Mechanic says these are "Donald Ducked".


All I know is the car was being driven by my stepson a few months ago and died.


After languishing at one shop where the only Land Rover familiar mechanic quit, the latest shop says front transfer box and driveshaft. $2500.


Anyone got any ideas?


How much would a reconditioned transfer box or a rebuild kit cost?


Is replacing these on the driveway a viable option?


I really don't want to put this much cash into this old bus, which is in pretty rough shape anyway and only used, when it's actually running, as a spare car.

 

you can do it in the drive. the shop Donald may have ducked up his assessment
1. how do you know the tcase is gone?
2. is the drive shaft broken?
3.what year is your truck?
you can score an entire used case for 300-350ish. a new drive shaft is 220-250ish

 

2001 Discovery II, 4.0 Bosch engine.


Kid says it was making all sorts of horrible noises "when the wheels turned".


Mechanic says the transfer case / box / "call me Susan if it makes you happy" is shot, likewise one of the drive shafts. Going to look at the carnage myself later today.


$2500 seemed a bit high, but he says it's for a reconditioned transfer case with 6 months warranty. Personally, I'm tempted to risk buying the parts on Fleabay, bench checking the transfer case, partial strip-down if necessary, and living without the warranty.


Oh yeah, and just to make life "fun" immediately after Xmas, the other stepson's Jeep Wrangler has blown it's clutch... after I told the wife to have a new one put in (car mechanics 101) when the engine was replaced six months ago (oldest stepson, apparently, didn't realize that all those oil change places are in business for a reason), and the wife balked at the extra $200 - on top of nearly $3000 for a reconditioned engine - to do it. Grrrrr.........

 

If your truck was manufactured in early '01 you will have a locking transfer case. Meaning if you lock the case you can go rear wheel drive, without front shaft. The horrible noises are likely a busted centering ball in the shaft.
Transfer case could be suffering from bad output bearing and that can be replaced without dropping it. Also you have a sight plate on the bottom.... About 10 little bolts and you can have a look inside.

 

I'm not sure if the thing has a locking transfer case or not.


Going 2WD was my first thought. If we ARE going to keep the thing alive, however, I'd like to keep it 4WD. We live in North-West Houston, and although we're far enough away from the coast for hurricanes to not be a serious threat, the Disco does, at least, have the potential of being a half-decent bug-out vehicle if the need ever arose. Also, we might one day use it for towing a small boat or something.


I suspect half the problem here is that the local "mechanics" would much rather junk the old unit and fit a new or reconditioned one, rather than do any wrenching on the internals of the old one. Symptomatic of our throw-away culture, perhaps.


Right now I don't have the facilities to work on the car at home, so the local shops have us by the short'n'curlies. I'm afraid.


Anyway, I'll have a look-see this afternoon....

 

yes...I was only suggesting the cdl and 2 wheel drive set up as form of troubleshooting. as far as I know lucky8 has best deal on front driveshaft

 

Personally, I've got three vehicles (the Disco, a Volvo 740 wagon that the wife won't dispose of either, and the stepson's Jeep Wrangler (which also blew its transmission over Christmas) that I'd like to "car-be-cue".


Second day of 2015, and all this to deal with.
I'm going back to bed. Wake me in 2016, please!

 

You do really love tow trucks!!

 

I gotta go with Dusy.... Remove front shaft. Lock CDL (if you don't know how, just ask here). Drive it and see if the noise, etc is gone. Inspect front shaft while it's off and smart money says you'll discover it is very much D-Ducked.

If the Tcase is shot find one of the reputable parts guys like Paul Grand and see if they have one before going to ebay.

Good luck.

 

Okay, so the mechanic is trying to rip us of (what a surprise!).


I found a drive shaft on Fleabay for $235, the mechanic wanted $625.


Plenty of transfer cases starting at under $200, mechanic wanted $500. And those prices exclude fitting.
The drive shaft I can handle on my own, but I expect the transfer case isn't exactly the sort of thing you can hold up with one hand while putting the bolts in with the other, so I'll probably get a backstreet mechanic to do the whole lot.
Question I have is which transfer case do I buy?
It's a 2001 Discovery II SE7 with the Bosch (WITH secondary air) engine, standard transmission, and as far as I'm aware no differential locks.
I'll post up the VIN later today if that'll help.