QuestionOur 95 Disco makes an ugly "clunk" backing out of the driveway. I couldn't tell if it was from the back out or the shifting from Reverse to Drive. My wife took it to a local repair shop and they said it was due to "excessive play in the transfer case chain" but the guy wouldn't touch it. In the last week or so, my wife says the car will "grind" occasionally when shifting from park to drive/reverse (I am deployed right now, so I can't tell you exactly what it is). Could this be the same thing? Also, if it is the transfer case chain, can she wait til I get home or does she need to take it in right away?
Also, our tach works MOST of the time. Occasionally driving down the road it drops to 0 for a few seconds then comes back on. Alt. dying or is something loose? Thanks for your help!
Wes
AnswerHi Wes,
the clunk 'n grind in your transfer case is bad news. Best to have a LandRover dealer work on this. Its more expensive but the job will be done right and quickly. I won't trust local tranny shops with that work...unless they specialize in 4x4's.
Your wife may be able to drive it for awhile but it has to be taken care of soon.
As for the alternator...yes, its heading for the 'big sleep'. As soon as the tachometer starts to jump randomly, its almost always a sign that the alts going to go. The tach is connected to the alternator and doubles as a way of monitoring the alt's health. This has to be taken care of soon before your wife gets stranded somewhere. If you know someone who can do the work for you, have them check around the salvage yards for a replacement.
I have had years of experience with my '95 Disco's alternators. I can swap mine out in under 30 minutes. I should'nt be bragging about that. Our Disco's alt is a flaky component. I replaced my last alt for about $50 (found it in a salvage yard in upstate New York).
www.car-part.com is a great site for finding good, salvaged Disco I parts. You could pay the dealer $700 for a nice new alternator OR you can go with an aftermarket alt for about $350. My last alt(salvage - $50) is still going strong after 2 years. Need I say more?
So...even from your location, you can search the 800+ salvage yards in North America, find the alternator closest to your home, ORDER the alternator AND have it delivered to your home or arrange to pick it up. THEN, get someone you trust to install it on your Disco. Its not that complicated, just two big bolts hold it in place.
The only hard part is removing the serpentine belt and putting it back on CORRECTLY. Most DIY'ers feed the belt wrong.
When you order from the salvage yard, just mention you're deployed and I'm sure they'll take extra care of your order. I hope so.
If your internet access is limited, let me know. I'll find the part and give you a list of possible yards to buy if from, the contact names and telephone numbers.
Anything I can do to help, just let me know.
JohnMc
NB: stay safe.
