Hi,

I purchased a '97 Disco II SE7 about 8 months ago. Soon after, I moved to the city and so I rarely drive the truck..but I want to take proper care of it and make sure that it lasts. It has 140K mi on it, and leaks oil..but I hear that's normal for these trucks, and I park in a huge shared garage so I don't care about spots I keep tabs on the level and currently add about 1qt every 2500mi.

When I bought the truck, I suspected that the previous owners were too busy with their kids to take proper care of the truck, and so I flushed all of the fluids, changed the rear shocks and front damper, and put a decent set of tires on it. There were other minor electrical issues that I was also able to resolve myself.

One big outstanding question I have is whether or not these trucks are full-time 4WD or if they're actually 2WD capable. The truck has been in 4H since I bought it -- I've put about 4K mi on it this way. Following the decal above the 4WD shift, I can not get the truck into 4N or 4L. So I'm pretty sure there's a problem with that shifter, but if the truck is full-time 4WD anyway then I don't care a whole lot. If not, I would like to address that ASAP, hopefully it's just some switch/sensor not allowing me to shift?

Other questions.. vagueness and wandering in the front end at highway speeds. The truck tends to drift and bit, and react quite late to slight steering corrections when not under power (like coasting down an exit ramp, for example). Is this normal? If not, with the front damper already replaced, what else should I look into?

I've already found a few other useful threads here, having read back to page 7. Any answers to these biggies would be a great help. Thanks!

 

Your linkage is locked up from lack of use. If you want to tackle that, I would be glad to talk to you, don't force it to **** or you will be buying a new set of linkage.
As for the wandering, we can talk about that when you want.
Mike

 

So the truck is 2WD capable, and I've been driving it in 4WD for 4K mi? Oh boy.. I feel terrible. How would you like me to reach you or vise-versa? Thanks for offering to help out a newbie!

 

First off you don't have a disco 2 if it was made in 1997, they didn't make the disco 2 until mid 1999. But from my understanding, the discoveries are AWD all the time.

 

Oh, okay. Interesting. My bad about calling it a Disco II.

But, re: AWD all the time, I thought so as well... that's why I never thought anything of having the truck in 4H all this time -- I assumed it was either 4H or 4L all of the time. But my friend noticed the shifter and asked me today if I had it in 4WD. I said "It's always in 4WD.. that's how these trucks are." And then of course I started to doubt myself What really made me begin to question that idea is that there's a neutral position on the 4WD shifter. If it were only ever 4H or 4L, why is there a neutral? Know what I mean?

 

You have 4H and 4L and if you move the shifter to the left, it locks both axles together. Right now, your transfer case acts like a differential. Do not drive it with the CDL locked on dry pavement for a long time.. Use it off-road. It will eat your tires.

You have to put it in neutral if the truck is ever towed. Back tires moving will want to make the front tires spin.

PM Mike your phone # and he'll get with you. He can explain a lot further.

PS.... people with Disco II's are envious of the shifter. It is great.

 

PS.... people with Disco II's are envious of the shifter. It is great.
Some D1 drivers might be envious of my D2, all I do if flip a switch on the run and my CDL is engaged.
Mike

 

Sorry to bud in on the convo here, but suddenly I'm confused . . . I recently purchased an '03 SE7 and have learned after the fact through the forum that the '03's do not have the CDL . . . however I still have the 4H - 4L shift lever, what is the difference on the '03s?
(just curious, for my own edification)

Thanks!

 

Different transfer case. The early D2's had the old case that could be modified to lock. Some people have installed D1 linkage, home-made shifters, or like Mike, just a push button activating a solenoid. They came back with the locking feature in 04. I guess they figured the traction control would compensate for the non-locking t-case when they made the D2.

Mike, yes a push button would be nice, but I am just glad I didn't have to do anything to be able to lock it..... would like traction control, though....=(