88inchthing Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 As the title suggests I’m hoping someone can give me a definitive answer. Can I fit a Disco r380 to a Defender without an adapter kit. I realise this has been covered but it’s unclear. I have the correct Defender box to rob the bits from so do I still need an adapter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallfry Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 Yes you can ................. BUT. The gear lever will be in the wrong place, so you would have to alter the tunnel/seat box To get the gear lever in the right place, you need the adaptor kit. Or swap the selector shaft, yoke, and lever tower from your old R380 box. Or buy new parts of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonb Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 (edited) It will physically bolt up but Isn't the bell housing length different on them as well (Disco longer)? This makes the gear stick problem even worse - it ends up in seatbox between the front seats. On the Defender box, the shifter mechanism is positioned over the main gearbox casing (the black steel ribbed section). On the Discovery the shifter is positioned behind the main gearbox casing and over the ally rear casting from which the output shaft protrudes - so further back - towards the rear. This image from Ashcroft's shows a Discovery box. https://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.uk/manual-gearboxes/r-380.html Edited July 12, 2021 by simonb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 42 minutes ago, simonb said: It will physically bolt up but Isn't the bell housing length different on them as well (Disco longer)? This makes the gear stick problem even worse - it ends up in seatbox between the front seats. On the Defender box, the shifter mechanism is positioned over the main gearbox casing (the black steel ribbed section). On the Discovery the shifter is positioned behind the main gearbox casing and over the ally rear casting from which the output shaft protrudes - so further back - towards the rear. This image from Ashcroft's shows a Discovery box. https://www.ashcroft-transmissions.co.uk/manual-gearboxes/r-380.html Gearbox length difference is between Defender Lt77 and the R380/HP22/Disco LT77. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88inchthing Posted July 12, 2021 Author Share Posted July 12, 2021 Thanks very much for your replies so far. From what I can gather the Disco and Defender R380 Bell housings are identical as opposed to the lt77 where the Defender is shorter. what I’m trying to do is sort my crunchy synchros on the cheap. I’m about 80percent that if I buy a cheap second hand Disco box and swap the selector and quadrant, the Disco box will fit. It would be great if someone who’s done so themselves could confirm this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 @ashtrans will know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 Look for a post by @oneandtwo i'm sure he described how to do this fairly recently (last year or so). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reb78 Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 Edit. I read it in the last year. It was posted 7 years ago 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallfry Posted July 12, 2021 Share Posted July 12, 2021 I thought I had made it clear ? Obviously not. 19 minutes ago, reb78 said: Edit. I read it in the last year. It was posted 7 years ago Where does the time go eh ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 Guess I'll crack this out again for old time's sake: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88inchthing Posted July 15, 2021 Author Share Posted July 15, 2021 Thanks for all the replies. I now have the info I need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveSIIA Posted July 26, 2021 Share Posted July 26, 2021 You would be better off rebuilding the box you have with new synchro rings & seals than messing around swapping parts between the Defender & Disco boxes. The swap will involve a major strip & rebuild, so might as well do the job properly, with known good parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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