ex mil lwb and civi lwb

Hi guys

can anyone tell me if the suspension on an ex mil lwb landy is the same on a civi lwb landy.

the reason i ask is the door way on my garage measures 7ft 3" high and i plan to fit parabolics at some point and just wondering if it would go in with parabolics fitted.

my disco 300tdi with police spec rear springs just touched the door way so had to drop the tyre pressures before i drove it in, my mates std disco 300tdi went in no probs.

The Military Spec generally had extra heavy duty springs which lifted the tail end slightly.

I might be wrong but I believe the military versions had longer shackles giving around 2" extra lift all round.

uvs166 said:

I might be wrong but I believe the military versions had longer shackles giving around 2" extra lift all round.

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they did exactly that as a mate of mine has fitted MOD springs on the back of his 109 recently and is now altering the garage door to compensate for this

dedication or what

yep they fitted plus 2 all around on military models with hd suspension giving it about 3 inches higher than a civvy 109 and if you go and fit 235s on it they are a bit bigger than deestones as they are 750s albeit slightly small 750s more 700s hope that helps

that is a pic of the font of a military 109 if you look atthe front spring hangers you will see they are not the normal flush with bumper items they are plus 2s

Right cheers for that, the reason i ask is i plan to fit parabolics all round at some point and thought if i end up with a civi lwb by fitting paras all round will the rear stand higher than the front or if i end up with an ex mil lwb and fit paras all round and fit civi rear hangers will the rear stand higher than the front as i don't like it when they have the situp and beg look but if it has to be it has to be i supose

cornish rattler said:

Right cheers for that, the reason i ask is i plan to fit parabolics all round at some point and thought if i end up with a civi lwb by fitting paras all round will the rear stand higher than the front or if i end up with an ex mil lwb and fit paras all round and fit civi rear hangers will the rear stand higher than the front as i don't like it when they have the situp and beg look but if it has to be it has to be i supose

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sorry shackles i meant

no need to change the shackles, the mili' dumbirons/hangers and shackles all have two sets of holes in them to allow you to raise or lower the ride height by about 1.5 - 2"

top holes are lowered, lower holes is raised

the reason for the arse end riding a little higher is to allow for loading, once the weight has been added it should sit level rather than drag it's arse like a dog with worms

are right i see, i don't plan to carry anything heavy in the back just 4 / 5 peeps and luggage for 7 in the back for when i go to my caravan, i do tow a trailer from time to time but its only a moded trailer tent trailer made to carry tight stuff in so not really any weight for an lwb really.

here is a pic of my trailer to give you an idea one pic is as it was before i stripped it and the other is as it is now.

5 people in the back

let's assume they are 8 stone each plus luggage, you are now carrying in excess of 1/4 of a ton

take them up to 10 stone each and you now have 6.25cwt (more than 1/4 ton) plus the weight of the luggage (there is 20cwt to 1ton imperial)

you can almost ignore the trailer as that puts very little weight on the towing vehicle if loaded correctly (notice that i included the word "almost")

NiteMare said:

5 people in the back

let's assume they are 8 stone each plus luggage, you are now carrying in excess of 1/4 of a ton

take them up to 10 stone each and you now have 6.25cwt (more than 1/4 ton) plus the weight of the luggage (there is 20cwt to 1ton imperial)

you can almost ignore the trailer as that puts very little weight on the towing vehicle if loaded correctly (notice that i included the word "almost")

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ok, i was just going off my swb i had with paras all round 3 leafs on the 2 leafs on the front with my old 2.25 petrol engine in the back and the back end hardly dropped.

with the lwb the seating will be behind the rear bulkhead as i want the load space at the very back of the car if you know what i mean

ok pretty much got your idea of loading

the following picture is of my standard van bodied 109 on 8 +2 rear springs loaded up with two firepits, wood, tools, spare 40litres of fuel and assorted camping gear and towing my fully loaded 10foot 1979 CI Cadet on a trip to Wales

thats just how i like to see them when loaded up or towing, what is the ride like when empty and not towing as i am used to having the comfot of parabolics on an swb so i am toying with the idea of either fitting paras and lowering the rear springs on the shackles or fitting std rear springs.

comfort .. a 109 is luxury compared to an 88", my 88" is on para's (1ton shocks all round) with 7.50 crossplies and the ride is still choppy and bloody terrible over speedbumps until i chuck a couple of cwt in the tub

my 109 is on standard leaves/shocks and 7.50 michelin radials but so much more comfortable even when empty, rides over speed bumps without pitching like a manic seesaw and roomy in the cab with space to spare and storage space behind the seat backs big enough to wedge gallon cans in, if the back end breaks away in the wet it's gentle and controllable, i've had it turning donuts off road whilst using opposite lock and the throttle to control the slide not so easy in the 88"

on distance journeys (100+ miles) i can sit in the cab without a need for a break and stretch/cuppa unlike my 88" and that's still got the original 1965 seat squabs in it very tired and worn unlike the comfy, hugging seats in the 88"

once you've owned a 109 for a couple of weeks you'll wonder why you ever thought about owning an 88", my 88" rarely moves out of the front garden and my 109 is now my daily driver right down to going shopping and dealing with supermarket carparks, the 88" is relegated to scratchy aggressive greenlanes, p'n'p pits or chucking damaging stuff in the tub (it's a rough and ready motor)

NiteMare said:

ok pretty much got your idea of loading

the following picture is of my standard van bodied 109 on 8 +2 rear springs loaded up with two firepits, wood, tools, spare 40litres of fuel and assorted camping gear and towing my fully loaded 10foot 1979 CI Cadet on a trip to Wales

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Oh I do like that set up I will definitely have a 2a and old van some time in the future.
you are so right about 109's being a way better ride than a 88, I like 88's but on a long distance trip it has to be a LWB. I did a 10k camping trip in this 2a (all standard springs and shocks) and on the drive down to Marrakesh I did 500 miles a day it would of been an ordeal in a 88 and on the rough tracks just get the right speed and the ride is better than you may think.