Thread: Disco 1 transfer case stuck

Hi Goldey,
Does your disco have a modified or aftermarket transfer case, cause i thought all all disco's (not sure about the new ones), were constant 4wd. I have a 1993 200tdi disco and the transfer case goes like this: North-South gives you High-Neutral-Low and East-West engages your centre diff lock and vice versa.

yes bushbasherss, the D1 is full time 4WD, the TC providing high and low range and optional centre centre diff locking as you describe

and goldey - there is no "2" hi or lo - you are probably mistaking the high & low selection for this

it can be used either in the left (cdl locked) position or the right (cdl unlocked), make sure you don't drive too far on concrete or tar in "locked"

it sounds like the linkage for the locked position might be a bit dodgey or stiff through non-use? you could try and see if you can engage "locked" by manipulating the linkage from under the vehicle as described

the following is from the owners manual :

"Gearbox & transmission

TRANSFER GEARBOX
The second gearbox (known as the transfer
box) is used to select either the high or low
range of gears and, in addition, also controls
the central differential (known as the ’DIFF
LOCK’).
High range (’H’)
The high range of gears should be used for all
normal road driving and also for off-road
driving across dry, level terrain.
Low range (’L’)
Use low range gears in any situation where
low speed manoeuvring is necessary, such as
reversing a trailer or negotiating a boulder
strewn river bed; also for more extreme
off-road conditions where progress in high
range cannot be maintained.
WARNING
DO NOT attempt to change to LOW range
gears for normal road driving.
’Diff lock’ central differential
Use the ’unlocked’ position for all normal
driving, and use the ’DIFF-LOCK’ position to
improve traction in extreme conditions where
wheel grip could be lost, such as: wet grass,
mud, sand, ice or snow. Return to the
’unlocked’ position as soon as dry, firm,
ground is reached.
DO NOT use the ’diff lock’ unnecessarily!
USING THE TRANSFER GEARBOX
There are two ways of operating the transfer
gearbox lever; the ’normal’ method -recommended
for inexperienced drivers - and
the ’advanced’ method for experienced
drivers.
Normal method
Manual models:
With the vehicle stationary and the engine
running, depress the clutch and then move
the lever fully forward (or backwards) in TWO
distinct but positive moves - ’high to
neutral’.... ’neutral to low’ (or vice versa).
If there is resistance to the gear engaging, do
not force the lever. Instead, with the main
lever in gear, release the clutch momentarily
and then try again.
Automatic models:
With the vehicle stationary and the engine
running, apply both foot brake and handbrake
and then move the automatic gearbox selector
to the ’N’ (neutral) position before moving the
transfer lever fully forward or backwards to
the required position."

Hey guys, thanks for the clarifications. I didn't explain myself very well. I have however traced the problem to what appears to be a stuck plunger? I removed the centre console and tunnel plates to get access to the top of the linkages. The transfer case lever has two directions of operation (as pointed out) and will shift between hi and lo range (without centre diff engaged) okay but cannot be moved to engage the centre diff. Before blaming the internals of the transfer case, I disconnected the lever arm from the transfer case stick and I can get the centre diff to lock. So the issue is with theshifting mechanism just below the tunnel floor. This mechanism appears to have a plunger (?) which resists the movement of the transfer case stick into the locked centre diff location. This plunger is stuck fast. No application of WD40 or brute force with a screwdriver or pliers seems to move it. There is also a backing plate that appears to hold the horizontal plunger but it is held in with two Phillips head screws and sitting here in a campground at Cockle Creek at the southern most point of Tasmania I don't have my impact driver with me to investigate further. Good thing this trip doesn't involve "locked in" 4wd. I can fix it at home.

One water pump, two top hoses, one replaced p gasket, both sets of front wheel bearings and a stuck transfer case lever in 3 mths and 15000ks isn't too bad I suppose.

It is an at-home job. The problem could be the pivot inside the box on top of the gearbox. It's a little fiddly to get at but do-able. In my case, it was the circlip that popped off and the nylon bush dropped out. The diagram should help.