Best shocks for my LR 110 overland trip
 

Dear All,

Ok been scratching my head and pacing up and down for the whole of Saturday wondering what I should do....so many differing thoughts on the best way to go but I thought I'd just ask on personal experiences!

So the situation is: 12 months travelling around Africa in my LR110 which will be pretty heavily laden with kit so getting close to 3000kgs. I have LR HD springs with 130 helpers inside and am unsure of the best thing to do about the type of shock absorber to fit.

Two trains of thought really:

1. Fit Old Man Emu shocks as they are the bees knees (subject to a few bad experiences I've heard about) but will cost a small fortune as I have to buy six in all (two spares) and look like costing around £300 for the lot. If one of these fails and the other side goes pretty quickly after, the likelyhood of finding another OME supplier anywhere apart from South Africa is remote potentially leaving me stranded with no simple replacement option.

2. Fit Land Rover shocks (not sure if HD are available from them??) and as they are a standard part it should be fairly easy to pick them up from a LR agent/local garage/vehicle stripper somewhere en route.

Or do people have other suggestions on the best way to take on this problem? Really be good to hear your thoughts!

A confuzzled and frustrated Ben

Just buy 4 of whatever shock you think is the best and take the two best used ones (are front and rear identical?) as spares. There's nothing terrible about using a different shock at one corner; not like using different diameter tires, for instance.
I broke an aftermarket Koni (right rear) in Baja about 6000 miles ago and replaced it with a factory shock. I can't feel too much difference, I certainly don't feel assymetric going over bumps. With a coil sprung vehicle you definitely would feel the absence of a shock.
Also, the absolute "best" shocks are Fox and King racing shocks. They are very expensive, ranging from US$300-1000 each. The also only come with "eye" type mounts (a hole at the top and bottom for a bolt) and limited ranges of length and travel. Check their internet sites if curious.

Charlie

I know the feeling. There is no set brand really.

You need to buy decent shocks really - OME are quite expensive and break just as often as others it seems - so I have always bought Koni's and they seem to do the job ok for about £20 less per shock. I've broken 2 rear shocks in 60,000km in Africa which seems pretty good going. Take 2 rear spares and 1 front spare. You can't drive without a front shock really, but you can manage without a rear one for a while. But it's the rear ones that always seem to break which is good as they are easy to fix compared to the front.

Standard landy shocks won't last unless you at least double them up - but gas is the way to go - a days driving on heavy corrugations will soon set your mind at rest that it was money well spent.

I'm having these babies fitted to the Troopy tomorrow.

4 Way Suspension

I was originally going to go fo this one

4 Way Suspension

but in the end decided against it because the ride will be a bit too harsh. You need a constant load of at least 600kg to justify using the ralphs and they will still be quite rough then.

I'm replacing the whole suspension on the troopy with HD (9+2) leafs at the back and HD coils for the front with the adjustable shocks. I will be taking 2 Monroe shocks for the back (currently in there and brand new anyway) and probably 1 shock for the front. Might also take one coil for the front depending on space.

In terms of cost. The whole lot is costing me AU$ 2300.:eek3: Yes, a lot of money, but hopefully money well spent.:rolleyes2:

fully Agree with everything here - OME are not as special as the hype, although I was happy with mine. Konis give you some adjustability. Don't sweat about being in trouble if on fails as you can put an original on - or a bush mechanic can easy weld your eyes/threaded rod from your broken shock to an old one lying around and not necessarily from a l/r.
Pumbaas shocks do look the biz though! Can I ask what springs you are putting with?
gil

Standard LR oil filled low rate shocks are best and cheapest. Gas cost more and although give you a more controlled ride merely transmit more stress to their mountings and the chassis. Yes LR has tested them thoroughly..........

This discussion has been held before, look through the thread.

Andrew.

They are fitting the Tough Dog coils in the front and also Tough Dog leafs in the back (sometimes rebranded as rockcrawler leafs)

If you look at the product section on the site, you'll be able to see it there.

4 Way Suspension

I'm not sure re the part numbers etc, but it is the heavy duty coils because of the extra weight in the front like dual batteries, winch etc.

The leafs are also TD and for heavy load, ie 9+2 leafs. I will only add the 2 a couple of months before departure.
4 Way Suspension

Speaking to a lot of people here in Oz about different brands of coils and leafs, i came to the conclusion that there's no real difference between the aftermarket brands (IMO). I'm no expert though!!!!

No gas....
 

Yep,

I agree with Andrew, standard oil filled shocks do the trick.

Rob

Gas versus Oil....the debate continues
 

A good set of opinions all round and all based on very personal experiences with different setups and end results.

Darrin - where did you manage to find Koni's for that sort of price and what model are they? my searching has only picked out the ones at Rimmer Bros. - Product Price Information and they come in at £320 ish.

Gas V's Oil - so the deal here is oil are cheaper, offer a lesser ride but transfer less shockforce to the rest of the body which over a 40,000km trip may have negative effects?

Off to search some more......

Ben

shocks
 

I had Koni Heavy Tracks under my Troopy and mistreated them for 60.000 km in Africa and they are still OK!!!! You can even go a step up to Heavy Track Raid! The OME thing is rebranded Monroe shock with some changes. For me nothing else than Koni.

Make sure you buy some good stuf. My Troopy with HD leafsprings does not really utilize the shocks as much as the coilspringed LR. I have seen many LR with blown-up shocks after 400 km of killing corrugations.

Cheers,

Noel
exploreafrica.web-log.nl

Noel - and the best place to but them from in your opinion?

Excellent info, thank you

shocks
 

Can't help you there Ben! As I am not from the UK I don't now the distributer network but I guess you should be able to buy them in the UK too. Have you Googled it yet?

Cheers,

Noel

Whatever you do don't buy from a company called Ed Worthy - they were advertising full Koni range, took my money and didn't deliver... I was heading back to Ghana and assumed they would go to my UK address. 3 months later I am back in UK and no shocks and no refund until I chase them. Total crap. I am currently experimenting with keeping everything as Mr. Toyota designed it with a bit of help from Firestone heavy duty airbags on the rear. Pretty nice ride and if they go pop nothing has really changed to the suspension. Also quite cool to be able to increase and decrease pressures according to load.
Gil

Dont forget
 

To get Castor corrector kit and dampner. Otherwise all that will be a bit uncomfortable for cornering!!!

Prices - Paddocks and Scorpion Racing
 

Paddock Spares or Scorpion Racing do Koni's. Paddocks would be best on price maybe? £46.41 each (£39.50 + VAT). Paddock Spares - Land Rover, Range Rover Parts & Accessories - Discovery, Defender and Freelander

Though from memory, there are a few different kinds, so maybe check with Scorpion as to what model they suggest and then check on the price and compare with Paddocks model and prices etc

Thanks Darrin & Co

Will do some further investigation into the best pricing for my choice! I have found these in the meantime and am seriously considering them?

LANDROVER HEAVY DUTY MONROE GAS DAMPERS DEFENDER 90/110 on eBay, also, Land Rover, Car Parts, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 29-Nov-07 19:38:32 GMT)

Any thoughts or horror stories?

I was told for the extra weight of a overland vehicle, go for koni's - and I knew no better at the time and they seem to work ok

airbags?
 

Gil,

I have been thinking about airbags too on the rear but I have pretty stiff leave sets now. Good for heavy loaded car but seriously bouncing with an empty car. So if I install the air bags I would take a few leaves out and compensate with the air pressure. But the setback would be when a bag pops while travelling and heavy loaded, I am probably left with an sagging suspension on that side which might not be able to take the load. How does that work with you?

How is your rear pack built up, how many leaves curved, how many straight, leave thickness?

Cheers,

Noel
exploreafrica.web-log.nl

They'll leak too
 

I had monroe's on my trans african and Algeria trip.
My rears where shot after 50Kkm (including 25K in Africa). But you won't feel as bad if these shocks start leaking then if it where a pair of OME's (the two cars I came accross with OME's had leaking shocks by the time they where in Ghana, my monroes started leaking in Angola...). Gas shocks don't like currugations. I repleased the monroes with HD oilshocks in Zambia, and they where great. If you want more damping, I'd recommend to mount twinshocks rather then gas shocks.

Rob

yeah - a bit of a dilema Noel! My troopy runs STD toyota suspension (two thick flat leaves and six curved if I remember correct) but with the weight of a kaymar copy and long range tank the ride is good but sagging a little bit. the firestones were cheap compared to new suspension, and are very highly rated by 'troopyoz' owners. my thinking is that the bags spread the weight over three points versus two and thereby making a bag or spring failure fairly unlikely. If a bag was to pop then I could bang some wooden wedges into the spring to try and temporarily cure the sag. Of course leafs are fairly easy to bush repair so extra leaves or re-setting could also be done just about anywhere. I feel the bags are very solidly made ( we use identical bags in varois industrial machines). Early days yet so a bit premature to comment, but the ease of adjustment is super. I have a heavily laden trip to Mali planned in a month so will let you know how they do. Of course one other advantage is that they are reputed (and I can agree already) to reduce body sway - IMHO not a bad thing on a troopy!
Gil

air bags
 

thank Gil, will have to compare the std Toyota's with mine. I think mine are considerably heavier. That's why I am thinking about taking a leaf or two out. Am very interested in the results of your Mali trip.

Bon voyage,

Noel
exploreafrica.web-log.nl

OME ironman
 

Both are excellent. Did UK to CT with OME and all 4 vehicles came back with perfect shocks.

I would use ironmans next time. U can put 400kg in the back and 200kg in the front. With airbags too!

Seems the right way to pack the back for load.

We took OME HD shocks to Africa, 30,000 miles later they were fine. One finally started leaking after a wet winter back in the UK. One or two other people seemed to destroy them but seeing how they drove over corrugations it doesn't surprise me...

As others have said, don't buy 6, take old ones as spare. You can buy OME in Nairobi (High Ratio 4x4 behind the Nakumatt Mega).

Mike

In Egypt now and have been more then 20 months on my Koni shocks (with OME springs) around Asia, Australia and Africa.

No problems at all.

Would recommend Koni at any time

Roel
www.popadd.com/overlandy2006

Mike,

That's what separates good quality shock absorbers from the rest - they don't fade or burst when used in extreme conditions.

I've once driven for a few thousand miles with a set of stock shocks. That was after I had destroyed another set of stock shocks. The difference was I had to drive very carefully and stop before holes or bumps, which was pretty tiring and required always keeping the eyes on the road, not on the views around.

Hi Ben,
I've used and abused Monroe Adv's and am happy enough. Still carrying spares and waiting for them to burst 20k later. The ride is fine.

Tried Konis, also good, especially for on-road handling, but mine did not last long - after 15k 2 out of 4 were leaking. Seemed excessively stiff compared to other shocks when off the vehicle, no matter what the setting, but maybe that's the technology.

I have driven loads off brands.
Driving the Koni HD raids now and have badly mistreated them for 50k km.

for me the best affordable right now.

Scorpion will be the one to contact for the UK.
You can also contact LPI BVBA ask for Guy

Just go with LR standard
 

I drove my 110 from Manchester to Cape Town in 2006 and took 12 months to do it. My Landy was fitted with HD springs and standard shocks and they lasted until Swakopmund, approx 53000km later. I confess, it made a huge difference to change the shocks in Swakop (to standard gas Gabriels). But I know these need to be changed again now as they haven't lasted as well.
My Landy, fully laden, weighed in at just short of 3 tons. You'll be fine. Stop worrying about kit and get on the road.
Enjoy!

On Defender 90:

In Morocco one my new rear Koni's just snapped near top eye when driving off the road with high articulation -- probably it was my own stupidity, I used red PolyBush and perhaps top eye was over tightened so the shock had too little side play. I don't recomment red PolyBush to anyone -- too rigid and they put additional strain to hardware.

I got Monroe Adventures as replacement in Morocco and put a pair to rear, left Konis in front. Monroes are not as good as Konis (also cheaper), they are softer and after 40K km of African small roads they still worked but looked quite worn compared to Konis. Monroe is also shorter when fully extended.

At the moment I have full set of Bilsteins (good price from Paddock) and they seem similar to Konis.

I run Oram shocks but used to run Koni.

Here's a pic of the Koni and the Koni HT
http://imagehost.vendio.com/a/365341..._Koni_HT_1.jpg

and one with the stock LR shock
http://imagehost.vendio.com/a/365341..._Koni_HT_2.jpg

Koni Heavy Track
 

From Koni catalogue I have got impression that Heavy Track is only available for new TD5 Defender. Is there a difference between TD5 and 300TDI shocks/mounts? From your picture the rear shock looks like it will fit 300TDI also.

Not sure since the 110 was only imported for one year in the US. One of our customers has the HTs on his 5.0 liter 110 which he uses to race in the desert. He says it's one of the strongest shocks he has raced with.

I will find out if it'll fit a 300TDi.

No problem - If they are listed for a TD5 they will fit any other 90/110 or Defender model, nothing has been changed since they came out in the early 80's.

Differences between 110 Td5 rear shock mounts and earlier 110s
 

The Td5 110 rear axle has shock bush retaining cups fixed to the lower shock mounting on the axle. On earlier 110s, there were no cups fixed to the mounting points.

You can use Td5 Spec rear shocks on an earlier 110, but you should use the standard earlier bushes and dished washers at the bottom mount. No problems at the top mount.

Hope this helps,

Regards,

Diff

Best shocks for overland
 

I did 56000 kms through Africa in a 110 on standard LR shocks (doubled up at the back). I would certainly recommend this approach.

Some of it depends on how you drive of course, you punish them - they fail and punish you. I take it very easy on the gravel roads, seen too many rolled vehicles.

Can't believe how expensive some of these shocks are especially when they seem to break just as often on seriously bad roads. Keep it simple is a useful premise for overlanding.

Quite a few people have said to me if you use double shocks at the rear you can use standard lr's. Also double at the front if you like.

Paul at Footloose told me that he likes to fit dual rear shockers (ome I think) as it helps with cornering - many of his customers go straight from a snazzy road car to owning a kitted out 4x4 and setting off within a few months so don't appreciate how unbalanced they are etc

If you drive carefully and have a light vehicle and some luck you can get away with (or achieve) a lot. It's just those days when your tired and aren't concentrating that will deliver the sucker punch. Or not.

There isn't any hard and fast rule as we all drive differently over different terrain at different speeds at different times of the year carrying different loads in different places in our different vehicles and equally importantly the state of our springs, bushes, tyres, steering damper, lift kits etc all play a part.