I've had my '99 D2 for a little over two weeks now and I'm really enjoying her. I bought her knowing she'd need a lot of attention, so I'm just giving it to her a little bit at a time.

This weekend my son and I replaced the drag link, track rod and steering stabilizer to fix the sloppy steering. It was literally a hour and a half job. We also threw an oil change in since we were under there and I cleaned the XYZ sensor to see if that would keep it from going into the "M & S" limp mode.

While we were under there I noticed that the driver's side ball joints are done like dinner and so I've ordered new ball joints (Up and down, both sides) and will be doing that next.

I haven't gotten the alignment done yet because I don't know if that will need to be re-done once the ball-joints are replaced.

Also, tires... I need new ones, but really don't like the options available with 18" wheels. So I'm looking for some 16" wheels because I like the tire options better with that wheel size (yes I like to go off road).

Any ideas would be appreciated.

 

If you slap a 1-2inch lift on the D2 the OEM 18inch tire size of 255/70R18 is a perfect choice. I've got em on my 99 with a 1inch spacer lift.

 

The ball-joint replacement is sketchy and let me tell you my experience on this:
I replaced mine last summer right after I purchased this 2003. The lower had a damaged boot and I could feel the truck wander when driving over bumps/railroad tracks/ etc. It wasn't too bad of a job but had to fashion some cups and presses needed for the Rover as the pieces in the kit were not the proper size. Know this going in that I have now used 2 different kits and neither one had the proper spec receiver and presser needed. Anyway, the first time I got the old ones pressed-out, new ones in, no problem. I don't remember exactly how everything felt when it was all said and done but I wouldn't have buttoned it all up and called it good if I felt there were any issues.


Moving on...last month I felt my steering get odd so checked it out and although it needed new steering arms (which I am doing today) I noticed the lower ball joint that I just replaced already had a damaged grease boot and was too slack; ordered OEM ball joints this time since the high-dollar NAPA unit didn't last, and rented another kit for $150. So I tore everything down one Sunday afternoon with a couple of hours set aside and when I went to button the steering knuckle/spindle back onto the new ball-joints, it was so tight that it wouldn't even move. Even before I started torqueing the nuts down the spindle was not rotating back and forth. So I left the truck there in pieces, borrowed another car and spent the work-week researching. My original spindle looked fine, OE spec ball-joints, whats the problem here? Every thread that I came across posed no resolution, except back off on the nuts until the spindle would move, put the axle in and calipers back on and rock-on with it. Who in the hell would do that?!? that preposterous. The spindle does have a tension collet threaded into the very bottom. I tried removing that, cleaning the threads up and joining the spindle back up with varying degrees of torque on that tension collet/nut but it made no difference. My first idea was to order a New genuine tension collet (price $55-75, for a NUT) but it was going to take at least 1-week to get it so went with plan-B and got another used spindle from a wrecked unit, that had still had the tension collet, unmolested, in the bottom taper. Now this unit still had the ability to rotate before I started torqueing the nuts to spec. My original would completely lock-up at like 40-ft lbs and you need 100 ft-lb on the top (which is torqued first) and then 80 on the lower ball-joint. Torque the upper first to 100, then the lower to 80. If your spindle isn't moving I would stop and re-examine. Something must not have been quite right with my setup after the initial replacement last year because no ball-joint should have to be replaced again within a year. Just something to watch out for as this issue was a real pain in the *** for me.


To get the universal press to work, I had to take a grinder and cut off about .25-.375 inch of a socket that was larger than the head of the ball joint and the hole it comes through to receive it in the tab. You could also shop for some steel pipe in a size small enough to go through the tabs to press it, and just big enough to receive. What else? Oh, don't mess with the tension collet at all. Rave specifies to remove it, clean threads and run it back in at 3-nm but I only removed it when I knew the spindle wasn't going to go back on as it was. Unless you have a new OEM collet on-hand to try in case your spindle tapers are allowing too much of the ball joint through, then you have no reason to remove the old ones anyway, if you get what I'm saying. I'm off to get my new steering bar assemblies on, send me a message if you want to ask me anything else about this. You also have to be careful removing the ABS sensor. What you want to do is remove the hub and shaft as a unit to get to the spindle; this is the easiest way. but handle the sensor carefully and there is a O-ring that sits down there which is very important to keep track of. Also leave the grease that comes out with the sensor as undisturbed as possible. Easy with the axle coming out so that you don't disturb the axle seal. You have to know that this stuff may give you all sorts of problems, and they apparently don't make the axle seals the way they used to as I have seen a LOT of posts about leaky new oil seals and issues with fitment. You want to keep your original so easy-does-it on everything coming out and then going back in. You can also break the hub loose from the axle half-shaft but that nut is torqued amazingly tight and a decade of rust and corrosion does not help it come loose. I have seen a lot of threads where it may take someone days or a week to get that hub nut off. skip that unless you have the impact/socket/compressor that is up for the task.

 

If you have OBD-2 computer that has live-data function, you will want to plug up and get an idea of the coolant temps in various phases of driving. I don't know about the earlier D2s, but the 03-04s can get up to 240 degrees and the factory temp gauge will be indicating to normal. A lot of Rover V-8s have died due to people referencing these dash gauges. Older cooling-system components and the factory thermostat will allow these trucks to run very hot and you wouldn't know it unless there is a fault somewhere that allows steam to escape and give you a visual cue. Happened to me a couple times that I saw steam and gauge reading normal. After replacements, found threads here on the topic, plugged up and truck is idling just under 220 which is way too hot for these junky blocks. You want to be under 200 as these systems temps swing wildly 10, 20, 30 degrees depending on condition and poorly built, poorly designed top-end and block passages with undersized factory radiator barely copes in optimal condition.

 

Define "done like dinner."

The ball joint rubber boots on my '99 have been shredded for years but there is no play in the joints when tested. The techs at my favorite local Rover specialty shop confirmed that's common. I test them annually at least and plan to keep driving on them until some play in them is detected.

I tackle a lot of things but I've never yet needed to do ball joints. And then there's chubbs' story above. I've read other horror stories too. Sounds like you know what you're doing but when its time for mine I'll take the truck to Performance Rovers in Indian Trail.

 

Where are you located? I have four 245/75R16 Cooper Discoverer S/Ts for sale, mounted on Mirage wheels. The tires are in good shape with most of the tread left.

 

I'm in Utah near Salt Lake City. And am very interested!

 

This makes me want to reconsider the ball joints I purchased from O'Reilly Auto.

 

The boots are shredded, and while I wasn't able to really induce play with a pry bar, when I pulled out of the drive after doing the work the first thing I heard was the tell tale "clunk clunk" of a worn ball joint.