit of light offroading and just becaus i think it looks good, and i have been looking for a kit to do this (mostly on ebay).

i see theres springs, bushes, spacers etc.. and the price varies from 40 quid up to 200 ish

i dont think i will be hardcore offroading so i dont want to pay for the full springs and shocks if theres another way of lifting it.

any help and advice is much apreciated thanks

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Instead of lifting the body why dont you lower the axle

Do you really mean the best way? Or "the best way within a £200 budget limit"?

i mean i dont mind paying for springs and shocks if i have too but if theres a more common easier way i dont know about i would like to give that a go.

and as for lowering the axle, i didnt even think of that, i just want it to ride higher so whatever is most common i suppose?

thanks

landowner said:

Instead of lifting the body why dont you lower the axle

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bigwillis2000 said:

and as for lowering the axle, i didnt even think of that, i just want it to ride higher so whatever is most common i suppose?

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:doh::doh::doh:

yeah im a bit clueless when it comes to 4x4s as my discovery is only the second i have owned, the first being a sportrak

do you have a guide that i can read on lifting the axle?

nice one

Why not just help him out for god sake .......you guys were all "new" to it at some point.

@bigwillis,

To "lift" the suspension, you need lift / heavy duty springs and thats it, if you want to regain the same axle travel as before the lift, then you need to fit extended shocks as well, "if" you do that then you will also need to look at extended / longer brake lines and "maybe" ABS wires if your vehicle has it.

Just bear in mind lifting the suspension does not give you anymore ground clearance under the axles, to gain that you need bigger tyres, but to fit bigger tyres you need to do the lift first, especially on a Disco 1 as it does not have that much extra room under the arches to accomodate them.

Ideal for a Disco 1 is a 2" lift with OR without extended shocks, and tyres up to about 245/75-16 in size which will give you about another 1" under the diffs, dont sound a lot but it makes a difference. 2" is considered the "norm", anymore than that then you need to look at castor corrected arms and swivels etc etc and that involves a whole lot more money.

As far as what you buy will depend on your vehicles "sprung" weight, ie heavy duty bumpers, winch etc etc. This will determine what springs you fit. "If" you ever intend to fit a winch and heavy duty bumper, then consider that when buying your springs as you dont want to have to replace them again in the future. This is why its better to avoid spacers as they still use your current springs, which may well, infact highly likely already have sagged about an inch from new.

As far as what make / spec you buy, then thats down to the size of your pocket, you can get lift springs and shocks for a D1 for around £220......but you could also spend nearly £600 and get the same result, but bear in mind you get what you pay for as with anything.

Apart from the fact that "how can I lift my Disco/Defender" must be on this , and just about every other Landy site, if he had :search:'d. One has to ask "why?". A standard Landy will cope with. "light offroading" better than the driver and, if you (or he) reads Trewys excellent article in the FAQ section, it will be seen that lifting a vehicle can cause a lot more problems than it cures. Fitting larger tyres would be an easier, and cheaper option. One, in which, a simple "camel cut" might suffice. This has also been covered a significant number of times.

There are a lot more important things to do before a lift.....
Recovery points?
Breather extensions?
Service?

As above, really. I asked a simple question - what was the budget - still waiting the reply! Basically, £200 won't get you anything except ****part which won't last long and will probably give issues from day one. And if its a 300TDi then you'll have a prop doughnut - these don't last long with a lift. And then there's wide angle props, radius arms, castor correction, longer brake hoses, etc. To do it properly will cost more like £700-800, rather than £200.

Put simply, Land Rover engineered everything to be at the standard height, if you want to lift it then you need to replace a lot of components to "re-engineer" it.

I agree with MHM's first point - why do you feel the need to lift your vehicle? They can do more than you wil ever want to do, as std.

The only thing you might care to considor is tyres. You need good tyres for on-road where you will spend most of your time, right?

Well If you buy a set of General AT² or a set of Cooper ST's (yes, I know) then they will be brilliant on-road and excellent offroad as well - how good is that?

or you could just put some HD standard height springs on, they will most likely lift your landy as there is a good chance your current springs will be old and tired then look at a slightly larger tyre that will fit.

about 31" fits with minor cutting to the rear arch

paul_c said:

As above, really. I asked a simple question - what was the budget - still waiting the reply! Basically, £200 won't get you anything except ****part which won't last long and will probably give issues from day one. And if its a 300TDi then you'll have a prop doughnut - these don't last long with a lift. And then there's wide angle props, radius arms, castor correction, longer brake hoses, etc. To do it properly will cost more like £700-800, rather than £200.

Put simply, Land Rover engineered everything to be at the standard height, if you want to lift it then you need to replace a lot of components to "re-engineer" it.

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There is more than one way to skin a cat, and like I explained in my reply, some things are only needed when you do others, ie brake lines do not replacing if you keep factory length shocks, yes you can spend £800 ish, even more, but its not a hard and fast rule.

thebiglad said:

I agree with MHM's first point - why do you feel the need to lift your vehicle? They can do more than you wil ever want to do, as std.

The only thing you might care to considor is tyres. You need good tyres for on-road where you will spend most of your time, right?

Well If you buy a set of General AT² or a set of Cooper ST's (yes, I know) then they will be brilliant on-road and excellent offroad as well - how good is that?

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Simply not true Dave, in standard form you WILL break something offroad, the more you do, the more you want to do and thats when the standard spec is simply not good enough.

2" lift + standard length shocks has very few advantages and shares many of the disadvantages with a 'proper' (ie extended shocks giving better articulation) lift job, for example caster correction, wear on bushes, angle of props, stress on the rear prop doughnut, slight loss in stability, cost. For this reason I'd not recommend it and I assumed that after research, the original poster would also be wise to the downfalls and not pursue it. A accept a proportion of the discussion on this topic on forums is simply one person's bad experience, and therefore to be taken with a pinch of salt, but for me what sways it is those who have experienced greater wear/unusual failures, linked with the fitting of a cheap lift kit.

Hopefully the OP can do a bunch of research and reach his own conclusion, after consideration.

Let us know how you get on.

I agree, we all have to make our own choices, but to say lifting a Disco will cause it to fall apart is a bit OTT "Imo".

Many many people do it, they cant all be wrong can they.

Urban Panzer said:

Simply not true Dave, in standard form you WILL break something offroad, the more you do, the more you want to do and thats when the standard spec is simply not good enough.

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Seriously Nick I'm tired of your "handed down from on high" statements as though you are the font of all knowledge about Land Rovers and their uses. You have no real knowledge of what I know and my experience and you continue to pour cold water on my posts.

Well I've had enough. I reckon I log more hours offroad than most on this and other forums. I have been to Morocco and back in the time that you have talked about going and I work on Land Rovers almost every day.

I give you credit for having an excellent D2 site because you deserve it - but recently your tone has got more and more condescending and I'm not having it. It is as if you are starting to believe you own press.

I have done many thousands of miles offfroad with std TDi 300's without one, yes, without one breakage.

Now enough of that - lets get back to helping people.

Well you have made your feelings clear. Thats fairenough.

My opinions on this topic were and ARE based on experience with my vehicle AND the other guys I go out with on regular occassions, some of which have D1's or D2's lifted and not lifted.

I have no idea where you have been offroad, and tbh I don't really care. I was not aware that your not a true "offroader" until you had been to Morocco........I look up to your superior status.

Im not going to have an online argument with you, you have said your piece and I have said mine, but do me one favour, take ANY of your standard discos to the lake district, do all the lanes up there and see how you get on.