Ok, so I wanted to write and introduce myself and my rover. I purchased a 2005 se v6 rover three weeks ago with 129k on the clock. I've built three land cruisers and enjoyed a good deal of overlanding experience in Montana and the western states. Just moved to Tennessee this past year and decided to finally switch over to the rover fold. I've always watched from a distance and loved their abilities as well as comfort.

So that being said I got a pretty good deal on the rover. Thankfully due to you guys and this site I was able to point out so many small issues i got them down quite a bit on cost. I grew up in an auto shop and I'm an engineer so I'm pretty handy but i'm already learning I need to ask questions.

Anyway on to the tech;

The few things I noticed right off was the airbag light on the dash is on, there is a driveline noise, and a back window doesn't roll down at the drivers switch.

First thing I did was change all diff fluid in hopes I could diagnose the noise, nothing changed there. The fluid was very dark and the drain plugs were covered in a gummy substance and metal shavings, nothing crazy but a good deal of it. So i moved on to the transfer case, still no change in the noise.

Goal: Build a capable over landing vehicle that can take the family to remote locations. Not building a rock crawler. I want a comfortable ride for the week that is good on a mild trail to get to places i couldn't with a car...

wins:

1. I took apart the window switch and found a shorted connection, cleaned it up and added some dielectric grease and now she works great.

2. I cleaned the MAF sensor and Throttle position sensor. Both helped level out the idle.

3. Added some lift rods to give it a better stance, will post updated pics tomorrow. Looks good but caused another concern.

Questions:

1. Where should I go next? Transmission? It seems to shift well. Any other ideas on how to diagnose the culprit?

2. Any idea on the airbag? I found a few threads on a spring connection in the wheel. Is there an issue with the airbag to remove? safety wise

3. The new lift rods caused some handling issues. It is terrible on curves now and has twice pushed through a turn into the other lane. Scared the **IT out of the wife. Is this normal? I've look everywhere on the forum and can't find a good thread. No alignment has been done but it didn't look like it needed it.

4. Not sure how i feel about springs over airbags. I'm very used to springs on my other trucks. The ride of the truck seems very unstable and floats all over. It was better before the lift rods but still there. Is this normal on this suspension?

List of things to do.

1. Replace headlight switch with auto option ( If possible )
2. Fart fan issue resolved
3. Build shelf setup for cargo area
4. Get rack for roof
5. build rear tire swing out
6. add winch to front bumper
7. add aux input in front dash ( working on tracking the input line on the back of the radio )
8. Figure out the movement in the drivers seat at stops and go's
9. buy an ODII setup or replace suspensions with springs.

Ok, I won't write all my thoughts but these are a few for now… Note for others, the muffler mod does not work on a v6. I woke up most my neighbors a few nights ago, good lord it is loud and not in a good way. Back to the old setup until I can figure out how to quiet it down after the muffler.

 

You need to get an alignment with the new height rods. Your car shouldn't wander over like that. How are your control arms, tie end rods? Does the truck knock going over small bumps?

 

It does knock but I assumed it was the strut attached to the air bag but from what I am reading it seems that wouldn't be the case. Are the airbags in fact the dampener and spring?

What would cause the knock? i've jacked up the truck and pulled on the tires to check for any movement and honestly i can't find any.

 

IMO if you have a bad diff, changing the fluid is not going to make the noise go away, new fluids cannot unfortunately cure these things. The change can however string you along for a while until you can budget in a replacement.

Unless your whole suspension is breaking, keep the airbags for now. Fix other stuff first. Also, I'd recommend using an IID tool over rods, since they cause more issues and do less (tool fixes way more things).

Alignment is very important. Do one, especially if using rods.

Knock in suspension is usually either front lower control arm bushings gone bad, or bad sway bar bushings in these trucks. (I have the control arms issue and the noise sounds exactly like a squash ball hitting concrete, low hollow THWOK)

 

I concur with everything folks have said. The IIDTool gives you a lot of bang for your buck; plus if you want you can run at different suspension heights. Of course whatever height you call your baseline, you'll want the truck aligned to.

Also, I know you checked for play/movement, but could the noise be a bearing?

 

I started getting the squash ball hitting concrete (also sounds like a horses hoof) when I would apply the brakes or when I went over something rough, like a railroad track. Took it to my local mechanic and both front lower control arms are shot and the tie rod ends are loose.

Going to have him fix both.

 

It sounds like you have a bad diff. Probably significant rusting and pitting on the bearings at this point. Here is a picture section which will give you an idea of the rust. If you need to source a diff, let me know.

The inner outer tie rod set comes as a kit, you should be able to save money that way. I would seriously consider doing the poly bushes (orange) which should hold up significantly better than the OEM ones. You can get them from british4x4outfitters or lucky8.

You'll need an alignment and perhaps also worth doing a height calibration after the bushing work. You might also check the rear upper/lower bushings, if they have not been done before they are probably also shot at this point.

You won't typically get any movement without the wheels in the air, and careful use of a pry bar. My lower bushes were shot and I had at least an inch of play.