I have a 2001 Land Rover Disco II and while working underneath it to replace the oil filter, I noticed a rather significant ding in my front prop shaft which I then realized was likely the cause of a vibration that I thought was originally due to a tire. I removed the shaft and used a 10mm wrench to switch the transfer case so that it could be driven without the shaft and took it for a test drive. Vibration was gone.

Ordered a new prop shaft and installed it. Used the 10mm wrench to switch the transfer case back and took it for a drive. No vibration but I decided to test the 4WD. Put it in neutral, pushed my drive selector all the way forward and then put it in drive. To my surprise, I had no 4WD. I also noticed that the TC, hill descent and SRS lights were still on. I went underneath and double-checked the transfer case switch. Dash lights still on and no 4WD.

Any ideas regarding what may have happened? I've never lost my 4WD the entire time I've owned the vehicle. I've read where someone mentioned that gunk can build up in the transfer case switch and cause the transfer case switch to get stuck or become nonfunctional, but I didn't think this had anything to do with actual 4WD. I thought once in neutral with the drive selection pushed all the way forward and back into drive you had 4WD low. Not the case.

I had 4WDL before I replaced the prop shaft so it would seem quite odd that it suddenly developed a problem by replacing it.

Thanks for any responses or recommendations

 

What do you mean by you don’t have 4wd ?
Wheh you push your lever forward that’s just low gears
does it drive at all
when you push it once it goes into neutral
push it again it goes to low gears

 

these trucks are full time AWD. so, you are always in "4WD". redwhitekat is correct in that on a 2001 you cannot lock the center differential (unless someone installed the linkage). from the factory in a 2001 you can only shift from the High gears into the Low gears with the second shifter.

it does sound like you locked and unlocked the center differential with the 10mm wrench. which means you have a locking Transfer case and only need to hook up the linkage in order to be able to lock the center diff from the cab.


some one more knowledgeable in this should chime in, but the three amigos are most likely on due to a quirk in the SLABS unit that will show up if you have the Transfer case locked and shut off the truck. upon restart the three amigos show up. i can't remember how to reset them with that year truck.

 

It sounds like your CDL is still on, but the only way to really tell for sure is to read the ABS codes, which you'll need a tool for.

If the CDL was off, the three amigos would disappear the next time you turned the car on. You would also surely be able to tell if CDL was still engaged.

Unfortunately, without knowing what code your SLABS is throwing, it's difficult to tell what's wrong with it.

 

when you unlocked the t-case by turning it with the wrench the second time, you may not have rotated the spigot all the way to the point where it engaged properly. so your transfer case may be in neutral even though your range selection (4lo/4hi) is engaged.

 

@mollusc Is probably right, you can get it so the locking nipple ends up in a half-way spot. Play with it again and see if you get forward momentum.

Just to clarify, did you regain movement when you put it back into normal high mode?(shifter as far back towards passengers as possible)

I have also had it before where even though the shifter felt like it was all the way forward into low range, it was not properly engaged and the box was actually in neutral

 

The CDL does not have a neutral position. It has a locked position, an unlocked position, and an imaginary "third position" where the spigot comes out of the locking detent in the mechanism but does nothing new.

It is, however, possible that the CDL has stuck and isn't disengaging, which will likely require partial disassembly of the transfer case to resolve.

 

Thanks to everyone for the replies. I did get movement with the Rover but it's like it's still in high 4. I will go under again and check that the nipple is fully turned to the stop point. I noticed that something was wrong because I had a loaded trailer hooked up and was backing up a hill on our property. When the back wheels started to break loose, I stopped, put it in neutral, pushed the shifter all the way forward and then put the Rover in reverse. No change. Back wheels spun and front wheels neither moved nor spun. It seemed like the front wheels were simply disengaged.

It has to be something simple, however. It was working before I took out the old prop shaft, rotated the spigot and drove it to see if the vibration went away, then installed the new prop shaft and turned the spigot back. I definitely now have a problem of some kind somewhere that simply appeared after replacing the prop shaft.

 

yes. I did get forward movement. The Rover drove and I even tested the 4L and the rpms were up and it had the feel of 4L being active. But when I backed up the hill with the loaded trailer, the front wheels did not provide any assist and felt like it was still in 4H. I always have to push my shifter extra hard several times and can tell when it goes into 4L. Although it feels like it's engaged, it apparently isn't and my dash lights have remained on as well. The front wheels just aren't doing any work. The shifter says its engaged but on movement, it still feels like 4H instead of 4L.

 

I know someone that can read the codes. I'll take it by there and have them run and repost here. Hopefully that will shed some light on the problem.

thanks