Clutch and tyre questions - please help.

Hello to everyone, I have some questions about my clutch and tyres.
My Defender is a 110 300 TDI Two Door Hardtop RHD MY 1997.
Would appreciate every sincere answer especially from those from you with personal experience.

A) Clutch - Unfortunately mine is DAMAGED:

1) Are the clutch cover assembly, clutch pressure plate, clutch plate, clutch central bearing, the flywheel and the clutch release fork the same on all Defenders, Discoveries and Range Rover Classics fitted with a 300 TDI engine?
Should I modify something in order the new clutch to be installed?
I am asking this because the previous owner has mounted a 300 TDI engine from a Discovery with code 21L and number 61023A whereas the original 300 TDI Defender engine was with code 23L.
My Gearbox is R380 with number 56A.0529573J.

2) I use my Defender for expedition offroad fully loaded to its capacity maximum (as prescribed) from 3050 kg.
Taking this in mind what would you recommend me to buy:
a) a Genuine Land Rover Heavy Duty clutch kit and clutch parts or

b) some other brand ?

If the last which brands offering Heavy Duty Clutch Kit would you recommend from your own experience?
Are there brands with better quality than the Genuine Land Rover Heavy Duty one?
Which brands should I definitely avoid because of poor quality?


3) Are there any other parts that I am obliged to replace when changing the clutch - bearings, bushes, bolts, clips, clutch release fork?

4)There are two types of offered Genuine Land Rover clutch plates:
a) 235 mm NORMAL DUTY
b) 245mm HEAVY DUTY
What is the difference between them in terms of vehicle driveability, reliability, torque deliverance (transmission) from engine to gearbox and resistance to wear?

B) Steering Swivels
If one of them gets damaged / broken could it be replaced for its own, or it is obligatory both to be replaced in order to be the same?

C) Tyres
My Defender was sold from the previous owner with 4 numbers of 285/75 R16 General Grabber AT1 tyres fitted with 30 mm wheelspacers. The suspension and axle components are factory standard.

1)Do the size and weight of those 4 tyres cause excessive load and premature wear of propeller and drive shafts, hub wheel bearings, steering swivels and the bearings of the steering swivels?
When I am fully loaded and in offroad environment is there a danger of premature breakage of all components mentioned above while climbing a steep hill or driving through very deep mud and/ or snow with fitted snowchains on every wheel.

2) I am considering to buy offroad tyres in the future.
Which tyres in general give the Defender a better passability (negotiability) when offroad - thin (skinny) or wide (fat) ones?
Which one do you recommend from your own experience and why?

Thank you in advance for your answers.

Regarding tyres I would recommend going for the standard factory dimensions 235/85 16. Large tyres cause all sorts of problems...well at last they did for me and mine werent even particularly big. For a mud tyre I would use BFG mud terrain. I had them on a previous D2 and they were great plus perfectly divadle on motorway. Theyre not good on ice or compacted snow. I currently have BFG at on my defender.

Lof clutches for all your clutch needs. Wouldnt reccomend anyone else.

Tyres BF and Cooper are very good. Mines a daily but also used off road and bit of expedition bits. Love my Cooper ST Maxx's bit like an aggresive all terrain, never let me down.

A1) I believe all clutches are the same throughout the range for all of the pre-td5 4 cylinders

A2) I would definitely fit heavy duty, all parts not just the clutch plate, and I would use genuine/OEM for the clutch. For mine it is valeo (200tdi/LT77) and I have the heavy duty 130 version fitted (UQB000130G, URB100760G) which is larger diameter and has more center springs. I have only ever used the OEM Valeo but plenty of people are using the bitpart heavy duty kits with no issue as well.

A3) If you are going to the effort of changing the clutch, I would also change the spigot bush, clutch plate and cover, release bearing (there are all aluminium HD versions available: FTC5200HD) and fork (FTC2957HD), make sure you use a heavy duty arm to prevent the puch rod punching through. The arm should come as a kit with the little plastic clip for the push rod, which then wants a couple of cable ties adding to it as well.

A4) In terms of driveability I have not noticed any difference, but some people report a bit more judder as you take up drive.

B) I assume you are referring to the swivel balls on the end of the axle, these do not need to be replaced as a pair and can be done individually. If the ball itself is not damaged, you can get rebuild kits with the bearings/bushes and seals to rebuild the existing swivel ball. Again these can be done individually rather as a pair if the other side is in good condition.

C2) The larger the wheel the more strain there will be on the drive line components, but This also depends on driving style. If you are careful the increased strain should not cause failure

C2) the answer to this very much depends on the terain and the conditions, In snow and sand wide is far better as it gives an increased footprint in creasing grip and preventing sinking, in mud potentially skinny is better to cut down to more solid terrain underneath. I Have 265/75/16 on mine and which are a farily good all round size and were a factory standard size later in the production run. My preferance would be for these or the 235/85/16 mentioned which were also a factory size. personally your current ones I would suggest are a little large and not being a standard size will be more difficult to source replacements for when out on expedition. In terms of brand I would recommend BFG, I run their at's and cannot fault them, If i did less road mileage I would run the BFG mud terrains.

Thanks to all a lot.
Now it will be much easier for me choose the right stuff.
(Sorry for responding SOOO LATE , but for a long time I lived in a remote area with no access to the Internet)

Dag019 has given a spot on answer, and is what i would say.
i fitted the 130 HD clutch and did all those others bits, it all fits. cluthc is a bit heavier but its bombproof now