Forum:
yes there,greetings all,new member,old problem by the looks of it,have just bought an old fourtrack,rocky i think 1992 2.8 td,bought for a workhorse on the land,dont know much about 4x4s so didnt think to check all wheels were driving when buying,realised when i got stuck down the fields and couldnt get out again,so scanned the web,found lots of similar stories of 4wd not working,light on dash not coming on,have cleaned up wire connections on the box,3 different connectors,the one going to the transfer box has two wires just hanging,going nowhere?? and two connecting properly,does this sound right??the colours of wires dont match the ones there meeting,could this be right??also i have found when in a 4 wd selected gear,the front propshaft joins in with the turning but the front wheels dont!?! anyone have the quick fix answer i would be grateful,thanks
Hubs
If the front propshaft turns but the wheels do not, it is most likely the freewheeling hubs at fault, you need to check that they have not been replaced at sometine with manual ones. On the end of the hub is a catch, this needs turning to engage them, problem solved.
If automatic engaging or freewheeling hubs are fitted they need relative motion to make the wheels turn, i.e. the shafts need to be turning to engage the hubs. Usual problems with auto engaging hubs are that they either full of compacted mud, or water and rusted up solid. Repair is a matter of stripping them down carefully and either cleaning them or freeing them off. adjust the front wheel bearings while it is stripped and repack with grease, also turn the front propshaft and see if the driveshaft turns, if so it is the hubs, once cleaned repack with plenty of grease and refit.
If the driveshaft does not turn it is an axle problem, this would explain why the seller has sold the vehicle.
4wd problem
thanks for that,they are auto engaging hubs,just verify what you mean by they need relative motion to make the wheels turn,do you need to be slightly rolling to engage hubs?i thought you had to be sat a standstill to change gear ratios,will strip or have the hubs stripped,is it a diffucult job?i am fairly confident with abit of diy mechanic work but if its too fiddly or im gonna end up with apile of bits i cant put back together i would rather let my mechanic do it,cheers