Topic: How to properly engage/disengage the 4WD system ?

[indianrider]

hi guys ..

i just got my 88 Toyota PU 5 Sp, 4WD last week and had a stupid question about using the 4wd system as this is my first 4WD. I  have the front manual locking hubs.

to my limited understanding of the 4WD system, this is how i engage 4wd mode.

To engage 4WD:

1: I put vehicle in neutral and apply the parking brake.
2: Then I lock the Front Manual hubs
3: I depress the clutch and shift into High 4WD mode (the 4WD mode light in the dash lights up)
5: then i shift the tranny into 1st gear and go. ( i can feel the "drag" of the 4WD)

To Disengage 4WD:

1: I come to a stop, and put the transmission in neutral and apply parking brake.
2: I depress the clutch, and shift back to High 2WD mode (the 4WD drive light in the dash turns off.)
3: I get out and UNLOCK the front manual locking hubs.
3: Then I shift the tranny into 1st gear take off.

Am I doing this right ?? Do i need to use the clutch when engaging/dis-engaging the 4WD transfer case ?

my friend with an old chevy was telling me about backing up(engage reverse gear)  in 2WD mode for like 40 yards after switching from H4WD to H2WD mode. he said u have to make sure uve "disengaged" the 4wd system .. true ?? 

i also heard that i can drive the vehicle in 2WD mode without "unlocking" the Front Manual hubs for a resonable amount of time and distance. Is this right ?? if its right, then what is a reasonable amount of distance or speed i can drive in 2WD mode without unlocking the front manual hubs. can i do that in dry pavement too ?

also, whats the max speed i can do in H4WD ? can i do 75mph on the freeway ?? I know the L4WD is for below 10mph and if im stuck up real bad.

finally, whats the Neutral in 4WD shifter ?? when and how do u use it ?

thanks in advance .. wish i had the users manual ..

[BigMike]

Am I doing this right ?? Do i need to use the clutch when engaging/dis-engaging the 4WD transfer case ?

You are kinda doing like the text books might teach ya.
You can engage 4WD in any gear including reverse with the clutch engaged or disengaged if you are moving less then about 5 MPH. 4LOW will be a bit harder to engage while moving, you might have to come to a complete stop for this.

my friend with an old chevy was telling me about backing up(engage reverse gear)  in 2WD mode for like 40 yards after switching from H4WD to H2WD mode. he said u have to make sure uve "disengaged" the 4wd system .. true ??

Untrue. If you have the truck stoped when you unlock the hubs (like it should be) then the second you try to move it it should be unlocked if its working normally. If you could unlock them while still moving forward, like if you had a Crawler and could do this, then it would stay engaged as long as you mainted torque on the front axles. But I've never done this, Im just thinking theory..

i also heard that i can drive the vehicle in 2WD mode without "unlocking" the Front Manual hubs for a resonable amount of time and distance. Is this right ?? if its right, then what is a reasonable amount of distance or speed i can drive in 2WD mode without unlocking the front manual hubs. can i do that in dry pavement too ?

This is true, and a reasonable distance is infinity. If you've got gear oil in the front diff and your hubs are greased then you could drive in 2WD with the hubs locked (either both or even just one locked is still ok) for ever. It will increase the weight of moving pieces and you will loose a bit of power and mileage, and it may feel strange while turning now that the tires are effectively 'heavier'.

also, whats the max speed i can do in H4WD ? can i do 75mph on the freeway ?? I know the L4WD is for below 10mph and if im stuck up real bad.

Yup, both 4Hi and 4Low have no maximum speed ratings. If you had a super overdrive tranny then you could do 90 mph in low range if you wanted to. Driving on the freeway in 4Hi is perfectly normal. However, assuming you are not the first owner of your truck, most of the time when people change out or have custom front drive shafts built, they do not bother to balance them. For instance when I installed my Crawler I had to lenghten my front drive line, but to save some money I told the shop not to balance it. I've had my truck up to about 50 mph in 4High and it still felt normal, but im sure at some point I would get alot of vibrations coming from it. So this might be a consideration. But its fine if you want to just try it out, lock up your hubs and kick it into 4High and hit the freeway and see how it does. Even if its out of balance, like mine, you may not even notice it.

finally, whats the Neutral in 4WD shifter ?? when and how do u use it ?

The neutral gear is mainly there for towing reasons. If you were to tow your truck behind another vehicle for some distance over, say 10 miles, then you can benifit by shifting the transfercase into neutral to prevent the gears in the transmission from turning without proper oil lubrication...

The Toyota J-patter is:

          4LOW
             |
2HI        N
  |          |
  --- 4HI ---

So if you shift the t/case into N, not the tires are seperated from the transmission. You can shift into it whenever you want. You could even be in 4HIGH doing 70 MPH and then shift it into N and it would be just fine. Of course you will have to slow down to < 5 mph in order to reengage either 4Low or 4High but you get the idea.


BigMike

[indianrider [OP]]

bigmike ..

thanks for the tutorial ..

im glad i got an answer to the one thing i was most concerned about -- driving around in town with the front wheel hubs locked either in 2WD or 4WD mode ..

since i live in a freaking small town in KY without a freeway and a max. speed limit of 45mph,  i just wanted to keep my front hubs locked for the entire winter until March 05 just coz i can engage 4WD "on demand" without having to get out ..

but if im going to hit the freeway under dry conditions and am sure i odnt need the 4WD then ill keep em unlocked ..

also, ur right, i noticed the steering was just a lil bit harder and i felt i was a lil bit down on power when i had my front hubs locked in 2WD mode and the steering/power differences were even more evident in H4WD .. ive had no reason to use the L4WD yet but im hitting my friends farm this weekend and hope it rains bad !!

thanks again buddy ..

[Fireimp141]

Thats what i was gonna say

[BLACKDOG]

Yeah, I learned the nuetral position the hard way.  The previous owner put the body lift on, and he had the tcase and tranny shifters lengthened (badly) and the t-case shifter broke   when I was shifting to 4lo. 

[FATB0Y]

  BlackDog that sounds like my luck.

[BLACKDOG]

Hey, back Off, I got enough curses the way it is, I dont need any more