Bongo Fury

Hi guys,
I've checked my VIN on the russian site and it said it was a standard diff...my 2wd 1995 is also crap in the mud (or maybe that's the weight of my little shelving unit ) so I went out and bought some Castrol Universal 75W-90 GL-4/GL-5 to change the diff oil today.

...After Changing it Having taken what appears closer to 1.6l than 1.4 until it dribbled out, I then noticed the yellow paint splodge and a sticker that says S09G on it...

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1-Cw4u ... sp=sharing

I'm assuming it's standard diff still..but having read talk of yellow things on recalled LSD thought I'd better check whether a) anyone can say it's LSD b) whether I now have the wrong oil in it...

thanks,
Ant.

HI,

One sure fire way is to jack the rear of the Bongo up so both wheels are off the ground - make sure you have it in neutral and the front wheels chocked (you will need level ground)! With the handbrake off, turn one wheel by hand - if the opposite wheel turns in the opposite direction then its a standard diff, if it turns in the same direction then its an LSD.

This worked for me - confirmed what the Russian site said despite having no yellow sticker. Its perfectly possible to upgrade from a non-lsd to lsd (I think), so maybe someone did.

Another easier way to tell, is if you're pulling out of a tight junction in a sprightly manner, if there's a slight "graunchiness" from the back, thats the clutches in the LSD.

cheers,

Steve

Thanks Steve, I've just done that and yes, the opposite wheel spins the opposite direction so it's a standard diff as per the russian site...another fluid to check off my list of things to do Looked like it needed the change to be honest.

How freely should the rear wheels spin is a question tho...If I spin them fast, I see the prop turning so I imagine they'll feel fairly heavy, but I wouldn't say they carry on spinning at all when I let go...feels uniform but more heavy than I was expecting. Reason I ask is my fuel consumption which I have meticulously logged since I purchased it in May last year was 28/31/27/28/29/28/28/31......then in November its suddenly gone up to 26/23/26/26/25/25/24/26/28/26 with the same daily usage.

Since November, I've changed discs and pads on the front, pads on the rear, and cleaned up the calipers a little when I did it..no sign of binding and I've driven say 2 miles and coasted to a stop and can still touch the discs..I'd say they were body temperature... I've adjusted the TPS inline with the manual..it was a little out...changed the oil and oil filter (5w/40), changed the air filter, fixed a broken EGR vacuum pipe to the air intake, checked the banjo filter, cleaned the tank filler cap (it was holding a vacuum in the tank)....It's been MOT'd with no problems in Feb

The handbrake works fine but I've not checked it as such..could that still be a potential binding problem even if it's working fine ?
Not sure if this is of any consequence, but it's my nearside that seems to more readily loss traction on wet grass..I've put that down to the conversion I have on that side but with the bongo jacked up with both wheels off the ground it did seem that the nearside wheel preferred to turn the prop than the opposite wheel....and when turning the offside wheel, the opposite wheel turned in preference to the prop.

I have it into 321Away tomorrow for a coolant change so will ask them to give it a feel..they've got a nice selection of bongos there so will know the difference between normal and not so normal I guess...
thanks,
Ant.

The yellow paint dot could be from an unrelated recall. Mine has the LSD on 2wd, confirmed on tests and the russian site, and it is very noticeable in any off main road situation. The back wheels scrabble around to grip in mud and on rough surfaces. I have got it out of mud wallows I would have not expected a 2wd to manage, including a campsite "road" that turned out to be a disused railway line that ended in a good old new forest bog.