Newbie on here, been lurking for a bit and looking at moving on to a Hiace after 4 years of Mazda Bongoing.
Test drove a 76,000 miler 1995 2.8 auto with selectable 4WD and hi/lo ratio.
Everything seemed to drive well, changes were smooth enough, gearbox oil was darkish red as expected, no burnt clutch smells but when accelererating hard (not an easy task on a 2.8 non turbo
) there's a fair bit of grumbling and whining in the lower gears (2nd and 3rd) but seems ok in o/d. The 'box is quiet enough during normal driving, it's just the noise under heavy load that I can't make out if its engine or gearbox.
I know the viscous fan makes a bit of a racket, especially when hot and that the air intake is just behind my right ear but this was roar/vibration/general unpleasantness until I reselected o/d and of course the revs came down and all was quiet again. The freewheel hubs were off and the 4wd was disconnected, so I assume there's no drive at all forward of the 'box in that situation?
There's also a slight propshaft "whine" on the overrun - not excessive but apparant........................
Any of the above seem "normal" on this setup - or am I looking at trouble? Thanks
PS..........anyone know the model number of the gearbox in the 2.8?