Which gearbox for V8 90?

Trying to weigh up what the gearbox options are for my 90 rebuild. The vehicle body (bulkhead, seatbox, floor etc) is a 94 200Tdi with the LT77 gearbox. Ive got a marsland v8 NAS chassis and a v8 engine to go in and I intend removing the body from my landy in one go and dropping it onto the rolling chasis im building. Im kinda stuck on what gearbox I need.... 2 options.

ZF4HP22 from RR Classic or D1 V8? Seems to be options around torque converter size and im not sure what gearbox crossmember I need. Spoke to marsland who dont supply one and said they are like rocking horse! Any other things i need to think about?

Long stick R380 from Def? Plenty of short stick disco ones on ebay, but cant see much in the way of long stick; and from what ive read on the forum you need a v8 bellhousing and something to do with spigot bearings?? confuse.com. What exactly would I need to make it work? does it require changes to the floor/seatbox etc?

lt77 is the stronger box, but the R380 is better for motorway crusing, plus the R380 recomended oil is ATF DEXTRON 3 where as the lt77 can still use MTF94 which is a little cheaper depending on where you go,

a disco 1 transfer box will also help !

Personally wouldn't fit an auto. Will take the fun and poke out of the V8. Manual will be much more fun.

LT77 should work. You'll just have to match up the right bits to make it all work. R380's aren't so different from LT77's, so if you want to spend the money they will work too.

So how do you fit an lt77 to a v8? What's required?

Shouldn't need anything special, just the right bell housing I think. I have a V8 from a Disco in my TR7 with an LT-77. It just bolted straight up.

LT-77 was used in factory TR7 V8/TR8's and Rover SD1's with the RV8.

The LT85 was used in V8 defenders, and is recokoned to be stronger than the LT77 (as is the R380, which was designed to cope with the more powerful engines)
I think you should speak to someone at Ashcroft Transmissions, who are the experts in this field, and have a great reputation.

R380 isn't really any stronger, just an evolution of the LT-77.

These used LT77's & RV8's:






But you can obviously choose what you want to use.

LT95 - 4 speed. Very strong. Used in Range Rover V8 manuals with carbs.
LT85 - 5 speed Santana box, also pretty strong used in factory V8 Ninety's and One Ten's.

Both very truck like and agricultural to use. You won't believe how far the gear lever moves on the LT-85 unless you've driven one!

LT-77/LT-77-s - as above pics above.

R380 - used in NAS spec manual Defenders, late RRC, D1/2 and p38a's with RV8's.

Of course, the beauty of the V8 is you don't need to change gear very often. 4th all the way from 30 to 80mph!

In the 4 speed LT95 case, of course..

But they are a lot more fun if you use the gears. The RV8 might not be the highest revving engine, but it doesn't mean it doesn't like to rev. Quite the opposite.

Labouring in too high a gear just sort of bypasses having a poky V8 in the first place. A Tdi will do that kind of thing just as well, due to the fat torque curve of being turbocharged.