Are you suggesting the fluid leaked out of a Rover?! Eeegads man!

Dave

 

From the RAVE shop manual Front Axle - repairs - differential assembly - step 10


10. Release wheel hubs from front axle. Remove wheel hubs and drive shafts from front axle.

Maybe you can get by with sliding the shafts out partially if you have the space in the garage (tell SWMBO that she can't park in the garage - and you better be prepared to sleep there)

 

That is what is bothering me. No signs of current or past fluid leaks, the truck was LR serviced, the fluid level was fine, no real shavings in fluid, drives fine now, etc.
As far as the rebuild, I just didn't know if this would be a fairly easy job for a shop that handles this type of stuff to do. If the gears are still fine and all else is good besides 3 sheered bolts, I didn't know if it would be as easy as fitting a few new bolts on and going with it. If I'm doing it myself, it would just be a swap from the 00 to the 04.

 

I pulled one hub and CV and axle shaft out in under 20 minutes at the boneyard in 100F temp. Slides right out. Thinking I had bad CV, popping noises. Got home and started to do same to the Disco - and found that two lug nuts were not torqued down. Still have that shaft on the spares shelf. And if a part time villiage idiot like me can do it, you'll have no problems with the shafts. I don't know if you can see the crown bolts thru the drain or fill holes when parts are rotated, with an inspection miror, etc. It's dark in there and I'm skeered of the dark.

 

I could see in there, and didn't see any missing crown bolts. Felt around a bit too. Everything seemed fine. I would still love to see if anyone has one laying around and can ID the bolts by the numbers on them.
So if I hear you correct, jack the truck up, slide out both axle shafts, take the prop shaft off and once you unbolt the rear bolts of the diff it will slide right out? Swap the part from the other truck and slide back in, bolt up and done?
If I were to just remove the prop shaft and unbolt the rear bolts, would that be able to tell me anything? I'm just worried about opening Pandora's box on this truck. It was a perfectly running truck, and now I'm all paranoid about crap on it, and already feel I messed things up with preventative crap (did the oil with the T6, and now she leaks more, replaced the Dex and throttle body heater, and now I think there is a small leak from somewhere in the radiator plus there is a chirping sound...which BETTER be the belt from getting some coolant on it and not the water pump messed up).

 

Village Idiot? Here I thought you planted the shade tree?

 

BTW Buzz... when you making a trip up North? I will actually be down in your area...but sans the Disco!

 

There is NO WAY for those bolts to sheer off, none.
Here is a good pic of a Rover diff.
Differential - Rear - 24 Spline (FTC5143G Same Fit As Part # FTC5143) - Land Rover differential internal from Atlantic British
See the bolts? See how far away they are from any moving parts?
If the gears had come into contact with the bolts the truck would not be driveable.
There are 4 bolts, you can see two of them in the pic.
Your diff is fine.
Here is another pic, you can see all the bolts that are in the diff.

 

If you can see them and account for them, Spike is on the right path, just drive. Maybe the remains of a nasty shop prank...

 

Aren't you forgetting the 10 bolts that secure the ring gear to the carrier?