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Eduardo



Member Since: 28 Aug 2008
Location: Región Metropolitana
Posts: 2110

Chile 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SW Stornoway Grey
Defender 110 - MY2007 Castor angle out of specs
Hi there!

I changed today (well not me, the tire vendor) the front tires of the Defender, after balancing the tires we felt that the car was wobbling a lot more than with the old tires. So I decided to sent it for alignment. They tried to make it, but they found some problems:

1.- The drag link is stuck (cannot rotate) and cannot get a decent alignment given -0.13º and should be 0º +/- 12' and the total convergence is 3' left, 4' right, and should be -5' +/- 5'. The total is 7' and should be -10' +/- 10'. That is the easy part and tomorrow the Indy will try to release the drag link to be able to make the alignment.

2.- Also the castor angle is out specs 5º 29' on the left side and 5º 40' in the right side and should be 3º 15' +/- 45'. As I know This angle is fixed and cannot be adjusted and its set by the axle case/swivel housing. Can I live with this difference, or I should be worried about it and start thinking about replacing some expensive pieces?

The car is still wobbling, less than before the alignment but I still feel uncomfortable with the behavior.
Any other things to check (track rods maybe?) have the castor angle something to do with the wobbling?


Cheers to all Eduardo

MY 2007 110 SW PUMA 2.4: Big Fog of 64'
MY 1994 Jayco 1207 Folding camper: "El Tremendo"

Click image to enlarge
Post #1019492 29th Dec 2023 3:24am
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MK



Member Since: 28 Aug 2008
Location: Santiago
Posts: 2415

Chile 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SW Chawton White
Hi Eduardo

As far as I know the castor angle is given by components located on a vertical planes along the long side of the car. In this case, radium arms and vertical setup of the suspension. As for radius arms check their front bushings (2 on each side). For the latter maybe your springs are shot. You could measure the distance between the axle casing and bump stop. I will try to find the specs for such distances. If your springs are tired, then in the short term you could add some shims under the spring seat or a 8mm thick rubber ring (aka rubberized isolator) on top of them (only front ones). Ass for the rear coils, only shims can be added (at the bottom). If you castor angles at greater than 3 degrees, then this suggests tired coils. Keep in mind the 110" always seats at a small angle inclined towards the front, so if you fix the front end keep an eye how the rear end height as those coils could be tired as well.

However, most of times the wobbling comes from poorly balanced tires and it gets worse at certain speed range.

I guess you guys checked the front tires do not move sideways due to loosen hubs/bearings. As well, check the pivots on the swivel ball are within specs.

My2pc

Edit; http://landrover.narod.ru/engines.pdf Page 16. Puma 110" SW

.............................................................
Earth first. Other planets later


Last edited by MK on 29th Dec 2023 9:31am. Edited 2 times in total
Post #1019498 29th Dec 2023 8:51am
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ickle



Member Since: 22 Jul 2010
Location: South Vendee
Posts: 1782

France 2008 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 CSW Alpine White
Swivel pin pre load can enormously affect wheel wobble and stability.

HTH Keith
Post #1019499 29th Dec 2023 9:03am
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blackwolf



Member Since: 03 Nov 2009
Location: South West England
Posts: 17382

United Kingdom 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 DCPU Stornoway Grey
I fail to see how the drag link can have any effect on your wheel geometry (only on the orientation of the steering wheel). Do you perhaps mean the tie rod rather then the drag link? The tie rod determines toe in.

Agree with the above posts re. the importance of the swivel condition. Worn swivels not only reduce the damping of the steering action but can also change the king pin inclination and hence both castor angle and camber angle, as well as the scrub radius.

A Defender however is not particularly suspension-sensitive and making sure that components are in good condition with no slop is far more important than conformance to theoretical specifications, provided of course that nothing is significantly bent nor accident-damaged.
Post #1019509 29th Dec 2023 10:05am
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Dinnu



Member Since: 24 Dec 2019
Location: Lija
Posts: 3414

Malta 2012 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 CSW Santorini Black
Could it be simply because you have a little more flexibility and volume of rubber?
Did you change tyres like with like, or you changed from AT to MT? 1988 90 Hard Top, 19J Diesel Turbo, Shire Blue - Restoration ongoing
2012 90 CSW, 2.2TDCI, Santorini Black
Post #1019514 29th Dec 2023 10:41am
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Eduardo



Member Since: 28 Aug 2008
Location: Región Metropolitana
Posts: 2110

Chile 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SW Stornoway Grey
Thanks for the comments (I love this forum)!

Several things to check. With 340.000 km in the clock, for sure some wearing is affecting the driving.
I didn't change the tire type (stick always in BFG A/T). The strange thing is that the severe wobbling started after the tire change.
After the change, no vibration is detected, also the car keeps its line if you release the steering wheel.

Regarding the drag link according to the guys there, they need to play with both the track rod and the drag link to get the alignment. At this moment, the track rod is working okay but is not capable of aligning all.

I will check the swivel pin and the shock absorbers to see if the wobbling and castor can be solved.

I will keep you informed!

Thanks again for the fast answers! Eduardo

MY 2007 110 SW PUMA 2.4: Big Fog of 64'
MY 1994 Jayco 1207 Folding camper: "El Tremendo"

Click image to enlarge
Post #1019533 29th Dec 2023 12:43pm
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Eduardo



Member Since: 28 Aug 2008
Location: Región Metropolitana
Posts: 2110

Chile 2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 SW Stornoway Grey
Updating:

Drag link OK now.

All the rod terminals (broken plastic cover) and the Shock absorbers are okay.

Still need to check the swivel pin condition.

The right rear wheel has excessive play (I can move it at least 5-10 mm in each direction). All the bushes in the rear and the wheel bearings were changed some time ago and are in good condition so, according to the Indy, the stub axle is worn and could be the main reason for the wobbling when I come back from turning the steering wheel.

So, the spare is not available here and should be imported (7-8 days) At this time also I will check the swivel pin.

Cheers Eduardo

MY 2007 110 SW PUMA 2.4: Big Fog of 64'
MY 1994 Jayco 1207 Folding camper: "El Tremendo"

Click image to enlarge
Post #1019563 29th Dec 2023 7:29pm
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