Disco Dilemma(Transfer Case Swap)

[Ricks_Adventures]

So I've owned my 03 Disco for almost a year now. It's a true pleasure to drive. Other than mud there isn't a whole lot of off road potential in S. Mississippi. That said, I still want this thing to be capable.

I lucked up the other day, and found a guy with a junkyard who GAVE me a transfer case from a 2000 Disco(with the cdl nipple! ) i'm going to go about installing it in a week or so.

The questions: Is there any special electronics BS I need to be cautious of? What type of oil do I need to fill it with? How can I rig up a linkage(I'm desperately cheap, and decently mechanically inclined)?

Cheers!
Richard

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[Fivespddisco]

The oil you need is 80/90W

All the wires should be direct plug in. There maybe an extra plug on you 03 box but it is not need. I would take apart the neutral safety lock and disassemble that part. They have a tendency to go bad. You might as well remove it with boxes out.

 

[Ricks_Adventures]

Perfect, thanks.

Will the traction control still function normally?
Is the neutral safety lock the lever sticking out with about a 1/4" hole at the end?

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[kcabpilot]

Best way to hook it up is with the shift lever out of an '04 if you can find one but you can also use one out of a D1 or cobble together a home brewed contraption, of which there are many variants. Do a search and you will find several "plans" Anything other than the cable operated '04 lever will introduce a bit of gear noise into the cabin because of the direct linkage but it's not all that bad.

I'm not sure about the wiring in an '03. My truck is an '01 and all of the wiring as well as the diff lock and diff lock light were there, although it's red rather than yellow. My guess is that the wiring and light are there on yours as well, just not plugged into anything. There is also a difference in the ECU that will cause the traction control to be disabled if you start the engine with the diff lock engaged but all you have to do is shut it down and start with diff lock off to clear it, other than that TC and diff lock work fine together.

 

[Ricks_Adventures]

Yeah I thought of using a cable, but I want it to be decently solid. I found a set of plans to build it using 3/8" drive extensions and universal joints. Seems pretty cheap and definitely rugged once they're welded. I'm not terribly concerned with the noise factor. I'm usually blaring my Springsteen cassette anyways. It's looking like Monday will be the soonest I can install it, as I'm waiting for a buddy to be back in town to help me, so I have a bit of time to solve the linkage problem.
I really can't see many circumstances where I'd turn the motor off with the diff lock engaged.
If I were to pop the t-case apart, what kind of silicone should I use to re-seal it? Will regular RTV Silicone suffice?

Thanks!

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[Cobra_R]

You can just swap the front output housing too...little bit easier

 

[The Rover Shop]

What's a cassette..???

 

[evilfij]

Easier to swap the front housing. Use disco 1 linkage.

 

[Ricks_Adventures]

I'm actually thinking that swapping the front housing may be ideal at this point. I popped open my new t-case this evening, and as it turns out, there was a little water in the beast. There's been no damage and everything operates smoothly, but why risk it?
Also, I can't budge this damned lever. Clues?
(P.S. @TheRoverShop it's this decrepit device I loved in my childhood. Call it reminiscence... or maybe necessity as I have no CD player 😂...)

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[mongosd2]

Thats the hi-low shift level. pull the inter-lock solenoid out and it should shift with a slight amount of effort.

 

[Nonimouse]

May need more than a 'slight' amount

Linkage form a D1 Auto will fit perfectly - all the way through. Manual won't quite...

 

[Ricks_Adventures]

Yeah I haven't been able to budge it. I'll give it another shot today.

The D1 linkage will be hard to come by. I'm thinking I'll just make one.

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[mongosd2]

Yeah I haven't been able to budge it. I'll give it another shot today.

The D1 linkage will be hard to come by. I'm thinking I'll just make one.

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Save yourself some grief and pull the lockout solenoid, it's the round cap like cover with 4 bolts...

 

[kcabpilot]

I put a D1 lever in my truck and made a homebuilt device for my brothers truck. The D1 lever is not a "perfect" fit you have to modify the Hi/Lo linkage rod and the new D1 gater seal has to be cut and glued to fit around the transmission selector along the aft left edge. There is a crude plan on the internet for making a homebuilt device out of off the shelf 1/4 inch extensions and u-joints welded together. You will need to fabricate a bracket to bolt onto the transfer case CDL nipple. We also found that, depending on how stiff your CDL is a normal sized knob may not give you enough torque to easily engage and disengage it. My brother just left the 1/4 inch extension protruding from the console and carries a 1/4 inch ratchet in the glovebox.

Either way you go you'll have to go through some fiddly work getting the console platform out, modified and back in again and when you punch out the pop rivet shanks make sure you find all of them because one of mine dropped into the Hookes joint and ended up busting one of the yokes first time I drove it. I just heard a loud BANG and everything was fine for awhile but started getting a vibration a couple of weeks later so had to rebuild the front driveshaft.

 

[Ricks_Adventures]

Well I'll try and watch for that. I'd rather not have to replace the prop shaft yet.

I found one of the plans and bought the 3/8 hardware i need, so now I just gotta weld them up. The bracket shouldn't be too hard to figure out.

I was going to swap just the front half of the housing, but I think I'll just drop the whole thing. I'll have a buddy helping so the work isn't too bad, and I'll be able to rebuild(clean and reseal) the old T-case. This way I'll have a spare.

What i dread most is pulling the console.

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