Totally agree with you, I too had never had a puncture in 40 years of off roading and I drive with excessive vehicle sympathy...

The damage was caused because of the lower side wall and the construction of the Coopers, they didn't actually fail on the trail, three had large eggs on the sidewalls...

I ended up with 18's and 32" 10ply Maxis and had no further damage including when driving back up Parkamoor...  Pete

__________________________________________________
2014 L405 Autobiography SDV8 4.4 Loire Blue Ebony interior
2011 L322 Vogue SE 4.4 TDV8 Baltic Blue. Parchment over Navy Interior. Sold
2012 L322 Autobiography 5.0 Supercharged Ipanema Sand, Jet Interior. Sold
2002 L322 Vogue 4.4 V8 Epson Green, Ivory over Aspen Interior (Fatty Offroader) Sold
-Click for Project Fatty off roader-

Side wall construction is important when you go off tarmac on 20’s, or anything greater than 18” wheels, probably 16” if we are really honest.

Sidewall flex and how much you air them down will obviously cause pinch points if you rock crawl, inevitable really,

I think we both know that some people drive “off-road” without a care in the world, and that is when you do get blow outs, pinch punctures etc.

Will test them out, hopefully next month in Northern Spain, there is a section that is “technical” should put the tyres and vehicle to the test  Check out my YouTube channel

https://youtu.be/UHBbLWZXw4A

2010BlackL322 wrote:

All, remapped, EGR’s and DPF turned off. Performance is better, smoother in all gears and pulls at the low end, much smoother off the line, and yes, more ooomph. I don’t drive it like I stole it, but it feels much more lively in all gears, too early to tell about MPG, but that wasn’t the reason for doing it.

Zero problems, Empire didn’t touch the DPF and told me it’s fine as is, with the EGR turned off.

In fact, I think it runs much better with the new exhaust box on the back after the original rear box was removed, feels far more responsive. I will say the exhaust system has made a huge difference to engine / throttle response.

Will report back in 6 months and see if things change, but for now, hugely impressed with the set-up

 Check out my YouTube channel

https://youtu.be/UHBbLWZXw4A

What was the exhaust box you fitted ? Has it made much difference sound wise ? 2011 4.4 TDV8
2000 4.6 P38
1998 D1 300tdi

Huge difference. Got it off a guy on ebay £350, hand made, very well made.

Twin pipes, both pipes have silencers, much better sound / rumble and as soon as I drove it home, I could feel how much more responsive it was on the throttle.

Could be that the remap, K/N filters have also made a difference and this was the last thing that opened it up. Check out my YouTube channel

https://youtu.be/UHBbLWZXw4A

Andy2986 wrote:

What was the exhaust box you fitted ? Has it made much difference sound wise ?

I did a quick video on sound difference / before and after  Check out my YouTube channel

https://youtu.be/UHBbLWZXw4A

Thanks for the update  2011 4.4 TDV8 Vogue SE Buckingham Blue with Ivory and clear glass = "Rory"
New Defender D300 90 on order so "Rory" will be going to a new home....!
1974 Series 3 Lightweight = "Millie"
My preferred specialist: www.glenrands.co.uk
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2010BlackL322 I've been following your YouTube videos with huge interest, you have a fantastic channel and please keep it up! I'm currently looking into Empire Tuning as an option for my vehicle and would also consider an aftermarket exhaust.
- Did you look into Vortex Exhausts? They look like good kit and whilst different to your solution I wondered if you'd considered them and your thoughts if you did?
- I'm fascinated by the EGR and DPF electronic delete. I have no doubt that it improves things with the engine immeasurably and I am certain that you did your research before taking the plunge. However, how does your solution keep the soot levels under the legal threshold when it comes to MOT time?

I hope you're having an amazing time out on the continent! Andy

2010 4.4TDV8 Vogue SE in Santorini Black with Ivory interior
2017 Audi SQ5 3.0 V6T Quattro in Volcano Red
2001 Audi Allroad 2.5 TDI manual with low-range in Highland Green. Currently SORN whilst undergoing some serious restoration!

Thank you!

I did look at a number options for the exhaust, settled on a custom job, guy off ebay in Preston did mine. Saved a huge amount of weight removing that back box. Sounds better too and it does feel more responsive. But could be K/N filters and remap, with the box. Let’s just say, it’s lively now. I can report on long trips, MPG has gone up, consistently returning 35 MPH

Talk to Empire, they can explain what happens with the EGR delete / DPF. No issues at all and the improvement in throttle response is like night and day. Even under hard acceleration, well, it’s just fun to belt it now and again, I get minimal smoke out the back.

I’m happy with the set-up, mine has over 142K on it now, so for me, care and sympathy with the engine from now on is important.

Yes, a few weeks left on this trip, much more off road trails to explore in the coming weeks.

Thanks for watching  Check out my YouTube channel

https://youtu.be/UHBbLWZXw4A

Keep up the videos Mark. Great to see the scenery 👍 2011 4.4 TDV8 Vogue SE Buckingham Blue with Ivory and clear glass = "Rory"
New Defender D300 90 on order so "Rory" will be going to a new home....!
1974 Series 3 Lightweight = "Millie"
My preferred specialist: www.glenrands.co.uk
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Looking great this, enjoying the updates

very nice ........all ready for doomsday then

Rackers wrote:

Looking great this, enjoying the updates

 Check out my YouTube channel

https://youtu.be/UHBbLWZXw4A

DrRob wrote:

Keep up the videos Mark. Great to see the scenery 👍