Betsy

I suppose I could take the floors out and remove the selector block from the box and have a look inside. I won't see the bearings, but will be able to inspect the gears.

Many thanks chaps. I have previously rebuilt this box, along with the transfer box and the engine about 30k miles ago. Since then its been fantastic, and I am really kicking myself for letting this happen. I take the car green laning quite a bit, and the last trip was a very wet one. I should have changed the oils before parking her up. I have put a few miles on her over the past few days, and it does seem to have quietened a bit. I might give it a few more before deciding if I want to remove and strip. I don't do many miles, and she is standard engine and running gear, so the box is not normally under stress.

Does the layshaft stop turning in 4th gear? I can understand why it could be the bearings, its the lower shaft in the box and its bearings were probably sat in the bad oil.

Following a long layup, I got the S2a started last week. As I normally do, I press the clutch in before cranking to reduce drag on the engine. Once she was running, I let the clutch out. When I did this last week, there was a 'thud' from under the car, but she kept running and whilst in neutral was fine. When I went to drive her, I found that all gears except 4th were accompanied by a fairly loud whining/whirring noise. The noise went away if the clutch was depressed, but always there when under power. In top gear she was quiet as normal and drove well. I dropped the oil when I got home and what came out was a horrible grey coloured yuk. There was a full quantity of oil in the box, and the transfer box, but it was obviously water contaminated. New oil has failed to quieten it down, so am now resigned to pulling the box out and repairing. Has anyone got an idea as to what has broken from my description?

It would be a shame to ruin a good S2 bulkhead, they are hard to find now.

Maybe I can offer some useful experience. I know you said you did not want to cross the Sahara, but I took my 109 series 2a soft top to Morocco a few years ago. Its a standard 2.25 petrol, so I agree with everything you said about hills and fuel consumption - it will be slow and it will be costly. I met a fella who had 200tdi'd his 2a last year, and he said it was like a second coming! loads of power, the ability to climb hills, and reasonable fuel consumption. The only downsides were it vibrated a lot a tickover, and was a lot noisier to drive than the petrol. As for the brakes, I had no problems whatsoever, despite the car being very heavily loaded. We went up and over the Rif, and Atlas mountain ranges, and the brakes were much more effective at stopping it coming down than the engine was at getting it up! So long as it has the larger twin leading shoe setup (all 109's do) then it will be fine providing they are adjusted correctly and not full of oil. I have snapped a couple of parabolics, so if I have to change them ever again, I will put standard spring back on. Once you have weight in the car, they do move a bit.

I have carefully sanded the shoes a bit (with breathing mask) until the drum would fit. Now I've driven about a hundred miles they have freed off and stop nicely. When I discussed it at Landranger svcs, they said that they usually have to do this or grind off some metal to make them fit. He said it was because the shoes are made in China, He can get genuine parts, but reckons they are very expensive so does not stock them. Next time I will use genuine, it should not take too long, I reckon I have sanded 25% of the lining away! ....

Even with the wheel fitted, its very hard to turn by hand. I took it all apart again today, and cannot find a problem. The shoes are fully retracting, the springs are good and fitted as per manual, and they already have leading and trailing edge chamfers. I even tried to fit the original drum on the hub and that too is binding on the shoes. So its not the new Britpart drum! I can only think that the shoes are slightly thicker than they should be.

I got the drum on, so they should be centred. The problem is, when the drum is on and the screws fitted, it is almost impossible to turn. Its binding very hard. I dont want to drive it, it will overheat. The shoes are Allmakes 4x4, the drums are Brittpart, the cylinders are all Allmakes 4x4. All from Land Ranger Services. I appreciate that there is nothing better than genuine original parts, but are these available now? I doubt it. I think the sandpaper option is looking most likely.

My 109 2a needed new front brakes after a hub seal leaked oil. The brakes were all pretty worn anyway, so bought new drums, shoes, and cylinders. All bought from the same supplier. The brakes are the twin leading shoe version. Everything has been reassembled carefully, but when it came to fit the drum it simply will not fit over the shoes. I have made sure that the adjusters are backed right off, and the drum is a very tight fit over the shoes. I have made sure that the shoes are square to the back plate. The only way I can see to get the drums to fit will be to sand down some material from the new shoes. Is this normal?

Mine is 1966, and did not have seatbelts fitted when I first got it. It passed MOT for years before a new tester failed it. I appealed and lost. Post 65 needs front belts. I also have para's and ES3000's. The ride is better than the old mil spec leafs, but its still choppy and crashes over bigger bumps. I have also managed to snap 2 parabolics whilst driving off road. I have just fitted new Britpart poly bushes and it has improved things, but still a choppy ride. Its the nature of the beast unfortunately.

I don't think it will cause any problems, because the the port takes water to the cylinder gallery area anyway, so a small hole between the two will not affect flow at all. Its all internal, so no water loss will occur.

I have just been replacing the front hub seals on my series 2a. Previously, I have only been able to get hold of rubber seals which always seem to be a bit hit and miss to fit squarely, and without distortion. I managed to get hold of some original spec leather seals, which are housed in a much more robust steel housing, and which seemed to fit very nicely into the hub. They were soaked in oil for a week prior to fitting, and whilst they were tight to fit over the seal track when the hub was fitted, they appear to be sealing well so far. Whats the forums opinion on leather vs rubber? Do you reckon I will be doing the job again in a short space of time because leather is old fashioned? Opinions please.

Thats ok, its the thermostat that has not opened, but in this freezing weather, I am not suprised. So long as its not boiling over with a cold bottom hose.

I'm not sure if its any help, but all Discovery 3 and 4 TDV6 vehicles have a Webasto auxilliary heater installed behind the left hand headlamp. Out of the factory it is configured as an auxilliary heater to aid faster warmup of a running engine. On the D4 you can order a pre-heater remote to have the car warmed up before you set off, but you could never get one for D3. It is possible to convert the D3 unit to a pre heater by installing the webasto timer kit with a modified wiring loom. You can also incorporate a remote control system to fire it up with a handset plipper, or you can even connect a GSM remote switch so you can send a text to the car to switch the webasto on! I have done it to my D3, and it is fantastic on a cold morning, warming the engine to operating temp in about 20 minutes, prior to leaving for work. Maybe the same modification applies to the Eberspacher heater with the right timer fitted?