Thread: 1971 2a

Hi guys I have a 71 2a and a donor 1989 RR 3.5 manual (I have converted it to carb) the question is putting the RR engine complete with 5 speed and transfer box in the 2a I believe the axles don't like the 4wd set up from the RR
Alternatively I could put the RR axles in converted to leaves and flares for the xtra width
It would be simpler to keep the original 2a axles.
your thoughts

You obviously are aware of the issues. The RR transfer case provides full time four wheel drive, the Series 2a front axle has cross and bearing U-joints not CV joints, which give serious steering issues in four wheel drive on hard surfaces.

There are several possible alternatives, all have issues.

The simplest and theoretically easiest is to replace the front axle (or just key parts) with one out of a Series 3 Stage 1 Landrover, which came with CV joints and was designed for full time four wheel drive. This axle is a bolt in replacement (except for the 3.54 instead of the 4.7 diff, but you probably want to change to that anyway - rear to match, no issues. The problem with this solution is that you will find the Stage 1 front axles on the shelf alongside the hen's teeth, and some of the replacement parts (including CVs) are not even there.

Replacing the axles with the RR ones is a much bigger job, with differences in the steering linkage arrangement and the change to leaf springs.

The other alternative is to change the RR transfer case to part time four wheel drive. I believe there have been options here, but possibly not for your model RR.

In any case I would start with a conversation with an engineer to find what is going to be acceptable for registration.