[satan]

Is anyone on the forum running OME leaf springs on their gypsies. If yes can you please post your experience with these. There are mixed reactions on the ride quality, from Samurai owners across the globe so I was wondering if anyone in India has installed these.
Thanks

[starter]

Thanks for starting this thread Satan! I was also planning to start a thread on this. I am toying this idea of switching to OME from quite some time now.
There is one Gypsy in Bangalore running on these, but I'm not sure if the owner is a member.
I shall keep a watch on this thread.
Cheers,
Deepak

PS: I have the exact part numbers for the entire OME kit. I could upload the details if necessary.

[Ragul]

and I thought it was typo for OEM!! How do they compare against CFLs from Dr. Nano in Pune? I will be upgrading by next month ...


Thanks

[satan]

I have CFLs in the rear of my Gypsy since the past 2 years and am very happy with their performance. I have opted for the soft ride ones and the ride in the rear has settled down significantly. However, while they are great with 2-3 people in the vehicle, they tend to start bottoming with more people, esp in offroad scenarios.

I was looking at OMEs for the front as i have seen quite a few of the front CFLs break.

[satan]

The front OME springs arrived last sunday. I will get them installed this weekend. I am wondering if i need to replace the stock shocks to ones with more travel to get the most of the springs. Anyone with thoughts on this?

[gotzuk]

Originally Posted by satan

The front OME springs arrived last sunday. I will get them installed this weekend. I am wondering if i need to replace the stock shocks to ones with more travel to get the most of the springs. Anyone with thoughts on this?

You can definitely use stock shocks but if using springs with extra lift its always prudent to get matching shocks.

Remove stock shocks, install the springs and jack up the vehicle (with jack underneath the chassis not the differential tube) till the wheels are in the air.
Measure the distance between the shock mounts.
Make the same measurements again with the spring fully compressed ( diff tube touching the bump stop).

These two measurements are vital to choosing your shock. Make sure the compressed length of your chosen shock is less than the distance between the shock mounts with springs compressed and extended length slightly more than distance between mounts with the springs fully extended. This would ensure that the shocks don't get damaged.

Do update the thread with your findings.
Cheers

[Ragul]

Originally Posted by satan

The front OME springs arrived last sunday. I will get them installed this weekend. I am wondering if i need to replace the stock shocks to ones with more travel to get the most of the springs. Anyone with thoughts on this?

How much do they cost? Why do you prefer them over locally available CFLs?

As a reminder, here is a useful post made regarding shocks and leaf springs: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-te...ml#post1653591

Since I didn't know wrong shocks were installed, I went around looking for answers in possible angles. It was Jammy who gave me a very enlightening answer. He said in lighter vehicles like Gypsy or SWB Jeeps, one should let leafs do all the hard work. The shocks should only provide dampening against the residual harmonics and not against the primary jolt from the roads. Let the leafs deal with the jolts. This made lot of sense. If we need to see the effect of CFL, we gotta a let it work, and not strangle it with heavy shock absorbers.

--Ragul

[satan]

Originally Posted by Ragul

How much do they cost? Why do you prefer them over locally available CFLs?

I got them delivered to a friends place in NYC who carried them over to Mumbai for me. All 22kgs of them. They cost USD 220 inclusive of freight from CA to NYC + INR 1,000 of wellness allowance at the airport.

On this forum itself I have seen way too many front CFLs breaking during offroading which I am not happy with hence the decision to try these out

I finally got these installed late yesterday evening so no time for any real testing and am in Pune for the week . Dont have too many pics post installation but will do that over the weekend.

Initial observations
1. The clearance between the wheel arches and the tyres has more than doubled. Infact it is now in line with the rear which is itself high on account of the CFLs. I think this should settle down with the weight of the front after a couple of offroading sessions. I have retained the same OE shocks for now as i want to see the benefit of each replacement.

2. The ride has settled down considerably over the stock springs. The suspension feels very similar to the rear with the CFLs, kind of "solid" as against the normal harsh ride that thrashes thru every uneven road surface.

3. The length of both the springs is the same but the camber is significant on the OMEs see pic below

4. There is an extra middle leaf in the OME pack (total 4) as compared to stock(3) and I had apprehensions of the ride being a lot harsher.

5. There are also 2 clamps on the OMEs to hold the springpack together that are missing from the stock

6. There are also integrated grease pads for smooth operation.

[vamsi_dvk]

Satan, Can you let know the part number of the spring. And the website too would help.

Thanks,
Vamsi.

[satan]

These are Old Man Emu Dakar springs, they did not have a part number. The SKU for the fornt spings @ petroworks is AXL-0100. I got them from Petroworks, URL as below

Suspension - PetroWorks

[starter]

Originally Posted by vamsi_dvk

Satan, Can you let know the part number of the spring. And the website too would help.

Thanks,
Vamsi.

Hey Vamsi,
I have all the part numbers and details for OME here.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-ve...ml#post2204683
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Deepak

[vamsi_dvk]

Thanks a lot Satan & Starter's, the information and links provided were helpful. Is it really possible to import then from the US. If so, how relay-able is it, and what could be the shipping costs involved.

Thanks,
Vamsi.

[satan]

They can be shipped but the costs will be formidable given that the front and rear springs together will weigh close to 45kgs. Unless you have someone who will personally carry them for you from the US or Australia..

[Gypsy-Boy]

Guys ...
I had installed OME's in my friends Blue gypsy (which he subsequently sold) and I also know another friend who has the OME's.
The second gypsy is green and has been quite regular in chikmaglur/sakleshpur and coorg OTR's. The behaviour of the OME's on road and off road is very good and I have ordered another set for another Gypsy (not mine - a friends)

Seeing how everyone is trying to import the OME's themselves, I just thought I would inform you guys that OME's are available in Bangalore

Copying from t-bhp - places to buy stuff for off-roading
City: Bangalore
Shop/Place: 4x4 offroad services
Location: 15/1, State Bank of India road, Bangalore - 1. Phone : 9448054535
www.4x4offroad.in

The contact person here is Mr Narayan

The cost of the whole kit is ~63,000 it consists of the following
1) 4 Leaf spring pack
2) 4 Shock absorbers
3) 1 Steering damper
4) Complete polyurethane bush kit

Cheers
GB

[headers]

Originally Posted by Gypsy-Boy

4) Complete polyurethane bush kit

Ajay, hi, can i get the polyurethane bush kit alone? price? thanx