After 120K miles, larger tires, and much off-road use, the NP231 transfer case chain in Project
'94 X-Treme Cherokee finally let go when it stretched out. A
Crown replacement fit the bill and the pocketbook, so we contacted
Macromotive.com and ordered the parts with full intention of a Do-It-Yourself
project. As you can see, the new chain is virtually identical to the old, and it was about $50 less than
the dealer price!
I've been told this installation can be done with the tcase in the vehicle, but we went ahead and removed it anyway.
Here are the steps I used to change my chain:
- With the vehicle safely on jack-stands, shift the t-case into neutral, unbolt the case from the trans, disconnect the
speedometer cable and 4wd indicator, then unhook the shifter.
- Drain the t-case, then carefully slide it off the trans
output shaft (be careful, the case weighs about 120lbs dry!).
- Place the case on a workbench, then unbolt the tailshaft
housing and slide it off. This should expose the tailshaft. Remove the speedometer sending assembly.
- Remove the
retainer-clip, and unbolt/remove the rear bearing case.
- Unbolt/remove the back half of the tcase (note the position of
the t-case oiler). Note: The top center bolt on the tcase requires either the special spline-socket, or (ideally) a
10pt, 10mm socket.
- Remove the front output shaft yoke (made easiest with an impact wrench), and then the chain.
-
Installation is simply done in the reverse order. Make sure to use high-temp gasket maker, and assure the oil-slinger
is seated outside of the back-half of the tcase.
If you can, take a peek at a Factory Service Manual during this procedure.
Click here for Crown's on-line catalog!
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After 120K miles, larger tires, and much off-road use, the NP231 transfer case chain in Project
'94 X-Treme Cherokee finally let go when it stretched out. A
Crown replacement fit the bill and the pocketbook, so we contacted
Macromotive.com and ordered the parts with full intention of a Do-It-Yourself
project. As you can see, the new chain is virtually identical to the old, and it was about $50 less than
the dealer price!