200tdi conversion

scott11 · Dec 29, 2018

Hi,

I've recently bought my first Defender 90 and I've noticed it has been converted to a 200tdi using a Discovery engine and gearbox. At the moment the gearstick comes through the seat box which has had a hole cut out but is something I'd like to put back to the original place. The gearbox is a lt77 with a 230 transfer box. Does anyone know the best way to get it back to it's original state?

dieseldog69 · Dec 29, 2018

scott11 said:
Hi,

I've recently bought my first Defender 90 and I've noticed it has been converted to a 200tdi using a Discovery engine and gearbox. At the moment the gearstick comes through the seat box which has had a hole cut out but is something I'd like to put back to the original place. The gearbox is a lt77 with a 230 transfer box. Does anyone know the best way to get it back to it's original state?

You would need to swap out the Disco LT77 for a short bell housing Defender item or even upgrade to an R380 from a Defender, the input shaft of the Discovery is longer as us the bell housing so swapping the whole unit is your easiest option.

scott11 · Dec 29, 2018

dieseldog69 said:
You would need to swap out the Disco LT77 for a short bell housing Defender item or even upgrade to an R380 from a Defender, the input shaft of the Discovery is longer as us the bell housing so swapping the whole unit is your easiest option.

Would it be a straight swap of the gearbox or would I need to change the propshafts as well?

dieseldog69 · Dec 29, 2018

scott11 said:
Would it be a straight swap of the gearbox or would I need to change the propshafts as well?

You would need props too

scott11 · Dec 29, 2018

dieseldog69 said:
You would need props too

Don't suppose you know the props I'd need? Would they be standard defender ones?

flat · Dec 29, 2018

scott11 said:
Don't suppose you know the props I'd need? Would they be standard defender ones?

If you fit a standard defender lt77 gearbox and bell housing and lt230 it’s likely it will need standard defender props.

HOWEVER you need to ascertain if your engine mounts and gearbox mounts have been moved before you buy bits willy nilly

tottot · Dec 29, 2018

Where is your engine mounted? near the bulkhead or forward over the axle?

scott11 · Dec 30, 2018

flat said:
If you fit a standard defender lt77 gearbox and bell housing and lt230 it’s likely it will need standard defender props.

HOWEVER you need to ascertain if your engine mounts and gearbox mounts have been moved before you buy bits willy nilly

I've had a brief look and it seems like they haven't been moved.

I've got a lt77 remote selector that looks like it will bolt on but the bit that connects to the selector is different. I've seen people use the selector rail adaptor that Ashcrofts sell which looks like it will do the trick but it says it's only for the R380. The inside of my gearbox at the end of the selector rail looks the same as the R380 but I can't seem to confirm anywhere whether or not it will work properly.

jamesmartin · Dec 30, 2018

scott11 said:
I've had a brief look and it seems like they haven't been moved.

I've got a lt77 remote selector that looks like it will bolt on but the bit that connects to the selector is different. I've seen people use the selector rail adaptor that Ashcrofts sell which looks like it will do the trick but it says it's only for the R380. The inside of my gearbox at the end of the selector rail looks the same as the R380 but I can't seem to confirm anywhere whether or not it will work properly.

i think it would fit, the selector shafts are shorter on the disco as it uses a yoke that stick out behind the shaft,whereas the defender has a quadrant that sits over the shaft and flush with the rear of the shaft, ive never used one so cant guarantee it

scott11 · Dec 30, 2018

jamesmartin said:
i think it would fit, the selector shafts are shorter on the disco as it uses a yoke that stick out behind the shaft,whereas the defender has a quadrant that sits over the shaft and flush with the rear of the shaft, ive never used one so cant guarantee it

The only thing that I can think of as a reason why it wouldn't work is May be because the reverse position is different on a lt77.

jamesmartin · Dec 30, 2018

scott11 said:
The only thing that I can think of as a reason why it wouldn't work is May be because the reverse position is different on a lt77.

cant see how that would matter as long as the spigot that fits over the selector shaft doesnt fit on further than the yoke would

dieseldog69 · Dec 30, 2018

scott11 said:
I've had a brief look and it seems like they haven't been moved.

I've got a lt77 remote selector that looks like it will bolt on but the bit that connects to the selector is different. I've seen people use the selector rail adaptor that Ashcrofts sell which looks like it will do the trick but it says it's only for the R380. The inside of my gearbox at the end of the selector rail looks the same as the R380 but I can't seem to confirm anywhere whether or not it will work properly.

I think my key question at this point is going to be, are you just looking for a "bolt something else in" fix or are you looking to actually get it as close to what a factory 200Tdi Defender should be?

scott11 · Dec 30, 2018

I think if I can get the gearstick in the correct place then I'd be happy with that. Ideally I'd like to get the selector top to fit but if need be I'll replace the gearbox.

jamesmartin · Dec 30, 2018

scott11 said:
I think if I can get the gearstick in the correct place then I'd be happy with that. Ideally I'd like to get the selector top to fit but if need be I'll replace the gearbox.

if g/box is in the same position as was previously fitting the defender selector top assembly will put stick in the correct position

scott11 · Jan 13, 2019

I finally bit the bullet and ordered the adapter kit from Ashcrofts. It states it's for R380 but my Discovery lt77 gearbox looked like it had the same selector yoke. Starting taking this off the rail and whoever put it on did a great job as in the end I had to drill out the grub screw. Fitted the kit, put the selector remote on top and it seems to select the gears fine. I haven't taken it for a drive yet but so far so good.

scott11 · Mar 30, 2020

**update**

So having spent the last few months playing around with the set up and discovering all sorts of challenges I think I've finally cracked it.

Everything was going well until I got the gearstick stuck in 5th gear. I had no way of getting home other than to drive about 15 miles back in 5th! As you've probably guessed the clutch burnt out and the smell remained for around 6 months!

Me and my brother put a new clutch in and replaced as many gaskets as we could whilst it was all out. If anybody is contemplating whether or not to buy one of the triangle shaped adaptors to bolt to the transfer box to allow you to use a car jack then I would definitely recommend you do. We did everything on the floor using a couple of Jack's and axle stands and it was hard work!

We put it all back together and it was all good until again, the car got stuck in 5th gear. After a bit of investigation work I realised the remote selector didn't have the interlock retainer fitted. Everytime it went in to 5th gear it was a lottery as to whether the collar would get stuck or not.

I found the piece I need but then realised it is set back too far to engage the collar.

It's about 17mm too far back so I got the boys where I work to have a look and see what they could do. They chopped the cylindrical piece of and set it forward 17mm to try.

It's been about a week now and have driven about with no issues so I think that's it. Gear sticks sit in the correct positions, new clutch fitted and fresh oil in both boxes. Now onto the next challenge!

jamesmartin · Mar 30, 2020

scott11 said:
**update**

So having spent the last few months playing around with the set up and discovering all sorts of challenges I think I've finally cracked it.

Everything was going well until I got the gearstick stuck in 5th gear. I had no way of getting home other than to drive about 15 miles back in 5th! As you've probably guessed the clutch burnt out and the smell remained for around 6 months!

Me and my brother put a new clutch in and replaced as many gaskets as we could whilst it was all out. If anybody is contemplating whether or not to buy one of the triangle shaped adaptors to bolt to the transfer box to allow you to use a car jack then I would definitely recommend you do. We did everything on the floor using a couple of Jack's and axle stands and it was hard work!

We put it all back together and it was all good until again, the car got stuck in 5th gear. After a bit of investigation work I realised the remote selector didn't have the interlock retainer fitted. Everytime it went in to 5th gear it was a lottery as to whether the collar would get stuck or not.

I found the piece I need but then realised it is set back too far to engage the collar.

View attachment 204059

It's about 17mm too far back so I got the boys where I work to have a look and see what they could do. They chopped the cylindrical piece of and set it forward 17mm to try.

View attachment 204060

It's been about a week now and have driven about with no issues so I think that's it. Gear sticks sit in the correct positions, new clutch fitted and fresh oil in both boxes. Now onto the next challenge!

you must be using a discovery gear box,they do use a different selector fork to set it further forward and also a shorter selector shaft

scott11 · Mar 30, 2020

jamesmartin said:
you must be using a discovery gear box,they do use a different selector fork to set it further forward and also a shorter selector shaft

Yh it has had a discovery engine and gearbox fitted at some point in its history. I wanted to try and get the gear levers put back in the right place.

200tdi conversion

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