Dobinsons & Bilstein Combo for my 110 Defender

[Coxy]

Hi Guys


Looking at getting a Dobinsons & Bilstein Combo for my 110 Defender, I am told the C51-026 for the front which is a 45mm lift, 80-120kg, currently have a ARB winch bar with winch to come, and the C51-059T for the rear which is a 50mm lift 500kg constant load as I have lots of extras getting installed and it will be around this weight or a little more when I go away, or would I be better with the C51-011 which is a 45mm lift rated up to 350kg for the rear ? the truck will have more around this weight for everyday driving, mainly doing on road driving and I am not going to be towing to much just when I go away. There will only every be two people in the front of the truck as the rear seats have been removed.


Cheers Coxy

[MLD]

I recommend calling Dobinson and talk to a service tech. I am changing my coils to a set of customs and the tech guys have been fantastic to deal with, considering my order is a one off.

As for your query, i have the C51-026 in the front of a 130 with winch bar and winch. I have approx 40mm lift from the coil. It can be a bit harsh if you hit a speed bump (or other imperfection) at speed. It keeps the nose in check during cornering. It flexes up pretty well.

The -026 specs are: 17mm coil diameter, 385 mm free length, 285 lbs/in. (FYI the LR 130 specs are FD 395 free length, FP 382mm free length, 225 lbs/in)

As for the rear, best to speak to Dobinson. The marketing material is a bit misleading when you see the specs.

C51-009T - 22mm diameter, 410mm free length, 540 lbs/in (marketed as 350kg constant)
C51-059T - 21mm, 440mm, 450 lbs/in (marketed as 500 kg constant)

the -059T will be slightly more compliant than the -009T based on the specs.

I have the -009T in the rear carrying about 500kg constant (steel tray, steel RTT frame, tool box and 35" spare). With tray (and tyre) only they are firm. They are better with all the extras on the back. They flex up fine. Because of the weight they offer a Nil lift. Based on the specs I'd expect the -059T to not retain a 50mm lift at the marketed 500 kg weight. The -009T is a shorter, firmer coil and it didn't retain the lift under the 500kg weight.

No idea about the C51-011. Call Dobinson and ask for the specs and compare to the above.

As an alternative the 130 rear dual coil combination offers higher bump stop clearance than the 110. If you look at the LR specs on RAVE the 130 bump stop clearance is +/- 152mm and 110 +/- 130mm. Long winded way to say, what about installing the 130 rear coil dual combination in the rear. It's designed to cope with variable loads. John (RVR110) is selling the inner coils (and brackets) at the moment, ask him if he had the 130 set up in his 110 and his experience. Even the single 130 progressive rate coil may be suitable (420mm free length, 270/420 lbs/in) to give you a lift and retain compliance. If going on a long trip you can pop in the coil helpers or splash out on air-bag helpers.

MLD

[MLD]

Further to my post, I spoke with RVR110. He had the D130 inner helper coil (140 lbs/in) inside the D110 rear coil (330 lbs/in) and the ride was awful. Thus scratch my suggestion.

MLD

[RVR110]

The rear helper springs were good when the 110 was fully loaded for touring, but bone-jarringly harsh on dirt roads when empty. Mostly I drive around empty or with a minimal load so I had them removed, which better suited the use of my vehicle.