I just bought a '04 Discovery 2 that has a moderate transfer case leak at the case halves and a stuck low-range lever (I'm guessing the truck has never been put in 4 low...). I definitely need to fix the low range lever so I am planning to drop the transfer case.

My question for you is whether I should send the transfer case off to be rebuilt while it is out or just clean up the shifter mechanism, pour in heavier weight oil with some oil leak stop, and call it good?

Also, any recommendations on the best place to have the t-case rebuilt?

 

Rebuild it, its been in service almost 20 years. Give it a little love and let it go another 20.

No rec on rebuilt shops, if you have some tools it can be tackled in the garage.

 

Rebuild seems like the way to go. Where are you located?

 

Almost zero chance it needs to be rebuilt if has had oil kept in it. Unlikely the leak is from the halves, more likely it is the intermediate shaft o-ring but it still as to come out to fix that. Clean it up, and validate the leak source. Do a search on google regarding the LT230 intermediate shaft seal, pretty easy fix once it is out. Don't just do the o-ring, coat it in ultra-black silicone.

 

Thanks for the feedback so far. I did clean up the area around the case halves and will also clean up the area under the intermediate shaft.

whowa004, I'm in the Denver area.

 

Give Roadsideworx a call and tell them Will Howard sent you. Awesome guys there, if I were to have a shop do any work to either of my D2s that is where I would go. Also a fantastic resource for parts, Matt has just about everything you could ever need in stock and no waiting for shipping.

 

Another thing to check is the vent lines. They come up on the passenger side of the fire wall near the engine. Mine came off and melted into a blob on the exhaust manifold causing both a transfer case and tranny leak. Once fixed both leakes stopped.

 

I looked at the intermediate shaft and it is not leaking, just a little at the case halves.

By the way, how annoying is it to drop the transfer case? I don't have a high lift, just the quickjack lifts and a hydraulic cart for the transfer case. I'm not worried about the mechanical process, I just want to compare the PITA factor against paying someone else to do it.

 

It's a pretty substantial undertaking, in part because you have to remove the entire central console inside and then drill out the rivets for the central cover plate. You also need to drop the exhaust and the chassis cross-member -- and the bolts on the latter can be almost impossible to remove.

 

I had my TC case replaced two years ago and I know for a fact that the shop did not remove the exhaust, the crossbar, or the center console.

They did remove the rear driveshaft and preventively replaced the rotoflex...

The parking drum had to be replaced as well as it was full of oil from the rear seal leaking.