Overdrive or no Overdrive?

[Nilhan WeeraSinha]

Hi,

These people may have what you are looking for

-Ashcroft Transmissions Limited
Tel: 00 44 1582 496040
Fax: 00 44 1582 595040
Ashcroft Transmissions

Series 5 speed kits £ 340

"We often get asked about putting a 5 speed LT77 or R 380 into a Series vehicle. This combination gives a stronger gearbox, syncro on all forward gears and overdrive 5th. There are a few ways of doing this depending on the axles fitted and if it"s an 88" or 109".
The series transfer case is part time 4 wheel drive and the front axle is fitted with Universal Joints (UJ"s). The Defender and Disco is fitted with the LT230 which is full time 4 wheel drive and because of this the front axle has CV joints.
If you have coil sprung axles on your Series then they will have CV joints and thus you can just fit the 5 speed with the LT230 and this will be fine.
If you have stock Leaf sprung axles you have 2 options :
1) You can fit the 5 speed to the engine then modify the LT230 to part time 4 wheel drive and fit this in conjunction with free wheeling hubs on the front. The way this kit works is you fit a few parts inside the LT230 centre diff to change the operation of the diff lock so that in the "diff locked" position the centre diff is locked and you have locked drive to the front and rear props but in the "unlocked" position there is no drive to the front, just the rear, so when used the Free Wheeling Hubs the front prop, diff Etc is not spinning. We are able to supply these part time kits at £ 145 but they come with freewheeling hubs to fit the 90/110 not Series type. There is a photo of the kit here
2) The other option is to fit the LT77 or R 380 and then fit the series transfer case onto the back of it with this kit. This way you retain the stock "Series" transfer case with selectable 2/4WD. You can also fit freewheeling hubs so you are not wasting fuel spinning the prop, diff Etc. This ends up a shorter transmission and allows you to keep the stock front grill even on a 88".
The gearbox length is increased by 102mm (4ins). The preferred method to accommodate this is to move the engine forward as this entails no change to prop shafts or cross members. Please note on some vehicles you will also need to modify cross members as well. This is not sold as a complete kit to put a 5 speed into a Series as there are many other considerations as mentioned, this kit is just the parts to mate the gearbox to the Series transfer case.
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installation_instructions
Cheers
Nilhan

[JMFL]

If a 4x4 shop ever suggested i raise my t-case ratio i would turn around and walk out the door and never ever ever ever go back there again, ever (did i mention ever ever never). In off road situations the lower the gears the better, me personally i wish Fairey made an underdrive unit for the series, if you want to go fast don't drive a series, if you have cooling issues start with the basics spend $60 dollars and have your radiator "rodded out". Go to a junk yard and buy an extra cooling fan from just about any Japanese's car (not stock but it will make a big difference, double check your voltage and pay attention if its a pusher or puller) wire it to a switch, even make a fan shroud from sheet metal, replace your water pump if you did all of these things it would cost you at least $1500 less than trying to change your t-case ratio and ruining your off road prowess.

[antichrist]

Originally Posted by eddi

The restoration place strongly suggested I consider adding a Rovers North transfer case for $1,800 (parts and labor); their justification is that even over short distances it helps the engine by allowing it not to run as hot.

That's disturbing. They obviously know very little about Series land Rovers.

Originally Posted by JMFL

If a 4x4 shop ever suggested i raise my t-case ratio i would turn around and walk out the door and never ever ever ever go back there again

The kit doesn't affect low ratio.

[KevinNY]

Unless you have a suffix B transfer case, then the Ashcroft raises it to 2.35 from 2.88. I wish Ashcroft had made it a 2.88 (or lower) lo.

[eddi]

Wow, thank you so much for all the replies. Several of you mentioned the 2.25 engine; I forgot to specify I have the 6 cyl, 2.6 engine. Does that make a difference?

Eddi

[jimfoo]

Originally Posted by 01001010

Although I didnt ask for it (not yet atleast) thanks for all the good info!

Lets talk more about this Santana Overdrive and availability.

PM sent

[KevinNY]

PM'd ya too Jim. Perfect for behind a stronger replacement engine.

[jimfoo]

Ok, here's the scoop on it for everyone, except my friend's e-mail which I won't post in public.

Since he was the one who asked about it, I already sent a reply to 01001010 although I'm unsure if he wants it or just wants more info about it. This is what I sent him.

A friend of mine bought it brand new years and years ago for his 109, however he hardly ever drove it, and it needed tons of work. So he bought a G Wagen, and my other friend bought the 109. He decided it was too far gone to restore, so started taking what he could use and selling the rest.(eventually someone bought the frame and body and restored it) Ralph currently has, well had a Fairey in his 88, and was going to put the Santana in it eventually, but directions have changed, and he now has a 200 TDI, R380 and LT230, so he no longer needs it. The OD only has about 1000 miles on it.

I have heard rumors that the synchro is the same as from a Rover tranny, but don't know if it's the truth. It looks very robust, and though I have no confirmation, it looks like it was made to bolt something(pto?) to the back as it has a cover just like the t-case has where the od bolts up to. The case is way more massive than the Fairey, so holds a lot mire oil and probably runs cooler. I don't know anything about parts availability for it though.