Thread: Steering Damper and Swivel preload questions for a 200tdi Defender

Morning Brains Trust....

In going through replacing bushes in Nigel's radius arms and panhard rod, I got around to checking the steering damper. Now while there was no notable soft patches or lack of oil going through internal system (it feels uniform and consistent when compressing etc), the outer body does have a shiny patch. On closer inspection, there seems to be layers evident - obviously the paint has worn through, but the metal appears to be wearing through.

Q1: why would this happen,
Q2: do you think I should refit this or,
Q3: what is the recommended replacement for a daily driver with frequent unsealed, sand, off road exposure?
Q4: I've tested the force required to pull each swivel without tie rods, wheels attached and the driver side required 1.4kg of force, while the passenger side required 3.2kg of force. I haven't removed anything other than the steering, tie rod and wheels.
Obviously I'm looking at issues related to the death wobble at 85Km/h +. Do I have to remove the brake line (as in separate it) or can I work around it without interacting with brake fluid?

I've got to get the bushes for the panhard rod this morning (Perth time) and would like to get this sorted today (already have the radius arm bushes).....

Any suggestions/recommendations would be really welcomed. Photos of the shiny damper are attached.

Cheers to all in advance....

The swivel preload should be done with cv's removed. Not sure how much difference it will make.
Drivers side would be a little lightly loaded.

Can't really help with the dampner problem