| Author | Message | ||
     Mark Buchanan (Mark54) New Member Username: Mark54 Post Number: 1 Registered: 03-2004 |
i am not a land rover owner - YET, i am looking at a '98 disco. after a test drive i noticed a loud clunk when i shifted from neutral to reverse. with the brake on i shifted several times from park-reverse-neutral-drive and back again. i heard and felt the clunk form neutral to drive and neutral to reverse every time.the dealer said that is known as the "land rover clunk" and is due to the permanent 4wd and the heavy duty tran that the vehicle has-------- seems odd to me ------is that a common thing ???? | ||
| Felix Gumbiner (Felixthecat) New Member Username: Felixthecat Post Number: 9 Registered: 02-2004 |
Yep, it's common on all heavy SUVs with decent mileage. Like the dealer said, it's pretty typical... there's a lot of metal moving when you shift into reverse. I wouldn't worry about it, then again, if it's inordinately loud (grinding, squealing, etc) have a mechanic look at it. | ||
| Mark Buchanan (Mark54) New Member Username: Mark54 Post Number: 2 Registered: 03-2004 |
it didn't grind or squeal but it was loud and you could feel it. do you hear it on yours ? | ||
| Dave Statler (Falconx84) Member Username: Falconx84 Post Number: 41 Registered: 02-2004 |
Mine's a clunker, too -- it was kinda unnerving at first, but you get used to it and come to expect it. Off-road, I just wait for the clunk to know I'm in gear rather than take my eyes off the obstacle. My biggest problem at first - I'd press the gas before it was fully in gear -- that makes a louder, uglier clunk. | ||
| Jason McCombs (Jasonmc) Member Username: Jasonmc Post Number: 172 Registered: 06-2003 |
yeah most of us hear/feel it. I guess you could say it's normal but don't confuse normal with being a good thing. there is a bit of play in the driveline and over time with age and wear and tear that play increases. I think a lot of us live with it and learn to drive to minimize it. | ||
| Bob Shinn (Bshinn) Member Username: Bshinn Post Number: 92 Registered: 01-2004 |
Can't speak for the Rover yet but, it's a common problem in older Landcruisers. The splines on the output shaft of the transmission wear & it causes a pretty bad clunk when going from P-R, R-D or if the •••••• shifts from 1-2 w no load on the driveline. Kinda apples to oranges I know but hope it helps. B | ||
| Alyssa Brown (Alyssa) Senior Member Username: Alyssa Post Number: 554 Registered: 01-2003 |
They clunk. Extremely common, not really cause for concern. They do it brand new, too. | ||
| James Briscoe (Rockywood) New Member Username: Rockywood Post Number: 35 Registered: 01-2004 |
Glad to hear this is common 'cause my 96 is getting worse. It is really bad going into reverse and not to bad going into drive. Had the dealer take a look at this before my Lubrico warranty expired. They to said it was common. However, last night I had my radio turned off because I was going into the car wash. When I took my foot of the gas I could hear the same kind of clunk only it was much more faint. Pumped the gas lightly while in drive and I could make the sound and feel it slightly. I also have the other "uglier clunk" problem Dave was talking about. Just have to wait for the trans to engage before giving gas. I also experience vibrations when accelerating from 40 mph and up. Could this be related? - James | ||
| Alyssa Brown (Alyssa) Senior Member Username: Alyssa Post Number: 555 Registered: 01-2003 |
Well, that much clunking might not be good. What were you doing driving with your radio off? That's an issue in itself. Everyone knows you have to keep the radio on so you don't have a nervous breakdown from all the noises! | ||
| James Briscoe (Rockywood) New Member Username: Rockywood Post Number: 37 Registered: 01-2004 |
Trust me the clunking makes me very nervous. I am getting a trans flush on Thursday from the dealer and putting in Amsoil. This might help a little with the uglier clunk. I was thinking the shifting to reverse might be the drive shaft joints but haven't crawled under there to check. Dare I ask the dealer on Thursday about it???! Or is that just asking for a heart attack? | ||
| Brett A. Naquin (Bnaquin) Member Username: Bnaquin Post Number: 82 Registered: 09-2003 |
I get the clunk every time I shift gears. I wouldn't let it scare you away. | ||
| Jamie (Rover_puppy) Senior Member Username: Rover_puppy Post Number: 1020 Registered: 05-2003 |
Alyssa - LOL  That was just too good!! Mine clunks too, always has. Rovers don't have a tail to wag when they're happy, so I think it's just their way of expressing happiness and asking where are we going? where are we going? | ||
| Joe B (Denverrover) Member Username: Denverrover Post Number: 172 Registered: 02-2003 |
If it doesn't clunk you're not in gear. It's is because of the 3 differentials plus the wear of a high mileage drive train. Very common. Like they said unless you hear a grinding or a screaching it is very normal - the thing that you will want to do now is look for leaks. Hope you have some time on your hands. | ||
| Kristopher March (Apexdisco) Senior Member Username: Apexdisco Post Number: 329 Registered: 02-2002 |
Add me to the list of 'clunker vehicles'. 99 DI with 145K + Later, Kris | ||
| Big Ed (Sandman) Member Username: Sandman Post Number: 62 Registered: 02-2004 |
My name is SandMan...and I'm a clunker. It's been 2 hours since my last clunk. | ||
| Wizard (Wizard) Member Username: Wizard Post Number: 52 Registered: 11-2003 |
The majority of clunking from a Disco comes from a worn A frame ball joint. This is situated at the rear just in front of the fuel tank.Its held in place by a large castel nut and two 10mm bolts. If you plan on changing it you will need a ten ton press to get the bugger out. cheers wizard | ||
| Mahn England (One_iota) New Member Username: One_iota Post Number: 39 Registered: 02-2003 |
Mine clunks too. High range to low range, CDL locked and unlocked, Double de-clutched stopped neutral, moving neutral, Forward to reverse and vice versa... Just love all the permutations available:-) | ||
| Dave Statler (Falconx84) Member Username: Falconx84 Post Number: 44 Registered: 02-2004 |
Mark, something else you might be interested in (gather 'roud, its storytime!) The previous owner of my 98 d1 didn't like the transmission clunk. He had it replaced to the tune of some 3k (i think). About 6k miles later, the clunk returned and they got sold the disco with only like 70k miles. I picked it up, dirt cheap, and never looked back. If it wasn't for the clunk, I wouldn't be a disco owner right now. ... and thats how I got my first disco | ||
| Brian (Bthaxton) Member Username: Bthaxton Post Number: 105 Registered: 02-2003 |
I think there is a Technical Bulletin on it if I am not mistaken. Something about worn splines. I'll have to check on alldatadiy.com. | ||
| Shaun Power (Shaunp) Senior Member Username: Shaunp Post Number: 252 Registered: 05-2003 |
The gear box spline issue is for cars with a transfer case serial number that has a sufix lower than the letter "F" this was up to some time in 96. The fix was that the transfer case drive gear has 4 X 10mm holes drilled in it to let oil to the splines to stop wear. Another cause of clunk is the ball joint on top of the rear diff. Any car with more than 50k probably needs one replaced. This ball joint also makes then feel kind of swirmy in corners. | ||
| Gregg Gallagher (Gregg_gallagher) New Member Username: Gregg_gallagher Post Number: 33 Registered: 08-2003 |
I've learned to accept and even respect "the clunk" for what it is. I'm so used it that if I didn't hear and feel "the clunk" I would think that the Rover Gods have some interesting D1 disaster awaiting me like a blown block or some funky electrical glich. Just watch the shifts and easy on the throttle. BTW 125K on our D1 and still a strong runner. | ||
| James Briscoe (Rockywood) Member Username: Rockywood Post Number: 41 Registered: 01-2004 |
I just had both front u-joints replaced today and guess what... all clunking is now gone! So is the vibration I used to experience accelerating from 35+ mph. I still have to do the rotoflex and other u-joint in the rear but they are not bad (roto has some tears). Just thought I would do them all around the same time. Cheap fix and good insurance too. |
