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Is it worth swapping the np231 for the np242

summitlt

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Maine
I have one sitting here, the full time case. And was thinking of swapping it into my MJ for the New england winters. I dont have any problems with the 231, but figured itd be nice with the 242.

Are there any drawbacks to having the 242?

All I need is

Front DS?
console stuff
linkage

right?
 
Had a 231 previously, have a 242 now. Wouldn't go back if you paid me, unless the sum of money involved was ridiculously huge.
 
what exactly are the pros and cons i have a 242 in my limited


just curious
 
funvtec said:
what exactly are the pros and cons i have a 242 in my limited

The 242 has a centre differential, which the 231 does not. In practice, what this means is that the 242 gains a full-time 4WD position (4FT) that can be used on solid surfaces. Effectively, it gives you an AWD high range suitable for use on pavement by allowing both the front and rear axles to turn at different speeds. In rain & snow this is extremely useful, and I've found it great out in the desert on all but the deepest sand.

The 231 lacks the centre diff, so no 4FT range. This means that using part-time 4WD (4PT) on pavement unless you're moving in pretty much a straight line is a bad idea: because the front and rear axles can't move independently of each other, when you turn the steering wheel you start introducing hop at the CV joints. Turn it far enough and you'll bind the axles completely.
 
Well, I'll play devil's advocate and offer the opposite view. I've had a 4-wheeler with a transfer case with a full-time option in the past and my current XJ has the 231. I don't think the benefits of full-time 4WD are worth the effort to make the swap, even if you do already have the t-case sitting there.

With shift-on-the-fly you can put your 231 into 4WD anytime you need it, and then take it out when you don't. The only thing a 242 t-case gives you is the option of saving the teeny-tiny bit of effort that's involved in shifting into and out of 4WD.

Now, some people will say, "but you'd have to be constantly shifting back and forth in some situations," to which I say, nonsense. I live in Colorado, drive up into the mountains regularly, see ice and snow all the time, and have yet to see conditions where I needed to be constantly shifting into and out of 4WD. What I see are conditions of two types: 1) It's pretty bad and you shift into 4WD and leave it there; the few small patches of dry road are not enough to cause any problems when in part-time 4WD. 2) It's not so bad and you only need to shift into 4WD very infrequently; maybe sometimes when you start off, and once in a while to give you more control going around a corner.

Another thing some people will say is, "with full-time it doesn't matter if it's icy or not, I just put it into FT and go without even caring!" Now, those are the people to WATCH OUT FOR!!! You can't drive like the road is dry, just because you have it in FT-4WD. You still need to be aware and careful when it's slippery, because your Jeep in FT-4WD will not stop any better than any other car on the road, and it won't corner any better than any front-wheel drive car out there (like my Toyota Corolla, which does very nearly as well on snowy roads as my Jeep).

If you really want to be lazy then do the swap. You've got the t-case already anyway. I wouldn't bother, though. I'd just keep the other t-case as a spare.
 
dmillion said:
If you really want to be lazy then do the swap. You've got the t-case already anyway. I wouldn't bother, though. I'd just keep the other t-case as a spare.

Curious, how will be be lazy by doing the swap???
 
I meant lazy in the sense of wanting to put it into FT-4WD and then not shift into and out of 4WD as the conditions of the road dictate.

(Oh, by the way, I lived in Iowa for four years, too--the Des Moines area, Clive to be exact.)
 
Don't know if it is worth the hassle of swapping, but I like it since I don't have to explain to anyone how to use 4x4 if they borrow my Jeep. I just put it in full-time for the wife the odd time she drives it in the winter and no worries. Otherwise, I'd have to rely on her to switch it in and out (below 88 km/h btw) and also confirming with lights and feel that it did switch. Pulling the handle isn't hard, but overall it's not user-friendly for the casual driver. I wouldn't want her to drive it in just 2wd, since she hasn't driven too many torquey rear-wheel vehicles... that + slippery roads is not fun (unless that's what you're looking for)

That said, I'd just as soon as operate in front wheel drive only in winter and just engage the rear wheels when needed.. ghey but true!
 
glub said:
That said, I'd just as soon as operate in front wheel drive only in winter and just engage the rear wheels when needed...
I agree! My "ideal" transfer case would have two levers. One would operate to put it in front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, or 4-wheel drive. The other would operate to put it in lo-range, hi-range, or neutral. You would be able to do any combination and everything would be shift-on-the-fly.

I'd use rear-wheel drive, hi-range for normal, dry roads. I'd use front-wheel drive, hi-range when the roads are a little slippery, but not too bad--heavy rain, light snow, patchy ice, etc. 2WD (either front or rear) and lo-range would be available for those times that you're in heavy traffic, creeping along at 3 mph. And, of course, 4WD (hi or lo) would be there whenever you needed it.
 
Up to now I've had 4 Cherokees. 3XJs and 1 Wj.
My first had a FT(242) TC and liked it. The only time I ever put it in PT was when I was stuck in deep mud or snow. Then I bought the two XJs with part time only cause I coudn't find one with FT at the time.
Later I bought for the wife the WJ with FT and it was obvious to both of us that we liked the ability to go FT.
During the last snow, she put hers in to FT and hasn't touched it yet.
Considering that she gets great traction all the time including in rain, I think she'll keep it in FT all the time.
The WJ ran great and she never had the need for PT.
I think we got it backwards it is the FT that is the most usefull not the other way around.
In a few days I will swap my 231 for a 242 and plan to do the same on my other XJ soon after that.
I didn't like getting the 231 PT TC in the first place and I'll be glad to get rid of it.
 
so does the 242 send all the power all the time in PT to the 4 wheels and FT sends it there when slipping?
because when i got myself in a big rut i had1 front tire in the air and it just spun freely and didn't help me at all to get out as a matter of fact if i remember correctly the left front spun free as did the right rear. i always thought it was becaust i have open rearends, the back really never opens until i have 1 tire firmly planted and the other is in the air or really loose

how does it make it better for on the road driving in FT? if your differential do all the work as far as turning and stuff what could bind up if you were allowed to have the inside tire spin at a different rate in any 4 wheel drive setting?
 
funvtec said:
so does the 242 send all the power all the time in PT to the 4 wheels and FT sends it there when slipping?
because when i got myself in a big rut i had1 front tire in the air and it just spun freely and didn't help me at all to get out as a matter of fact if i remember correctly the left front spun free as did the right rear. i always thought it was becaust i have open rearends, the back really never opens until i have 1 tire firmly planted and the other is in the air or really loose

how does it make it better for on the road driving in FT? if your differential do all the work as far as turning and stuff what could bind up if you were allowed to have the inside tire spin at a different rate in any 4 wheel drive setting?

I have a 242 TC on my bench right now. In FT if I turn the input shaft, both front and rear output shafts turn, if I prevent either one from turning the other continues turning.
In real life, you get all the traction you need for all kinds of weather in town.
For offroading, there are cases were the part time pays off.
The good thing about the 242 is that you loose nothing, you gain an option.
In rain you cannot use PT, in FT you cannot spin a tire.
 
glub said:
Otherwise, I'd have to rely on her to switch it in and out (below 88 km/h btw)

Regarding the 88km/h / 55mph rule: AFAIK, this is based on owner's manual numbers. Over the years, they stopped quoting a set limit and changed the wording to 'any legal speed'. I've routinely gone between 2WD and 4PT/FT at speeds of 70-75mph with no ill effects. My rule of thumb is that if I need 4WD at all, 70mph is probably more than enough for the prevailing conditions.

Note: if someone goes out and shifts their case into 4WD at over 55mph as a result of my advice and hand-grenades it, tough. YMMV on this, so don't blame me if it goes boom.

falcon556 said:
In rain you cannot use PT, in FT you cannot spin a tire.

Going to disagree on the use of 4PT in rain: this is exactly where I'd use it when I still had the 231 t-case. The key was not making sharp turns - so for going around corners I'd disengage it then re-engage once I made the turn.

Kejtar said:
Not to bag on anyone, but if someone feels the need for FT for when it rains, they need to learn how to drive.

I dunno about that - I was extremely grateful to have had it a couple of weeks ago when we were getting the wet stuff and all the oil and grime was surfacing. An off-ramp four-wheel-drift would've ended a lot worse without it.
 
so let me see if i got this now

PT is used when off road and very slick stuff beause it trasnsfers more power to all 4 tires

FT is used on road when its not to bad because you can still turn sharp because it has the ability to allow the front driveshaft to in a way slip to allow for the sharp turns

and 4 lo is for low speet high torque applications

i know it says something on my visor but its kinda worded stupidly
 
casm said:
Going to disagree on the use of 4PT in rain: this is exactly where I'd use it when I still had the 231 t-case. The key was not making sharp turns - so for going around corners I'd disengage it then re-engage once I made the turn.
I think that you were more likely to loose traction during disengage/reengage than driving carefully.

I dunno about that - I was extremely grateful to have had it a couple of weeks ago when we were getting the wet stuff and all the oil and grime was surfacing. An off-ramp four-wheel-drift would've ended a lot worse without it.
Ummm we drive more or less over the same freeways and I think I put on a bit more miles then you do and I have never had a problem during the rain seasons. Granted I have to adjust my driving habits a bit but nothing that would ever require me using 4wd.
 
funvtec said:
FT is used on road when its not to bad because you can still turn sharp because it has the ability to allow the front driveshaft to in a way slip to allow for the sharp turns

Correct, though there's no reason not to use 4FT off-road as well if it suits the conditions.

Kejtar said:
I think that you were more likely to loose traction during disengage/reengage than driving carefully.

Sure, but remember this was with a 231 - so it was straight-line stuff, and remember we're talking low speeds around town. What I really tended to use it for was traffic light stops to prevent wheelspin. For some reason the black XJ spun its tyres way more easily than this one does.

Ummm we drive more or less over the same freeways and I think I put on a bit more miles then you do and I have never had a problem during the rain seasons.

*Shrug* I dunno. All I can say is that given the circumstances I was in a couple of weeks back, it would've ended a lot worse. This was without overdoing it in terms of driving habits, btw - 25mph on an off-ramp. Remember, this was early on in the rains too, so there was grime on the road.

Granted I have to adjust my driving habits a bit but nothing that would ever require me using 4wd.

Again, *shrug*. Having grown up in 200 days of rain a year, I hear you on adjusting habits accordingly; sometimes I'm pretty convinced I'm the only one here who does it. Even in that environment, though, I still preferred my AWD vehicles to RWD/FWD ones in the wet for handling reasons. Folks can go either way on this, but I'm definitely in the AWD camp.
 
Kejtar said:
Not to bag on anyone, but if someone feels the need for FT for when it rains, they need to learn how to drive.

No problem, I'll just have to learn.
I've only spent about a decade as a NYC cab driver and been driving for several
decades but I recognize that I am never too old to learn.
 
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