94 Ranger push button 4wd not working

[sd359]

Went out today and hooked up to my boat pushed the 4wd button and nothing. I checked the fuse in the power distribution box it was good. Could use some help in finding the problem. Don't know if it matters but I moved the bed back and replaced the gas filler tube the other day but have done it before with now problems. Any help would be appreciated. 94 Ranger 4.0 5speed extended cab XLT. Thanks for any help.

 

[Curious Hound]

Clutch in or neutral, if automatic?
Foot on the brake?
0 speed?
Held the button for a few seconds?

 

[sd359]

Clutch in or neutral, if automatic?
Foot on the brake?
0 speed?
Held the button for a few seconds?

Sitting still, foot on the brake, in neutral and clutch pedal on the floor, held for a few seconds tried this numerous times, tried it with motor running and motor off nothing.

 

[Josh B]

Your next step may be taking it apart and checking for any corroded connectors. If you have a meter you might check currents getting through it

 

[Uncle Gump]

There are several diagnostic procedures in the tech library...

Transmission, Transfer Case & Driveshaft - The Ranger Station

DISCLAIMER: Activities and vehicle modifications appearing or described at The Ranger Station and it’s pages may be potentially dangerous. We do not endorse any such activity for others or recommend it to any particular person – we simply describe … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

 

[sd359]

Thanks for the help. Unhooked and tested the 4wd module behind drivers seat, it was fine, plugged the harnesses back in and it works. Must have been a bad connection to the module. Again thanks for the help.

 

[00t444e]

That's something you have to deal with on those junk electric shift systems. It's best to swap to a manual shift transfer case.

 

[James Morse]

Oh come on I don't think they are junk. Given that manual xfr control has less points for failure, but is it worth the trouble to change, I dunno.
I don't have push button it's a switch, but that's basically the same I guess. I always say 90% or more of electrical problems are bad connections, that's my experience true or not, so that's the first thing to check before jumping to omg it's a huge problem.
Might be a good idea, if you don't use 4x4 much, to periodically find a dirt/gravel lot and "exercise" it so when you do really want it chances are better you don't run into an issue.
When you start up the 4x4 hi/lo lights should flash on/off not sure what that tells you but if they don't that would indicate to me something ain't right. I would imagine it's checking to see if there's continuity to the xfr motor but others would know more than me.

 

[Curious Hound]

My electric shift t-case is still original.and works great. Just make sure you cycle it periodically.

 

[fstokley1973]

Please check out this video: https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervi...tb=1&msockid=2b4731d739cb11f0a8f40d4dc1e62a0c
It is a lot to copy and paste, but it is well worth the seven minutes to watch the video and find a common problem with the 4x4 system on the electronic shift models. Or you could just google, 4x4 ranger electronic shift not working. It comes down to a bushing disintegrating over time and allowing the gear to over spin an 1/8 of an inch in which case the system will do nothing, no lights on the dash, no whirring, and no clicking in the module behind the seat. I ran the electrical diagnostic that I found on another thread, and everything checked out up until step six which found no power at the orange wire on the motor side of the plug. For some reason, unknown to me, when the gear is allowed to turn an extra 1/8 inch, contact is lost and the system, I assume, senses a fault and does nothing. For me, I did not take the shift motor off the truck, just took the three T20 tamper proof nuts out, used a magnet to pull the gear out, and replaced the bushing with a 3/8 O.D. piece of tubing. After putting back together, it works like a charm. Good Luck to you all if you are having issues, but this is definitely the cheap and easy starting point.

 

[Curious Hound]

For some reason, unknown to me, when the gear is allowed to turn an extra 1/8 inch, contact is lost and the system, I assume, senses a fault and does nothing.

The reason is so that it doesnt continue to overdrive itself and break something.