Question: I have a divorced NP205 out of a '73 Ford High-Boy. When I pulled it out, I noticed that it had a little bit of slop in it. I have since been looking for a rebuild kit, but so far have only been able to find one for a non-divorced case. I know I am not the only one with this problem with this tough little transfer case. Is there any company that you guys know of that offers such a kit?
Josh
Trafalgar, IN
Answer: Well, a lot of the parts and gaskets are going to be the same. Naturally, you're going to have a different input shaft than a direct-mount 205 will have. I suggest that you give the sales/customer service guys at Motive Gear a call at 800/934-2727. While they don't sell direct to the consumer, they can direct you to a dealer in your area.
Question: I have a '79 Jeep Cherokee Chief with an AMC 360, Turbo 400 tranny, and Quadra-Trac transfer case. The problem is in the transfer case, which I have heard is junk. Do you know of any other case that would bolt in? I can't find hardly any information on this truck anywhere.
Don Jones
via fourwheeler.com
Answer: To be honest with you, I don't think that the original Quadra-Trac system was all that bad. It was kind of the forerunner of the modern aluminum chaindriven case such as the NP231. It was used by Jeep behind the TH400 from '73 to '79 in two versions: The 13-05, without a low range, and the 13-39 with a 2.57:1 low-range. They do have a somewhat troublesome vacuum-operated locking feature. Jeep realized this and offered a manual-shift replacement kit, but it's long out of the system. It shouldn't be too hard to make some manual linkage, though. I believe Crown Automotive still offers rebuild kits and assorted parts that are available through most shops that sell Jeep parts, such as 4 Wheel Drive Hardware (www.4wd.com) or Collins Brothers.
Most likely, it will be a lot cheaper to rebuild the unit instead of swapping it out. Due to the offset output for the rear, the only other transfer case with this offset is the Dana 18. Novak Conversions (www.novak-adapt.com) offers a special adapter that cocks the transfer case to the proper angle.
I have seen people use the Dana 20 or Dana 300 transfer case with the centered output, and let the rear driveshaft run at an angle to the rearend, but again this will require a new adapter to the transmission.
Question: I own an '06 Chevy Silverado two-wheel drive with the 4.3L V-6. Where are the headers for this engine? I have been looking around for a little while, and I can find headers for the 4.3 S-10, but not the Silverado. Is this because the S-10 headers will also work on the Silverado, or is it that there really is no market for the Silverado? I can probably have them made, but at a price. I really want to wake my truck up a little here and there since it has the factory 3.23:1 rear axle. Any direction on this would be greatly appreciated.
Adam Woodruff
New Preston, CT
Answer: Both JBA (800/830-3377, www.jbaheaders.com) and Gibson Performance (800/528-3044, www.gibsonperformance.com) offer headers for your truck. Both companies make some pretty strong claims as to the performance gain which I am a bit apprehensive to repeat here. In the real world, I wouldn't expect that much.
I think that if it was my truck and I was looking for a big jump in performance, I would spend the money on a gear swap. Being only a two-wheel-drive truck, the expense wouldn't be all that much, and the performance gain would be substantial. Most likely there would, however, be a drop in fuel economy.