Mondo / 2 WD

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gavmoulds said:
Hi all...just wanted to say...removed my rear drive components yesterday. 52 TD4, 130,000.
Guess what......I did not use a jack or axle stands. It was relatively easy. There are absolutely no adverse effects and in fact overall as a road vehicle it is miles better.

No wheel spinning. If this is happening then you are driving like a lunatic and thrashing your car to death.
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LOL, you spent 24 hours with it in the dry and you think it won't wheelspin ever. Its fine in the dry when pointing in a straight line, you really have to wear thick shoes or just stomp the peddle in general to get a squeak from it. But in the wet.... it goes.... and it goes easily. It'll also do it if you accelerate over a drain cover, over a speedbump, while cornering on occasion.
 
I found mine was terrible in the wet and if the road was slightly greasy downright dangerous. Having said that I have fairly well worn AT tyres fitted so my experience my have been worse than some.
The other issue was chronic understeer at even average cornering speed in the wet.

But then again I do drive like a hooligan/lunatic most of the time so maybe to be expected.
 
maybe tyhe comparison with a focus, is because of the company who owns both Ford and JLR???
apparently the later Jags are based on ford running gear... although Mondeo if the rumour mill is correct.
 
Ford were the previous owners and are responsible for a lot of the blingy (is that a word) stuff that they are churning out now.

Not for me,I don`t even like the facelifts.
 
I found front wheels locked up much more easily in the wet too! Also never noticed any real improvement in mpg in the mondo year I had! I just thought it was pants really
 
krisboats said:
LOL, you spent 24 hours with it in the dry and you think it won't wheelspin ever. Its fine in the dry when pointing in a straight line, you really have to wear thick shoes or just stomp the peddle in general to get a squeak from it. But in the wet.... it goes.... and it goes easily. It'll also do it if you accelerate over a drain cover, over a speedbump, while cornering on occasion.
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Hasn't happened.... its been p........ing down and not a slip. As previously mentioned, people must be driving very hard.
 
gavmoulds said:
Hasn't happened.... its been p........ing down and not a slip. As previously mentioned, people must be driving very hard.
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ages ago , had to remove my prop for a short while , was getting the front prop bearing repaired

only got Bridgestone duellers fitted , found it lighter on the steering whilst in 2wd, but that may have just been physiological, but never experienced any wheel spin either
 
gavmoulds said:
Hasn't happened.... its been p........ing down and not a slip. As previously mentioned, people must be driving very hard.
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On the flipside, maybe you just drive like an old man. I mean, it did take you 7 years to do this from when you first asked and you saw massive fuel economy gains in 24 hours when nobody else see's it over very extended periods of time. Either you're a muppet, or a troll.
 
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I'm in mondo mode at the mo and can't wait to get my prop back on. Having a 2 wheel drive car, in my opinion, is pointless..... 4WD till I die!

anyway, I have my road tyres on at the mo and it handles like crap in the wet, not so bad in the dry, and fuel is roughly the same.

I will put my nobblies on this weekend and have a drive about and see how that compares (hopefully I won't crash it).

In the meantime I will drive my disco :)
 
krisboats said:
On the flipside, maybe you just drive like an old man. I mean, it did take you 7 years to do this from when you first asked and you saw massive fuel economy gains in 24 hours when nobody else see's it over very extended periods of time. Either you're a muppet, or a troll.
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Exactly. 24 hours isn't enough to say.
A.
It doesn't wheel spin ever.
Trust me a 1.8 petrol will spin it's wheels quite easily. The V6 in Mondo is virtually undriveable in the wet, without caution and still it spins at junctions.
B.
It's better on fuel without the props.
I did extensive testing and MPG monitoring over 12,000 miles on MY V6 Freelander. I did 6,000 miles with the props/ VCU fitted and 6,000 without the props/VCU fitted. Without the props, MPG was better, but by a tiny 0.15 MPG. Most of that gain is likely due to reduced weight removing some 30Kgs of metal from the car.

The Freelander was designed to be used as a 4X4 and is better for it.

Unless someone can scientifically prove to me more conclusively than my own testing showed, I'll stand by the statement above.
 
I don't know if its scientific but the amount of wheel spin is probably down to engine and driving style. Our L Series has been 2WD for 2 years and I don't (as in never) get wheel spin on tarmac regardless of whether its wet or dry. The only time I've had the wheels spin is on gravel - and then not often. I though do tend to drive the car 'softly' - some may say like a grandad, but if anyone cuts this grandad up, after I've got back in front of them (which takes a lot of effort and engine noise in the L Series), they usually end up getting a windscreen full of good old Rover smoke!. My wife on the other hand does get some wheel spin in the same car - but she tends to hit the gearstick, throttle and clutch hard - in a "its either on of off" way.

I always say that Freelander in 2WD is just like any other 2WD car - but that's probably not quite true as I'm sure 1st gear is a bit lower than "normal" - so more likely to induce spin.
 
GrumpyGel said:
I don't know if its scientific but the amount of wheel spin is probably down to engine and driving style. Our L Series has been 2WD for 2 years and I don't (as in never) get wheel spin on tarmac regardless of whether its wet or dry. The only time I've had the wheels spin is on gravel - and then not often. I though do tend to drive the car 'softly' - some may say like a grandad, but if anyone cuts this grandad up, after I've got back in front of them (which takes a lot of effort and engine noise in the L Series), they usually end up getting a windscreen full of good old Rover smoke!. My wife on the other hand does get some wheel spin in the same car - but she tends to hit the gearstick, throttle and clutch hard - in a "its either on of off" way.

I always say that Freelander in 2WD is just like any other 2WD car - but that's probably not quite true as I'm sure 1st gear is a bit lower than "normal" - so more likely to induce spin.
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I had an L series a few years ago and I think it may have been the slowest accelerating car I've ever driven especially it you don't get the revs up before dropping the clutch. Probably just as well as if I remember correctly it also had the worst brakes.
So lack of wheel spin in an L series is no surprise.
 
The only difference I see on mine (other than wheel spin) when running mondo is it's ability to roll. The road outside me house has a very slight slope on it. If the prop/vcu is fitted then it won't roll when the tyres are at the correct pressure. If I give it a slight push just to get it moving it will roll but it stops itself. If I remove the prop/vcu then it will start rolling by itself very slowly without needing to push it. The prop/vcu weight is lateral weight so only about 10% of it's physical weight when pushing it. When allowed to roll it had stopped slowly with the handbrake oft, then switched the engine oft so there's no vibrations willing it to move, just natural gravity with no wind. We know the front/rear wheels fight each other due to the ratio's, if the tyres are the correct pressure and all the same. It's this resistance of the tyres fighting which I think is the small difference peeps see in fool economy. It's not significant and can be lost easily if competing in the traffic light grand prix just once rather than normal acceleration.
 
Just as I expected.......a complete bunch of toss replies. I have no reason to come on here and lie. Further I do not deserve the insults from those of you who take ownership and decide theta everyone else is wrong. I really thought the input would be a refreshing alternative to the usual negative attitude towards something different...........someone stated that a 2 wheel drive car is ' pointless' well I am sorry but your opinion is pointless. I have reported the facts as I found them. If you don't like it the you are clearly in the wrong place. In future my findings will be kept completely to myself and you people can carry on living within the secular world in which you believe.
I CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY YOU FEEL THE NEED TO BE SO RUDE.
 
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