ome suspension

simonk23 · Sep 9, 2007

i just installed ome coils, shocks and a steering dampener and now i notice the steering wheel is no longer centered, it is turned a little to the left in order to drive straight. does this mean i need a wheel alignment? thanks

one more problem, when i get the rover muddy the abs light comes on sometimes and the abs won't work but then it will work when i apply just a little pressure to the brake, is this caused by mud because when i clean the underside things seem to go back to normal or do i have a faulty sensor or something else.

cipx2 · Sep 9, 2007

Every time you change a part involved in suspension or steering, regardless genuine or other, it must be followed by an alignment check. And this includes the wheels themselfs (tyres especially).

Try to push back all ABS sensors and then check wires/connectors leading to them. If these not cure the problem it's better to have the fault code read, it saves time and (possibly) money.

slob · Sep 9, 2007

cipx2 said:
Every time you change a part involved in suspension or steering, regardless genuine or other, it must be followed by an alignment check. And this includes the wheels themselfs (tyres especially).

quote]

what a load of crap, if your steering wheel is off centre either take it off and re-centre it or takethe shaft off at the box and re-centre it. as fer getting yer alignment checked every time you change tyres...
what a load of parp

cipx2 · Sep 9, 2007

slob, there are some typo errors in your message. you forgot [ and ] before and after "what a load of crap" and also [/ and ] at the end. feel free to edit your message ...

I already explained on this forum why adjusting the steering wheel by removing it is not the proper method to solve this kind of problem. Just take a peek on my previous posts. Same thing applies for messing up with any other joint between the steering wheel and the drop arm. It's all in the service manual. Read it before saying or doing otherwise.

As for the good practice of checking the wheel alignment after changing steering/suspension parts (and I don't mean 2 bolts or 2 bushes on both sides), it's something you can read in any automotive tech training manual. For example, hope I'm not mistaking, it's in the Disco 3 tech training manual as well (available on another forum).

Checking the wheel alignment after fitting a new set of tyres it's a very good practice. I don't mean you should do that when switching between the mud tyre set for the weekend and back to the road tyre set after that. I mean when buying a new set of wheels.
I won't bother to explain why. There are too many places on the net where people complain about their cars dragging to a side after fitting new tyres, they are advised to check the alignment and this proves to be the problem. Not mentioning that on an old and used set of tyres is difficult to spot misalignment issues (like a toe in/out out of specs from a very slight bent track rod) and my guess is nobody loves to spot them on the brand new set.
Spending 400 pounds for a set of BFG's and not spending another 10-15 quid (this is what I pay) for an alignment check and for the peace of mind that comes with it would be like buying a brad new car and not insuring it.

As for why the steering got "shifted" after changing the springs, the answer depends on:
- how old and what condition were the old springs in and when the last wheel alignment was done (related to their life), and
- something "written" between the lines when you read this (if you're familiar with the language, that is): land rover spring specifications

slob · Sep 9, 2007

cipx2 said:
slob, there are some typo errors in your message. you forgot [ and ] before and after "what a load of crap" and also [/ and ] at the end. feel free to edit your message ...

I already explained on this forum why adjusting the steering wheel by removing it is not the proper method to solve this kind of problem. Just take a peek on my previous posts. Same thing applies for messing up with any other joint between the steering wheel and the drop arm. It's all in the service manual. Read it before saying or doing otherwise.

As for the good practice of checking the wheel alignment after changing steering/suspension parts (and I don't mean 2 bolts or 2 bushes on both sides), it's something you can read in any automotive tech training manual. For example, hope I'm not mistaking, it's in the Disco 3 tech training manual as well (available on another forum).

Checking the wheel alignment after fitting a new set of tyres it's a very good practice. I don't mean you should do that when switching between the mud tyre set for the weekend and back to the road tyre set after that. I mean when buying a new set of wheels.
I won't bother to explain why. There are too many places on the net where people complain about their cars dragging to a side after fitting new tyres, they are advised to check the alignment and this proves to be the problem. Not mentioning that on an old and used set of tyres is difficult to spot misalignment issues (like a toe in/out out of specs from a very slight bent track rod) and my guess is nobody loves to spot them on the brand new set.
Spending 400 pounds for a set of BFG's and not spending another 10-15 quid (this is what I pay) for an alignment check and for the peace of mind that comes with it would be like buying a brad new car and not insuring it.

As for why the steering got "shifted" after changing the springs, the answer depends on:
- how old and what condition were the old springs in and when the last wheel alignment was done (related to their life), and
- something "written" between the lines when you read this (if you're familiar with the language, that is): land rover spring specifications

if every i've heard a whole lot of therorectical **** thats it.. it may be written down somewhere but it bears no resemblance to what happens in real life. am sure there's very few folk that get their steering checked after getting noo tyres and even less that have problems with it afterwards.

maybe you do need to alter it some another place according to th ebook but if it not pulling to one side , and you have an equal number of turn from straight ahead to each lock then do it at the steering wheel.

cipx2 · Sep 9, 2007

This steering wheel adjustment issue is not one of those theoretical mambo-jumbo. If this time you simply rotate the steering wheel and do that a couple of more times, presumably in the same direction, (once because you replaced the track rod ends and another time after you hit a rock) you will end up with two things:
- increased steering play in the middle (when the wheels are straight) - i think everybody knows or noticed that the steering wheel play increases towards either side deadlock points - it has something to do with the way the steering box is constructed (the worm)
- there will be a noticeable difference in how the steering will centralize itself after a left turn compared with a right turn.

In this case, the purpose of a wheel alignment test would be:
- check if the front axle is parallel and in line with the back axle; for example, if the front axle shifted sideways, the result would be that the back wheels won't run in same tracks as front wheels; if the front axle is not parallel with back one it's obvious why the steering wheel became missaligned.
- i don't know what kind of ome springs are involved here but, regardless of that, the castor angle needs to be checked
- if everything is fine, adjust the drag link rod to where the wheels are straight and steering wheel is in the middle; test drive and readjust until happy with the result.

So, an alignment test is required not only to deal with the steering wheel issue but, more important, to determine what happened with the front axle, what caused this steering wheel misalignment, if it is in its correct position or not.
It's all about working on the cause of problem and not on the effect.

CharlesY · Sep 9, 2007

slob said:
maybe you do need to alter it some another place according to th ebook but if it not pulling to one side , and you have an equal number of turn from straight ahead to each lock then do it at the steering wheel.

It's the K I S S syndrome every time for me.

Keep It Simple, Stupid.

Interfering with perfectly satisfactory wheel alignment on a Landy with a bloody big beam axle is a great idea - but only if you're the one getting paid for doing it.

"Leave well alone". This actually means, "if it's well, leave it alone".

More people die at the hands of their doctors than from any other cause.

More needless grief is caused to cars (and billed to owners) by garages.

Keep calm! Don't go looking for trouble or you may find some, and even if not, you will get an invoice.

CharlesY

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