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np231 np232 swap?

D

damngreenxj

NAXJA Forum User
Location
new york
Hey guys,
First thing is first. I have a 1999 Jeep cherokee Spor 6cyl 4.0.
I just recently tore apart my front axle and transfer case all in one day... Yeah i know...
The real question is. I just found out I have a NP232 under neath her, Could I swap that out for a NP231 with minimal to no problems?
Anyone ever try this?
I have searched everywhere high and low and no one seems to know.... Any help, ideas, comments or otherwise would be MORE than welcome. Thanks
 
damngreenxj said:
Hey guys,
First thing is first. I have a 1999 Jeep cherokee Spor 6cyl 4.0.
I just recently tore apart my front axle and transfer case all in one day... Yeah i know...
The real question is. I just found out I have a NP232 under neath her, Could I swap that out for a NP231 with minimal to no problems?
Anyone ever try this?
I have searched everywhere high and low and no one seems to know.... Any help, ideas, comments or otherwise would be MORE than welcome. Thanks
Click to expand...
Do some searching,there is no 232 in a Jeep. 231 and 242 where std for the later years!
 
np231/np242

Mechanically it will work fine. Its basically "plug and play". There may be an issue with the "part time" light not working(I haven't got that far on my swap yet). Make sure you swap out the linkages and shifters as well. The shifters are "gated" differently and the linkage is shorter for the 231.

Takes about 4 hours to swap out cases.
 
Last edited:
My case was marked with a sticker that reads clearly NV232J...
I did a lot of research on this and couldn't find this number anywhere. When it comes to jeep I am no moron, I do all my own work and have been through that truck time and again for just about everything. The only thing I haven't really touched is Tranny and T-case, which should explain my lack of knowledge.

I am going to do the swap today. So I will post up with how well it works (didn't work) and what I went through in case any of you guys are interested.
When i get a chance I will even post some pics of the old hole filled T-case and maybe one of you guys can even identify if I am wrong.

I appreciate the fast replies and the excellent help.
Thanks a lot, and wish me luck
 
damngreenxj said:
My case was marked with a sticker that reads clearly NV232J...
I did a lot of research on this and couldn't find this number anywhere. When it comes to jeep I am no moron, I do all my own work and have been through that truck time and again for just about everything. The only thing I haven't really touched is Tranny and T-case, which should explain my lack of knowledge.

I am going to do the swap today. So I will post up with how well it works (didn't work) and what I went through in case any of you guys are interested.
When i get a chance I will even post some pics of the old hole filled T-case and maybe one of you guys can even identify if I am wrong.

I appreciate the fast replies and the excellent help.
Thanks a lot, and wish me luck
Click to expand...

What year XJ are you working on? Is it a full time case?
 
OK, after an extensive call with the dealer, who still cannot figure out what the sticker marking my T-case means, It is a 242.
Sorry for being dumb guys.Hasta

The dealer also said that it "should" be interchangable as well. But he is telling me from a computer aspect only looking at codes and numbers.
From everything I have gotten through here and reading up as much as i can find. I am going to do it and hopefully I won't run into that many problems.
Thanks again for all your help

It's a 99 XJ 4.0 and I am swapping out of a 98 xj 4.0... I just need a little luck now
 
Yes I just read that now... Thanks for the heads up, it would have been great to know before I did it though :) I feel like a tard, took me an hour and a half longer.

Thanks for the reply !!!!
Once again, thank you everyone for your help
 
Hey guys, just an update. I did the swap and all worked out... kind of.
I am getting some funky noises I have to get to the bottom of, I will get around to it.
The 242 markings on the case were said (by the dealer) that they have absolutely no ideas what that was about. They would like to say that it was just a misprint, but don't think they can screw up that much. So I am still at a dead end with that. Although I don't think it matters that much.

But just out of curiosity, how much different is the shift pattern for the 231?
I can only pull the stick slightly up, I know that there would be different positions, but I can't figure it out and I don't want to mess around with anything because it is the daily driver and I just got it done in time for work/school...
is this going to take some sort of modifications? I have looked around the site and there is a lot to go through, but I don't see any mention of this.
I did find however, there was a nice hole in the top side of my case about the size of a quarter. Somewhere along the line the 4wd never disengaged. So I drove about 250 miles in 4 wheel... good reason for a grenaded case.
Thanks a lot guys
 
It's a direct swap as long as you have the right input shaft on the case. You will need to readjust your linkage. The pattern on the 231 is 2hi,4hi,N,4Lo
I forgot if I swapped arms on the case or not. I think I may have taken the arm off my 242 and put it on the 231. I did the SYE and 231 swap at the same time. Yeah, driving it on the road in 4WD is a huge no-no, hope it survived.
 
the truck survived... well for the most part. The pinion bearings went in the front axle. It's on the list ;)
Other than that everything else seems fine.
Thanks for the heads up on the shift pattern. So now I know I can only get into 4 hi, and not the rest... That doesn't sound like a fun problem.

well if anyone seems to know why, I am all ears.

Thanks
 
wait, you just did all this with the new TC?
 
Not at all. It came out of a 98 XJ.
I got the TC for $150, so in all honesty how can i go wrong?
It is doing some weird things that I definitely have to figure out, like where the hell 4 low and neutral went! But I will get it sorted out.
Any of you guys have these problems at all?
Or any thumping under neath the drivers floor... It's only at low speeds and when accelerating, I haven't had a chance to check it out yet, but that don't sound fun either.
JNickel101 said:
wait, you just did all this with the new TC?
Click to expand...
 
I'm lost as to which case you grenaded....and where you messed up your pinion bearings.....and which one you drove unknowingly in 4wd for 250 miles...

anyway...if you still have a jeep and a good TC on there now, I'd have swapped everything over (linkage and shift lever) from the doner vehicle. i'm sure b/c of the different shift pattern, you'd want the linkage and lever that matches up with the TC.
 
I grenaded the 242, which is what I drove 250 miles with in 4 wheel.
I will see if I can get the level from the donor... not sure if it's still there.
the pinion is what went in truck along with the TC... gotta fix it still
 
You should have been able to drive it in 4WD without any adverse results. Thats what I like about the 242, now if you did that with a 231 I could see it failing.
I don't know how many times I forgot to take my 242 out of 4WD and drove down the highway,no probs.
 
damngreenxj said:
It's a 99 XJ 4.0 and I am swapping out of a 98 xj 4.0... I just need a little luck now
Click to expand...

98 and 99 231/242 are compatible as long as you make some additional changes. The shift levers on the TCs are not the same, use the one that came with the 231. The shift gates and panels are also different.
As for the amber light, all you have to do is make sure you hook up the existing amber wires only to the new switch BK/RD AND BK. The BK/WT is for the green light and no longer in use.
Now that you got your 231, remember that you can never be in 4X4 unless the ground is loose or slippery.
 
Well, that is one hell of an answer... I am going to get the donor vehicles parts for the Tcase, so that should be fine... But for the moment I have a bigger problem. The case is spraying fluid up into the underside of the truck and leaking onto my exhaust... NOT A GOOD SMELL!
I imagine at some point the fluid is flamable as well. This could work out bad. It looks like it is coming from the tail end under the rubber (guard?) before the rear driveshaft. I can't pinpoint exactly, but it definitely is that area.
Anyone run into this problem too?
My truck is also lifted 3 inches with 31's,
I think the original case failed because of a 1 inch Tcase drop... I just don't want to burn this one out... Don't have $ for any more
 
dizzymac said:
You should have been able to drive it in 4WD without any adverse results. Thats what I like about the 242, now if you did that with a 231 I could see it failing.
I don't know how many times I forgot to take my 242 out of 4WD and drove down the highway,no probs.
Click to expand...

Two of my Jeeps with a 242 are permanently in 4x4FT, the 3rd 50/50 until I do some work on the front, then it will go 100% of the time.
I ran some checks and the mpg is the same 2x4 or 4x4.
I see no reason to use 2x4.
 
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