Thread: 130 chassis cracks

Originally Posted by roverrescue

Ive heard that heavily loaded 130 can crack just in front of the suspension arch? Has anyone got photos of the location severity of cracks? ...
... regards
Steve

Steve

I had actually heard that cracking can occur BEHIND the wheel arch (behind the spring mount actually) in most of the coil sprung Land Rovers. Unlike the leaf sprung vehicles which distribute the weight over the rear axle between two points of the front and rear spring hangers, the coilers concentrate the load directly over the single coil / airbag mount. The tray/tub body is mainly fixed to the rear chassis cross member and therefore the weight cantilevered from this point to the spring mount resulting in the cracking. It would be reasonable to theorise that similar cracking can happen in front of the spring mount.

Diana

all the ones I've seen and heard of (including my own) crack where the upper trailing arm crossmember intersects the main chassis rails, across and down both sides of the main rails. This corresponds to where the crew cabs rear body mount gussets onto the main rails. Sometimes it only looks like the body mount gusset has sheared off the chassis, but it usually follows the weld fillet down the rail (on the outside of the main rail)

<edit> yes, drop the tank as the bash plate traps water and the tank corrodes through. Happened to a few of us on here. </edit>

Truck chassis traditionally crack just behind the cab at the front of the tray. This is the most stressed area.