Howdy folks,
I want to add a CDL capabilities to my 2000 D2.
I'm going to assume at this point all I need to do is add the shift linkage part (going to crawl under there and check, it's hard to see!).

What is the recommended route? The Ashcroft kit, or junkyard (ebay) parts?

People want ~$300 for a junkyard kit, which puts it close enough to Ashcroft to matter.

Plug and play? Junkyard? Build your own?

 

I was planning on getting the ashcroft linkage but ended up buying a d1 linkage set off eBay for $90 instead because I couldn't justify the cost. If you have the mechanical ability and don't mind spending a little more time on the install, adapting d1 linkage is a heck of a lot cheaper.

 

Looks like this one? Found on ebay for $150 This is a D1



Here is a 2004 Shifter set, which looks quite a bit different with the long cables and such?

 

Yep, that's the one. Mine was basically seized, I don't think the average driver uses the transfer case much. Cleaning, greasing, and lapping the shaft into the bearing surfaces of the end caps made it extremely smooth with no free play.

 

Also, whatever route you go, do yourself a favor and get one of these for when you reassemble things:

It allows you to rivet threaded inserts into the access plate you're removing to do all this work, which comes in handy if you ever need to get back in there.

 

Or you can just use sheetmetal screws.

You've definitely confirmed that you have the CDL nipple on the front of the transfer case, right? The D1 lever fits and works well enough, and doesn't have the issue of the cables binding up. There's no lockout solenoid on the D1 shifter though.

 

Yep I crawled under there and confirmed.

 

I opted for the junkyard route a few years ago, but held out for the 2004 linkage. I think the $300 tab that you mention is little less than I paid five or six years ago. It was a simple installation through the center console, though I had to re-do it after not cutting enough sheet metal to allow full movement of the lever. When I re-installed the second time I used quarter-inch sheet metal screws in place of the rivets and all now works as intended.

Note that the 2004 linkage includes a solenoid switch just below the lever, while the lock-out switch in the 2000 Disco is in the transfer case. If you use the 2004 unit, just remove the solenoid.

 

Go with the shifter from an 04. I did mine a few years back and it turned out great.

 

I’ve been meaning to finish the posts about doing mine. I learned a lot along the way.
I have the D1 shifter.
I like that solid mechanical connection and feel a lot better about it from a corrosion and seizing standpoint in salty Canadian winters. I had cables fail twice on the old setup.
One downside I didn’t expect. And I think it’s the prime reason the engineers who built the later cable system went the way they did:
the solid mechanical system is much louder!
You suddenly have a solid connection between the driveline and the cabin.
I hear all the whines and vibrations in the system.
At first it bothered me, and I thought something was terribly wrong. But I’m used to it now.

If I did it again I’d try and at least get some soft rubber washers in anywhere I could. But I’m not sure it would make much difference.