Disco 2 Suspension lift and tires

Hi all,
I've just got a 2004 discovery 2 TD5. I've got a D1 at the moment but I want to do some more long distance green laneing and maybe some expeditions as well as some pay and play. The D1 is too slow and unreliable hence why i have upgraded to the D2.
The first jobs is to make it as reliable as possible but the air suspension has decided to fail so I might as well start doing the suspension lift.
I was thinking of putting some 35" tyres on with a 4" lift and a 2" body lift but as reliability is important I think 33" with a suitable lift would be better.
My question is, what sort of lift do I need for 33" tyres on a D2? I don't really want to cut the body work unless I need to. I'm thinking of an old man 2" lift (think that is a good make) with a 2" body lift. I will be building an external cage like my D1 but a bit more basic to keep the weight down. I will also be fitting a front and rear winch so I will need the heavy duty springs.

So you want 6 inches of lift and tyres that are 6 inches taller than stock for a total of 12 inches of lift!!!

And reliability. Personally I’d recommend going back to basics and trying to figure out what it is you need from the Vehcile and why you think such a large amount of lift is on you list of wants.

Certainly for green laning you need none of this. A stock Disco on good tyres should be more than adequate.

Thought some one would say that.
From reading posts on here I'm thinking 35" is a bad idea but I definitely don't want to go less than 33"

Again why?

Not saying you shouldn’t. Just wondering if you know why you think you should?

If you are after the “look” or want to go American style mud bogging then big tyres and too much lift are the norm. But not needed for most U.K. off roading and can often make a Vehcile worse off and on road. And certainly will massively impact reliability and durability in a negative way.

On my D1 I've got 33" tyres so that's what I'm used to. I like going pay and play so 33" is the minimum. I think if it is done right and driven right it can still be reliable.

Hmm, so many variables ... @300bhp/ton is right. Mostly a large lift is not needed for green laning, especially as you're wanting it more for expeditions etc. (Keep the D1 for PnP). Personally I'd fit a rear diff locker, maybe a 2" lift or HD springs with suitable adjustments to steering etc to carry more load.

Dunno why you think a D1 is unreliable, they're fine when maintained. Anyway, As for D2 reliability, check the rear chassis parts for rust, then check again. get it rust treated and keep doing so. As you say you've just got it treat it to a feckin good service, all new everything consumable, oils, filters, bushes, bearings and get someone to check for any fault codes and clear them ... and clear the actual faults of course!

Going with tyres that big will make it unpleasant for long distance on the road. They will also put a hell of a lot of strain on the driveline especially the axles.

That age disco should have traction control and a centre diff lock so just some decent off-road tyres would be plenty for greenlaning without ruining on road enjoyment. Things people always do when modifying vehicle is forget to keep it simple.

I can't keep the D1 and a D2 so I'm going to sell it.
The first things I'm going to the D2 is trying to make it reliable

Things already done.

• injector loom

• Put conduit over front NS wiring and oil switch wire in the engine bay
• PAS fluid change
• Front diff oil checked (good)

• Gearbox oil change

• Engine oil and both filters
• Oil pump bolt and sump gasket
• Fuel filter air filter

• Tighten the drivers window frame
• Rust treat and paint the passages OS and NS window frame
• Remove the tow bar and electrics
• Remove the rear step
• Remove the boot seats
• Replace the interior lights with LEDs
• Clean the MAP sensor with electrical cleaner

Things to do

• Clean and rust treat the chassis
• Underbody sealant and waxoil inside of the chassis
• Replace rear diff pinion seals
  
• Rear diff oil change
• Transfer box oil change
• Change seals on T box
• Seal and clean the ECU

109inches said:

Going with tyres that big will make it unpleasant for long distance on the road. They will also put a hell of a lot of strain on the driveline especially the axles.

That age disco should have traction control and a centre diff lock so just some decent off-road tyres would be plenty for greenlaning without ruining on road enjoyment. Things people always do when modifying vehicle is forget to keep it simple.

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The D1 drives quite well on the road so I'm fine will 33" on the D2 for long distance.
I've got TC but no CDL but I am going to put it in.

Personally, I'd be respecting the advice from @300bhp/ton and @Paul D. They are two of the most experienced off-roaders on the forum. By all means ask questions of them and as long as you listen to them you'll find them most helpful.
The amount of lift you have said you want IMO would throw so much strain on the prop shafts that you'll spend more time changing the U/Js than actually driving the vehicle. Another problem you might come up against is the electronics on the D2. They don't like getting wet you know.

I mean no disrespect it's just me being stubborn on the 33" idea.

I appreciate the advice I'm getting but I really do want to put 33" tires on. Can you advise me the best way to do this.

elliot0850 said:

I mean no disrespect it's just me being stubborn on the 33" idea.

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Are you Td5 or V8 and auto or manual?

Stock gearing will pull 33’s but does affect on road performance quite a bit on any Disco. 35’s will need to be regeared. And will adversely affect your low speed crawl speed in low 1st.

Personally I’m of the school of preferring to keep the Vehcile as low as possible for stability on and off road. And cut the body work to make room for the tyres. Taller tyres will give you all the ground clearance you should need tbh.

Sadly not a great choice of tread patterns but 255/85R16 would probably be a good size to look at. And for price and availability 235/85R16. They aren’t 33” but are a good off road tyre size.

Again not saying don’t go bigger. But bigger means more chance of breaking shafts, diffs and even gearboxes. They also affect gearing and result in worse braking.

Making a vehicle too tall will just make it unstable off road and most times people do it in a way that actually makes them cross axle more easily and usually perform worse off road.

Done right lifts can work well. But it really depends what you actual goal is.

For example these have huge lift:


But they are rubbish on side slopes and don’t do cross axles very well. They are good for faily level ground and deep mud and water.

At the other end of the spectrum you get things like these:


Lots of suspension travel. But you’ll note that most rock crawlers aren’t actuall all that tall. That’s because they need good stability.

I’m the U.K. we don’t really require either end of the spectrum. But mud and rocks and often lots of trees mean we tend to need a mix of abilities.

Arguably vehciles like these represent some of the most capable 4x4’s/Land Rovers in the U.K.


Note that it’s more about moderation and compactness. Tyres are not to big. It’s not overly lifted. But it has sufficient ground clearance to go most places.

It's a TD5 manual

The gearing is something that I thought I would need to change. Not sure if a remap would help or it's just best to change the gearing.
From what I've read and what you have been saying I'm not going to go 35".
I agree with what you are saying about keeping it low for stablebility. But I struggled to chop the back arches on my D1 because of the back doors. We did it on my m8 3 door D1 without any problem.

Hopefully I can get away with a 2" lift so I don't put too much strain on the propshafs and a 2 inch body lift for wheel clearance.

No worries

Post so pics up when you have the bits done. 4.10:1 diffs will help out loads on and off road with big tyres.

If you just want more peppy on road performance a Defender 1.4:1 transfer box will help. But won’t effect low range.

Remap likely to be well worth it.

Btw if you really want to go for 35” tyres. I don’t want to put you off. I just wanted you to understand why you wanted certain things and to understand the impact, both positive and negative of the decision.

I'm interested to know what the unreliability issues are with your current d1?

Hey @elliot0850 have a read through this guys build

https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-rover/gregs-v8-dii-build.299783/

He hasn't been on for a while so I don't know if he's still got it.

Thanks 300bhp/ton
So do I just need to put in eBay Defender 1.4:1 transfer box to get my gearing back. Or do I need the the diff as well. I'm ok with low range on my D1 with 33" tyres.
Thanks

Discokids said:

I'm interested to know what the unreliability issues are with your current d1?

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We have trust issues

elliot0850 said:

We have trust issues

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O.....K.....

Doesn't really answer the question, what's the problem with the d1 causing you to not trust it?