Engine/Transmission (1994 - 1998) 4WD linkage shifter linkage

[SDrake]

Recently had torque converter replaced and I hit the road. I am now in Ky and need 4wd, it is snowing. At first I just needed to back out of tight spots I get into because I have 4WD. The shifting felt imprecise but when the 4wd light came on I thought all was well but no power to the front wheels, --- 4lo works.

I believe what is happening is that somehow the part that shifts from high to low is being moved too much in the 4hi shift because, one of those times when I thought i had shifted to 4hi i Had no power to any wheels as occurs as you shift between hi and lo.



My service manual is at home. I have never looked at the shift mechanism so I do not even have a picture in my mind of what adjustments there are. Is there some kind of adjustment in the linkage to the shifter lever external to the transfer case that I can adjust? And if so is it something I can do without my shop manual. I am at my son's house for the next few days and can get in a garage with lights heat etc to work on this. It is going to be snowing when I leave for Ala Monday and would sure like to be able to travel with 4WD when needed.



Before the torque converter replacement 4WD had always worked with good feel so I am thinking it is something the tech messed up on in the reinstall.

 

[KHelfrich]

the shifter in the transfer case is just a lever and the 4wd shifter is just a lever there is a bar that connects the two together and on one end the bar slides through a clamp that you can loosen and change the effective length of the bar. If i confused you with this don't worry the linkage is very simple and just go under your truck and took at it it is self explanatory



ken

 

[SDrake]

Thanks KHelfrich. That sounds like what may have been changed somehow during the process. Hope I can get to it from underneath well enough to readjust. Is this something that can be adjusted from in the cab by removing the shift lever boot, -- anyone? Baby it's cold outside and the garage is inaccessible at the moment.

 

[ata]

I may be way off here. But you do know that there is a NEUTRAL position in the 4X4 shifter. Holding the lever to the left (against your leg) pull the lever back until it stops. (that's neutral) then push it half way back forward and that should be 4X4 Hi. For 4X4 Low hold the lever left pull it back and when it stops move it to the right and then back again until it stops and that's 4X4 Low. I am thinking you are just pulling the shifter to far back. Because 4X4 Hi is between 2 High and Neutral. Hope this helps. Reread your second post don't take the boot off in the truck to adjust the linkage it adjust from under the truck.

 

[SDrake]

I may be way off here. But you do know that there is a NEUTRAL position in the 4X4 shifter. Holding the lever to the left (against your leg) pull the lever back until it stops. (that's neutral) then push it half way back forward and that should be 4X4 Hi. For 4X4 Low hold the lever left pull it back and when it stops move it to the right and then back again until it stops and that's 4X4 Low. I am thinking you are just pulling the shifter to far back. Because 4X4 Hi is between 2 High and Neutral. Hope this helps. Reread your second post don't take the boot off in the truck to adjust the linkage it adjust from under the truck.

It used to not go in neutral when you pull it straight back. Now it sometimes is in neutral and sometimes in 4HI. When it was in neutral and I pushed it back forward a little I heard gears grinding. Did not know it was in neutral until I heard the grinding. I thought it was in 4HI and was spinning on the ice. Just to make sure I was going to put in 2WD and shift to 4HI again. That is when I realized things are not working the way I was used to.

But thanks to your inputs I now know that there is an adjustment to synchronize the shifting actions and I know to do it from underneath, and I just got word that my sons neighbor has offered his heated garage.



Thanks ever so much.

 

[HerbW]

Mine takes a 1/2" wrench to adjust the linkage. It's a bolt that locks the lever to a shift bar. I have the heavy duty 241HD transfer case with the straight pull lever shifting. When the linkage underneath is pulled all the way forwards, it's in 4x4 high. When back one click, it's in two high. pulling back the linkage one more click is neutral. All the way to the rear on the linkage is 4x4 low. The lever on top is just the exact opposite direction. 4x4 high is when the lever is pulled back towards the seat. If you have the other linkage with the gate in the middle, this may be different. good luck. Herb

 

[HerbW]

Also I should mention, the front axle needs vacuum to couple the axle to the drive. All the vacuum lines that lock your front differential goes thru your transfer case. If the vacuum lines aren't right at the transfer case, you won't get into 4x4 at the axles even though the transfer case is ready to go. There's two small tubes on the support frame to the axle disconnect and a set of four tubes in one plug on the top of the transfer case. Make sure they're hooked up right. Looking at them really shows how they go as the lines are cut uneven. Unhooked and you're in two wheel drive. I hope I helped. Herb

 

[SDrake]

That helps even more HerbW.

BTW when your 47RE torque converter goes out and you put in a lower stall converter you are in for a real treat in how the truck drives. If I had known th3e difference it makes I would have junked my original converter long before it failed. In stop and go traffic, runabout driving the truck is much more responsive to the throttle.

 

[SDrake]

Thought I ought to share how the shifter adjust turned out for benefit of someone who has read thus far. The information HerbW and ata shared enabled me to see what was going on when viewing the linkage under the truck.



As was already said, the adjustment is maintained by friction of a bolt screwed tight against the rod; --easily accessible. Mine had slipped, probably from rough handling during the transmission work. I adjusted mine so that when the mechanism was in the second position (4WD High) that the shift lever would pull it ever so slightly past the detent position (detent is inside the case not in the external shift mechanism) just as the shift handle hits that first stop. Every thing works perfect this way and feels the way it did originally. Extremely easy to do once you get the picture of the workings of external linkage.

 

[HerbW]

I'm glad to be of assistance! When removing your transfer case, just remove the nut that holds the flat shift linkage (with square hole) to the transfer case internals and leave your linkage adjustment intact. I learned also the wrong way first. Then all is aligned when it goes back in. I rolled over the linkage at the case like the picture in my book showed(or so I thought) and that doesn't work either. Remember that the linkage is a straight pull or push without angled linkage. Herb

 

[HerbW]

I agree with installing a lower stall torque converters. I just put one in and what a difference! Almost feels like a stick shifter in lower gears instead of high rev and going nowhere quick.