How to stop wheels hitting inner arch

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2

200sx

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Location
Hampshire
Hey guys,

started using the discovery for off road recently but having an issue where my tyres hit the inside of rear arches and tear the inner arches to bits.

would extended bump stops fix this problem? I know a lot say extended bump stops aren’t used to reduce articulation

anything else I can do? I’ve already cut arches out as much as I can and it’s the actual internal bodywork of arch it’s hitting. I don’t really want to go smaller tyres either. Running 265/75 R16

cheers guys
 

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I assume you've got modular steel wheels on the rear ?
They don't help as they put the outside edge of the tyre too far out to avoid contact unless you run narrow tyres
Where is your contact ? At the top, or front or back ?

I run 235/85 x16s Insa Special Tracks (same pattern as you by the look of it and the same overall diameter) on standard D2 Commercial steel rims & have no tyre contact at all - even at full articulation or full bump while competing in off-road trials (with standard bump stops).

Extended bump stops might help - but obviously will reduce your suspension travel & articulation. They might even come into contact when driving over speed bumps - dependant on how stiff your springs & dampers are.
 
Sorry, should have said I have a 2 inch lift, but didn't have contact either with previous 1 inch lift.
I have pretty soft springs too (200 lb/ in), well below "Medium Duty" stiffness.
 
The point is, if you have easily compressible springs then the wheel will go flying up into the wheel arch and if you don't have lift cones in and/or a lift then contact will happen.
You need to mess around with jacks, on each corner and see how far up each wheel goes into the arch when you lift that end of the axle, at each position of the front wheel(s) when you put a lot of weight on that corner, to simulate it being bumped over summat. But you then need to make an allowance of it going even further up as just sitting on the wing isn't the same as mobile movement.
You need to decide what you're going to use the car for. Then tune the suspension for that use. No one setting will always be right for more than one type of use.
I like really firm suspension with stiff anti roll bars for road use, but that would be cr@p for serious off road. For example.
Personally I think changing the bump stop is like sticking an Elastoplast over a serious wound. It will work for a bit but it will put extra strain on the chassis where they are fitted and the rubber tends to fall off for a pastime anyway.
Back to the drawing board at least for a bit, unless you just simply take the advice given above and change the tyres.
Best of luck with it.
 
The wheels are hitting the back/rear side of rear inner arches

I believe I have a 2 inch lift on heavy duty springs

I only use for off road

no anti roll bars fitted
 
Pawl said:
I assume you've got modular steel wheels on the rear ?
They don't help as they put the outside edge of the tyre too far out to avoid contact unless you run narrow tyres
Where is your contact ? At the top, or front or back ?

I run 235/85 x16s Insa Special Tracks (same pattern as you by the look of it and the same overall diameter) on standard D2 Commercial steel rims & have no tyre contact at all - even at full articulation or full bump while competing in off-road trials (with standard bump stops).

Extended bump stops might help - but obviously will reduce your suspension travel & articulation. They might even come into contact when driving over speed bumps - dependant on how stiff your springs & dampers are.
Click to expand...
D2 will generally flex less than a D1, as the Watts linkage and rear radius arm setup don't have the same travel as the A-arm on an RRC/D1/Defender.
 
200sx said:
The wheels are hitting the back/rear side of rear inner arches

I believe I have a 2 inch lift on heavy duty springs

I only use for off road

no anti roll bars fitted
Click to expand...
Extended bump stops are an option. But come at the cost of less up and ultimately less flex, unless they just happen to be the perfect height to just prevent rubbing.

Smaller tyres could be another option.

Else if you want to retain the flex, you'll have to look at making room for the tyre to fit in the inner arch under compression.

A bigger lift IMO is not really a good answer. It may by fluke or bad design solve this issue. But would likely cause other problems.
 
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