nazSTUFF - Saving 1990 Classic Range Rover 02

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Dear Reader... This is an interpretive series of pages taken from the personal journal of Mr. JH Thomas. For over 25 years Mr. Thomas hiked, explored and photographed the limestone canyons and vicinity of northern Arizona. As a result he recorded several scientific "firsts" in archaeology regarding the activities of the ancient people we now call Sinagua. He also acquired some basic knowledge of local geology, the native plants and wildlife. It is a pleasure to present some of these observations in this format. Sincerely, John Vroom, Editor

Saving a Classic Range Rover - Page 02

Some history about my 1990 Range Rover Classic

I didn't know much about Range Rovers when I made this purchase. Remaining naive into old age has kept me gullible about most new ideas. I still tend to take things at face value. As reported I bought my Rover for $2200 December 2006, a price below current Blue Book. The vehicle had 98,000 miles on it, the aluminum body is in good shape, good paint, few dents. I discovered later that the back hatch door is fairly rusted out and the window heating function no longer works. Needs to be replaced. These are some of the things you learn down the road.

I've done some research on this truck so that I'd have better appreciation for its creation and vintage. When I acquired the title from Arizona Department of Transportation, for example, I learned that my car originally sold in Oklahoma for about $40,000. That is an awesome sum for 1990. My previous owner is the second owner of the Rover, having purchased it 16 years ago.

Illustration of English street scene near Range Rover factory, from owner's manual.

First, I noticed in the recent movie, "The Queen," that the Range Rover is the vehicle of the Royal Family in England. Perhaps this explains the leather seats, the sun roof, a clock, automatic seats and other luxury items not often found in a four wheel drive. Years ago I owned a Toyoto Land Cruiser and it was stark by comparison, and this old Classic of mine is twice the vehicle off road!

It's also featured in the British TV comedy "As Time Goes By."

Using various sources I've discovered that the factory manufactured less than 30,000 Range Rovers in 1990, about 5000 ended up in the United States. It included what is called the 3.9 V-8 engine with, then improved, fuel injectors. The transmission had been improved for smoother shifting that year. The advertised mileage was 13 miles per gallon city, 16 mpg on the highway, when new.

The truck is full time four wheel drive with improved ABS disc brakes in 1990. You can lock and unlock all of the doors with the key from either the driver's or the passenger's door. The passenger compartment has sound proofing in its padded upholstery.

1990 was the inaugural year for the "County" model, this is the one I have. It is more deluxe with Sorrell Brown Leather interior and seats.

Distinctions:

"Range Rover placed first in J.D. Powers Dealer Satisfaction Index in 1990. Auto Motor Sport (Germany’s biggest car magazine) names the Range Rover “Best Imported 4x4."

"Range Rover of North America played down the Range Rovers 20th anniversary, as it did not want to remind Americans that the vehicle that they just recently introduced in America was already 20 years old."

"The American market became the largest of the 80 overseas markets that the Range Rover was exported to that year."

"With a production run lasting until early 1996, the Classic Range Rover was a unique if idiosyncratic vehicle, and the only one ever to be exhibited in the Louvre as a work of art."

"The success of the original Range Rover was due mainly to its inspired mechanical design which gave it the best performance of any 4X4 both on and off the pavement. While many think of it as just a luxury version of the generic 4X4, its real secret was the extraordinary engineering innovation hidden behind the wood and leather trimmings. It possessed a massive box section ladder frame, prodigious ground clearance, a smooth V8 with good low end torque, and last but definitely not least, a brilliant suspension design that rival manufacturers have still not equalled. The result was outstanding all-terrain traction as well as the smoothest ride of any 4x4. Later Range Rover models remain true to the original concept using fundamental design innovations that keep them far ahead of competitors in their enormous breadth of on and off road capability."

Allow me to quote one of my sources:

"Range Rovers have always been distinguished by innovation in suspension design. The Classic Range Rover was able to use exceptionally soft springs, while retaining a 1600 lb payload capacity, by virtue of the Boge self-levelling strut fitted to the central A-frame link on the rear axle. This is, in effect, a variable rate self-adjusting air spring which provides a restoring force on the center of the axle to compensate for load, allowing very low spring rates to be used at the road wheels. This results in maximum possible traction on uneven terrain.

Why does a soft suspension give better traction? This is a secret that other 4x4 manufacturers and aftermarket suspension builders have apparently never learned. When a wheel droops even an inch or two on uneven terrain, that wheel is "unloaded" -- ie its ground contact force is reduced -- in direct proportion to the stiffness of the spring and anti-roll bar (if fitted). Any loss in ground contact force reduces available traction at the wheel in question. With an open differential on the axle, traction is lost at both wheels simultaneously. Articulation Conventional and "lifted" 4x4s overwhelmingly use leaf springs or stiff coils with anti-sway bars tuned for flat high speed cornering on pavement or supposed "heavy duty" use off-road. Aftermarket "upgrades" invariably include even stiffer springs, shocks, bushings and/or anti-sway bars. The net effect is a very stiff suspension that not only provides less maximum wheel travel (resulting in wheels lifting off the ground in very uneven terrain) but much reduced traction even in mild off-road situations requiring only modest vertical wheel movements.

This is why the conventional dogma dictates that serious off-road vehicles must use "lockers" on the differentials to maintain traction. Lockers force both wheels to rotate at equal speed, transferring all the torque to whichever side has the grip. They therefore greatly increase stress on the drivetrain components, and have adverse side effects on steering control. On newer Range Rovers, any lost traction is restored through a sophisticated system of electronic traction control. This senses when a rear wheel starts slipping and pulses its brake, effectively transferring half the engine torque to the opposite, gripping wheel. The combination of soft suspension and electronic traction control is formidable. The system gently equalizes torque distribution to the two wheels, whereas the locker can suddenly transfer 100% torque to one wheel, breaking parts with notorious regularity.

Not unimportantly, soft suspensions also Tread Lightly and result in less environmental impact. The Range Rover's soft "magic carpet" ride also enables it to run circles around other 4X4's on the typical rough road or trail, where stiffly sprung vehicles are reduced to a bone-jarring crawl."

I guess this is what makes this truck worth saving. It's exceptional!

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