- Joined
- Aug 8, 2007
- Messages
- 17
- Reaction score
- 4
- Points
- 3
- Location
- Fernandina Beach, FL
- Transmission
- Automatic
96 Ranger 4.0L STX, 4R55E tranny, electric shift BW1354, manual hubs, 150k miles.
Every time I fix my electric-shift transfer case, it sooner or later becomes "unfixed" and costs me more time, money, and frustration. The problem is always with low range, 4-hi has never had a problem. Today I was 200 miles from home and had to crawl under the truck on the side of the road, remove the shift motor, and manually shift out of low range. It was that or drive 200 miles at a top speed of 35 mph. I'm tired of trying to make this thing work reliably - every time I think I can trust it, it fails.
One option I'm thinking about is cutting a hole in the floor and putting a manual shift T-case. What I'm not sure about is this - how does the PCM or auto trans know what range the T-case is in? The tranny's shift pattern is very different for high and low range, and I'd like to keep the tranny operating properly, if possible. What other pitfalls are there in swapping from electric-shift to manual-shift T-case?
The other option I'm thinking about may not be practical. I'm thinking there should be a way to just run totally new (separate) wiring and a switch (or two switches) to operate the shift motor, without including all of the interlocks (brake indicator, neutral indicator, speed sensor, etc). Has anyone tried that? What problems do you see with that approach?
Any assistance would be appreciated.
Every time I fix my electric-shift transfer case, it sooner or later becomes "unfixed" and costs me more time, money, and frustration. The problem is always with low range, 4-hi has never had a problem. Today I was 200 miles from home and had to crawl under the truck on the side of the road, remove the shift motor, and manually shift out of low range. It was that or drive 200 miles at a top speed of 35 mph. I'm tired of trying to make this thing work reliably - every time I think I can trust it, it fails.
One option I'm thinking about is cutting a hole in the floor and putting a manual shift T-case. What I'm not sure about is this - how does the PCM or auto trans know what range the T-case is in? The tranny's shift pattern is very different for high and low range, and I'd like to keep the tranny operating properly, if possible. What other pitfalls are there in swapping from electric-shift to manual-shift T-case?
The other option I'm thinking about may not be practical. I'm thinking there should be a way to just run totally new (separate) wiring and a switch (or two switches) to operate the shift motor, without including all of the interlocks (brake indicator, neutral indicator, speed sensor, etc). Has anyone tried that? What problems do you see with that approach?
Any assistance would be appreciated.