Ride quality??

Now I realise that this will seem a stupid question unless I say that i have owned landrovers for 20 years and have grown up with them since I was 4.

I've just bought a 2010 110 crew cab van (so front and middle rows of seats but no seats or windows at the back).

The ride is incredibly strange - shocks are all fine but it is incredibly bouncy. Going down a country road your foot will bounce up and down on the accelerator which with a relatively light pedal on these models causes issues (but not as I say a shock issue as I have recently driven one without shocks having lost both front turrets as a result of the combination of corrosion and a massive pothole).

Is it a known problem with a known solution? I know the obvious answer is to polybush, replace shocks turrets and springs but just interested if there is anything particular / else causing this problem.

Thanks in advance,

Jon

Difficult to diagnose over the net.

Have you been in any like vehicles to get a benchmark comparison on if yours is actually worse?

Bushes may cause clonks and slop, but won't normally make the ride bouncy. Loosing front turrets also sounds highly odd. Yes they can rust, but I know of examples that are 30 years old on the original turrets still.

The spring rate might be intended for hauling heavier loads. Have you tried loading the vehicle up and seeing if it rides better? If you don't plan to haul lots, you could look to running some lighter duty springs. Bouncy however may well suggest knacker shocks, or rather lets call them "dampers", as that is what they do.

What sort of tyre pressures and type are you running?

Thanks for the reply.

Turrets were on a different vehicle - sorry for the confusion. A 1996 that I've used around the farm for the last 10 years so I wasn't surprised that the turrets went.

Tyres are original spec alloys and general grabbers. I am going to swap them anyway as they are at the end of their life and I want to put an offset to try to improve the turning circle which is shocking (always has been since my father owned it).

As for similar vehicles - driven ones older and newer and the ride is completely different which is why I asked the question. The heavy duty springs is interesting though - I'll try a dozen bags of cement in the back and see if it makes a difference.

Ok, so if you have a good benchmark, which it seems you do

Then yes I'd be looking at spring rate and shocks first.

Polybushes as a rule will generally make a vehicle ride harder. Because most polybushes are harder. Although some brands do offer a soft and firm polybush (often different colours). But most people fit stiffer ones.

Worn track rods or steering might make it drive poor, but shouldn't be making it ride badly or bounce. What do the chassis end bushes look like on the front arms? Movement here could make it ride poor, but I'd expect more of a clonk that a bounce.

Thank you - I'll have a look at the chassis bushes.

Heavy duty rear springs? My 110 got them and unless it’s loaded up the back end bounces all over the place over even the smallest speed hump

More weight in the back should improve the ride a lot, they are built to carry a heavy load, I used to drive a Ford P100 pickup that was the same, it was like a bucking bronco and nearly put you through the windscreen when you touched the breaks when unladen but with weight in the back drove and braked very well.

Have you checked your tyre pressures, over inflated tyres give same symptoms?