Have an '03 discovery II, used for work and family but want to do some weekend off roading. It has the stock 245/60/18 tires which I plan to continue using for highway use. I found some used 16" disco rims locally, and want to use these for dedicated off road tires. Most trails here in AZ are sand/rocky and since I won't be using them for highway I'm willing to go as agressive as needed. I also would go somewhat larger than stock, something that will work with the lift without rubbing issues. As far as the lift, I routinely haul the family (7) and also use it for work hauling tools. The limiting factor on lift height is appearance with the stock tires. Since I carry weight often, I don't mind a stiff spring. I just don't want it to look goofy with being too tall for the stock tires. I have looked into the terrafirma lifts through atl. british. They list a 2" or 3" lifts with medium and heavy. Any insight appreciated.

 

Terrafirma springs have a rep for sagging prematurely. OME springs are generally considered better quality, but their spring rates are slightly softer. Stiff OME springs are equivalent to medium Terrafirma. I believe the constant payload of the stiff OME springs is around 150lb. So if you don't intend to haul more than that on either end of the vehicle at all times they are plenty stiff for you.

 

That being said, even a 2" lift looks goofy to me with stock size tires. Ive seen d2's with a 2" lift and aggressive tires in Stock sizes and it looks...meh.... But better than stock size touring tires.

 

How much tread have you got left on the tires? Personally I think a Disco at stock height even looks a little goofy on stock tires. Lifted triples the effect. Just my opinion though, your ride.

If you're looking at Terrafirma then you're probably on a budget. It's my personal opinion that you can do better for the money. If it were me, I'd buy a set of Moog 580 springs for the rear ($85 or so on Rock Auto) and move your rear springs to the front. That should net you 3-3.5" in what OME would call a heavy spring rate, or what TF would call a medium spring rate. Then I'd spend the money I saved over the TF kit on a good pair of shocks.

I'm planning on doing a write up on exactly that in the next month or two when I replace my rear spacers with the Moog springs. The only quirky part will be getting an extra set of front spring plates to go on the rear to accept the tangential bottom springs.

I will say this is untested so far, but all the spring specs match up and I trust Moog parts more than Terrafirma/AllMakes/Britpart parts.

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Just go wth the 3". The small difference between the 2" and 3" opens up so many more options down the road when you decide you want bigger tires, steel bumpers etc.

You will not regret going with the 3".

 

The small difference here equates to far more initial investment, to do it correctly. Radius arms, cross member delete/spacing, adjustable Panhard, etc. Even with 2" there's a notable steering effect as a result of the castor change.

 

I have read this many, many times. I've had stock, 2" and 3". Its simply not true that radius arms, cross member delete/spacing ( first time I've heard that one actually), adjustable panhard etc needs adjustment. Over 4" of lift via coils, I can understand the need for some other modifications. But these aren't track cars. If you wanted to get your steering characteristics to EXACTLY stock I guess you could do some of the things you mentioned but it'd be overkill. The Land Rover Discovery is perfectly drivable with 3" of lift via coils. Hell, I doubt anyone on this forum besides one or two outliers has done anything like what you have mentioned for a 3" lift.

 

i had to remove my cross member with a 2" lift after using adequate length shocks and extended lines. driveshaft was hitting it when it drooped.

and like i said, there was a noticeable difference in caster angle with only 2". personally im not fond of the shopping cart effect at highway speed and can only imagine how much it would be exacerbated by another full inch of lift. there's also a measurable offset of the front axle when the truck is at rest, ive yet to remedy this with a panhard because it doesnt seem to crab walk visually and the tires are wearing fine.

ive also seen a 3" terrafirma lift that had been installed for a couple years. fender well gap was nearly identical to my OME 2" coils. possibly why " 3 inch" lifts don't cause most people issues, because they sag.

if/when i decide it jump up to larger tires and stronger running gear, ill go strait to a 4" and all that that entails. IMO that's how it should be done. either go 2" and have fun on 32's whithout issue forever, or spend the money and go with a 4".

 

To each his own. In my experience the 3" RTE coils are perfectly well mannered on the road even with 33" tires. The advantages of going with 3", in my experience, are worth the extra... wait there is no extra cost!!

 

Eh, I'm with Frank on this one. I'm on 3.5" w/ 33s. The steering is a little twitchy, but far from a bar driving experience. Especially for a lifted truck.

IMO even doing a 4" lift the "right way", you're still going to change the driving characteristics from stock. No two ways about it.

Now, I don't care if someone goes for the 1.5" OME lift, 3" Terrafirma lift, or a 4" RTE lift. I don't gain anything from Amy of them. That said, I'm not gonna try to dissuade someone on a budget from going higher than 2" because if you're used to solid axle trucks it's really not bad.