Does a GQ with 3-4" lift need adjustable panhard rods?

[ausyota]

I have just bought a GQ that has flogged front panhard rod bushes and am wondering whether I should just replace them or go the adj rod.
Cheers
Paul.

[GUEEY]

3 Inch lift "No"
4 inch lift "Yes"

The dudes selling them will say yes for any lift above 2 inch.
But if it is at Three, the money is better spent o H/D rear trailing arms.
If they break "which they do" it is a "Disasster"!!!!

[LOCKEE]

Yes and no.

Aftermarket much stronger than OE.

Can live without the adjustable one but better to centralise the diff.

[tim75b]

if you have the belly tank with gas on it you probably will as the tailshaft can contact the tank on articulation on some tanks

[ausyota]

3 Inch lift "No"
4 inch lift "Yes"

The dudes selling them will say yes for any lift above 2 inch.
But if it is at Three, the money is better spent o H/D rear trailing arms.
If they break "which they do" it is a "Disasster"!!!!

what if its a 4" lift that has sagged to about 3"?

[GUEEY]

3 Inch lift "No"
4 inch lift "Yes"

The dudes selling them will say yes for any lift above 2 inch.
But if it is at Three, the money is better spent o H/D rear trailing arms.
If they break "which they do" it is a "Disasster"!!!!

what if its a 4" lift that has sagged to about 3"?

To higher you lift your truck the more the diffs are pulled sideways from centre.
With a 3 inch lift your tyre on one side will stick out from the gaurd more than the other side, as you lift your truck your panhard rods need to become longer to keep the diffs centered.
With that said, at 3 inch the amount is marginal , at 4 inch it becomes too much causing the inside of one tyre to rub heaverly on the inside gaurd during flex/compression.
i have run 3 inch lifts over 5 different patrols 3 (GQs) 2 (GUs) and didint bother with adjustables.
And yes as Lockee wrote adjustables or aftermarket ones are stronger if that is what you are after.

Grant

[chimpboy]

IMHO you need longer panhards for 3" lift. No question unless you have a deep-seated "she'll be right mate" approach to stuff.

When I installed my 3" lift it was very obvious the body was off-centre relative to the axles.

[ausyota]

OK next question that is sort of related.
I have read through a few posts sugesting that the stock rubber nissan bushes are the way to go rather than poly. All the aftermarket adjustable rods come fitted with poly bushes.
So poly OK? Seems a bit of a waste swapping out brand new poly bushes for rubber ones.

[Suspension Stuff]

No poly not ok.

We sell Superior panhard rods with genuine rubber bushes for $530 for the pair including freight. They are much stronger then anything cheaper. If you have a 2000 + Wagon GU it costs $630 for the pair because of the price of the genuine bushes.

Sometimes you can't fit genuine bushes to cheap aftermarket panhard rods so watch out if you go in that direction.

I find that nearly all GQ owners are she'll be right for a 3" lift but quite a few late model GU people like to fix up the panhard rods for a 3" lift. Your springs and other bushes around the vehicle will thank you later.

Also if it has sagged to a 3" lift then you have a 3" lift, however it will obviously rub on the guards more, spacing out the bump stops and fitting offset rims will help though.

Shane

[bradsgq(pig22)]

i drove both my lwb and ute without adj panards for2 years now they both are adj but they were fine without just means diff will be i think with 4in about 15mm to one side witch isnt bad i would just get hd trailing arms first then down the track get adj when u get more money.

[mickyd555]

do you know how to measure the car to see if the panhard rod is too short Paul?

some cars 'need' it some dont, i think any car your going to lift probably should be fitted with a heavier duty panhard rod than the standard ones.

[ausyota]

Yeah I am going with HD Adjustables anyway now.
Also going to get HD lower rear arms too as a few people have sugested and I have seen the lowers bend like bananas before.

OK so how do I measure the centralness of the diffs when I fit these adj panhards up?
Just with a straight edge against the WMS and a tape measure?

[mickyd555]

OK so how do I measure the centralness of the diffs when I fit these adj panhards up?
Just with a straight edge against the WMS and a tape measure?

I have never gone to that much trouble, i always just pick a good spot on the tyre tread but your idea sounds like the proper way

[fatsogq]

gday i bought a 94 rx that had been lifted 4" but he put the old panhards on and it pulled the whole body to one side 40mm,fitted adj rods(tough dog)problem solved

3 Inch lift "No"
4 inch lift "Yes"

The dudes selling them will say yes for any lift above 2 inch.
But if it is at Three, the money is better spent o H/D rear trailing arms.
If they break "which they do" it is a "Disasster"!!!!

what if its a 4" lift that has sagged to about 3"?

To higher you lift your truck the more the diffs are pulled sideways from centre.
With a 3 inch lift your tyre on one side will stick out from the gaurd more than the other side, as you lift your truck your panhard rods need to become longer to keep the diffs centered.
With that said, at 3 inch the amount is marginal , at 4 inch it becomes too much causing the inside of one tyre to rub heaverly on the inside gaurd during flex/compression.
i have run 3 inch lifts over 5 different patrols 3 (GQs) 2 (GUs) and didint bother with adjustables.
And yes as Lockee wrote adjustables or aftermarket ones are stronger if that is what you are after.

Grant

[... rick]

Personally Im a fan of panhards on a 3". Not only are you making sure your geometry is right (lets face it, every vehicle is different) but you are getting some added insurance in the way of strength into the bargain.
If you are looking at lowers as well, check ours out. We offer a lifetime warranty on them!

Cheers,

Rick.

[mickyd555]

If you are looking at lowers as well, check ours out. We offer a lifetime warranty on them!

Cheers,

Rick.

are you talking about the 3rds arms or do you have your own brand?

[leeandlisa01]

4WD Stuff



Joined: 29 Nov 2004
Location: Logan - Slacks Creek
Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:38 pm

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No poly not ok.

We sell Superior panhard rods with genuine rubber bushes for $530 for the pair including freight. They are much stronger then anything cheaper. If you have a 2000 + Wagon GU it costs $630 for the pair because of the price of the genuine bushes.

Sometimes you can't fit genuine bushes to cheap aftermarket panhard rods so watch out if you go in that direction.

I find that nearly all GQ owners are she'll be right for a 3" lift but quite a few late model GU people like to fix up the panhard rods for a 3" lift. Your springs and other bushes around the vehicle will thank you later.

Also if it has sagged to a 3" lift then you have a 3" lift, however it will obviously rub on the guards more, spacing out the bump stops and fitting offset rims will help though.

Shane

_________________
I sell SUSPENSION - PRICES on web site.
https://www.suspensionstuff.com.au
2/3405 Pacific Hwy, Slacks Creek, Qld
Free Freight Vic, NSW, Qld, Perth & Adelaide
Shane on 0409 593 414 or 07 3472 5215


just a question i rang nissan the other day and they said they did not have a listing for a factory rubber bush for my 98 gu patrol?
any ideas

[Suspension Stuff]

4WD Stuff



No poly not ok.

We sell Superior panhard rods with genuine rubber bushes for $530 for the pair including freight. They are much stronger then anything cheaper. If you have a 2000 + Wagon GU it costs $630 for the pair because of the price of the genuine bushes.

Sometimes you can't fit genuine bushes to cheap aftermarket panhard rods so watch out if you go in that direction.

I find that nearly all GQ owners are she'll be right for a 3" lift but quite a few late model GU people like to fix up the panhard rods for a 3" lift. Your springs and other bushes around the vehicle will thank you later.

Also if it has sagged to a 3" lift then you have a 3" lift, however it will obviously rub on the guards more, spacing out the bump stops and fitting offset rims will help though.

Shane

just a question i rang nissan the other day and they said they did not have a listing for a factory rubber bush for my 98 gu patrol?
any ideas

You are looking at $88 for the big bush and $22 for the smaller bush. They often won't or can't give out individual part numbers for policy (profit) reasons.

[jessie928]

im not a fan of heavy duty panhards, especially on teh FRONT of a gq/gu.

in standard guise, a heavy side impact to the front diff will bend the standard front panhard, SAving the chassis and chassis mount from twisting/cracking

when you install " bombproof" panhards, you are moving the weak point to a very expensive to fix and re-align piece of chassis

Cheers,
Jes

[... rick]

If you are looking at lowers as well, check ours out. We offer a lifetime warranty on them!

Cheers,

Rick.

are you talking about the 3rds arms or do you have your own brand?

3rds arms.

[bj on roids]

im not a fan of heavy duty panhards, especially on teh FRONT of a gq/gu.

in standard guise, a heavy side impact to the front diff will bend the standard front panhard, SAving the chassis and chassis mount from twisting/cracking

when you install " bombproof" panhards, you are moving the weak point to a very expensive to fix and re-align piece of chassis

Cheers,
Jes

Interesting, and the same on the rear right??

You need the heavy duty lowers though, the stock ones are like exhaust pipe

[jessie928]

im not a fan of heavy duty panhards, especially on teh FRONT of a gq/gu.

in standard guise, a heavy side impact to the front diff will bend the standard front panhard, SAving the chassis and chassis mount from twisting/cracking

when you install " bombproof" panhards, you are moving the weak point to a very expensive to fix and re-align piece of chassis

Cheers,
Jes

Interesting, and the same on the rear right??

You need the heavy duty lowers though, the stock ones are like exhaust pipe

not as important on the rear,( i have not seen any bend or crack the rear, not as much weight thrown around, but same force in principal.

oh shite yeah, uppers and lowers bombproof them! its very difficult to bend the chassis in horizontal or vertical impact where the lowers attach to frame.

Jes

[Suspension Stuff]

im not a fan of heavy duty panhards, especially on teh FRONT of a gq/gu.

in standard guise, a heavy side impact to the front diff will bend the standard front panhard, SAving the chassis and chassis mount from twisting/cracking

when you install " bombproof" panhards, you are moving the weak point to a very expensive to fix and re-align piece of chassis

Cheers,
Jes

Interesting, and the same on the rear right??

You need the heavy duty lowers though, the stock ones are like exhaust pipe

not as important on the rear,( i have not seen any bend or crack the rear, not as much weight thrown around, but same force in principal.

oh shite yeah, uppers and lowers bombproof them! its very difficult to bend the chassis in horizontal or vertical impact where the lowers attach to frame.

Jes

and if you don't do the lowers and when the stock ones do break you are up for a new diff, tail shaft, shocks, probably body damage and other twisted bits of metal etc.

Shane

[jessie928]

im not a fan of heavy duty panhards, especially on teh FRONT of a gq/gu.

in standard guise, a heavy side impact to the front diff will bend the standard front panhard, SAving the chassis and chassis mount from twisting/cracking

when you install " bombproof" panhards, you are moving the weak point to a very expensive to fix and re-align piece of chassis

Cheers,
Jes

Interesting, and the same on the rear right??

You need the heavy duty lowers though, the stock ones are like exhaust pipe

not as important on the rear,( i have not seen any bend or crack the rear, not as much weight thrown around, but same force in principal.

oh shite yeah, uppers and lowers bombproof them! its very difficult to bend the chassis in horizontal or vertical impact where the lowers attach to frame.

Jes

and if you don't do the lowers and when the stock ones do break you are up for a new diff, tail shaft, shocks, probably body damage and other twisted bits of metal etc.

Shane

yep,

bent shocks,
snapped pinion,
busted uni's

Jes

[coxy321]

I'll throw a vote in for adjustable panhards.

To set mine up:

- remove old panhard rod
- push body across diff (cause its loose now) and get it roughly centre
- i used a tie down strap to hold it in its centre position
- get a tape measure and roughly measure from the centre of the diff pin to the chassis bolt hole
- wind out adjustable panhard rod to roughly what you've measured
- fit new panhard, and check for alignment (i just went off the tread on my tyres lining up with my arch flares
- adjust rod as needed
- make sure you tighten up that lock nut properly!!!

Coxy

[whitemav]

I've run HD front and rear ever since lifting mine 4". Think your mad if you dont.
Even if you only do it for the strength.

This was a mates standard rear after a fairly strait forward track.
Rock must have rolled the wrong way.
They are very thin.

[BIG GQ]

If you are looking at lowers as well, check ours out. We offer a lifetime warranty on them!

Cheers,

Rick.

are you talking about the 3rds arms or do you have your own brand?

3rds arms.

Rick is this for 3rds arms purchased from any agent of just through yourself?

Also is this a true life time warranty or is life time considered 3yrs, etc

[Yom]

Definately change the rear panhard if you like getting into it.

I bent mine and I don't even know how. I don't drive hard nor do I do overly stupid things. I suspect mine was bent when the weight of the vehicle slid backwards and slightly sideways while attempting to drive up a steep hill with some rocks acting as roadblocks. Not snapped, just bent upwards. No contact marks on the paint, no scratches etc. Won't happen again now as i have a superior panhard thanks to Shane @ suspension stuff allowing me to pick it up at very short notice!!

GQ front panhard is alot stronger than the rear. I won't be changing it any time soon (unless I do what I did to my rear of course).

Next on the shopping list suspension wise are new rear arms as mine have been hitting things but so far not been damaged. Its only a matter of time.

[jessie928]

I've run HD front and rear ever since lifting mine 4". Think your mad if you dont.
Even if you only do it for the strength.

This was a mates standard rear after a fairly strait forward track.
Rock must have rolled the wrong way.
They are very thin.

that has snapped because your mate didnt notice it was bent and kept driving it.

it should bend, because if it didnt, it would have bent the chassis/panhard mount.

Jes

[whitemav]

Dont know anyone that has ever bent the mount's, would have to be driving like a complete idiot.

Wasnt bent mate, just one good hit with a rock half way up the track.