dana 35 automatic 4wd questions.

[88broncoll]

I recentley aquired a 92 explorer, loaded , in amazing condition. Everything seems to work, except the 4wd. Now, i have the same auto hubs on my 88 b2, and it works flawlessley(yes i know, dana 28 vs 35). But the explorer wont engage the 4wd. When i push the button on the dash, i hear a noise coming from the transfer case but no engagement to the drive shaft. I put it on jackstands tonight and pulled the front wheels. I pulled the auto hubs off and dismantled one. I dont see any problems. I have another auto hub, which i know is good which i was given for my b2, but came to find out it was the wrong axle size.(again 28 vs 35.) tried it to no avail. For fun i started it with the hubs off, and engaged the 4wd. The driveshaft spun. and so did the axles. time was running out before babysitting duty so i slapped it back together to get it out of the shop. After i put the hubs back on and the wheels, i hit the 4wd button once more before i took it off the stands. same noise from the transfer case, but would not spin the driveshaft. Its also making a clicking sound, like something is trying to engage, but not a hard bang or anything, just a light click click click. Im dumbfounded. And i know i will think about it all night now. If anyone has any insight it would be greatley appreciated.

 

[88broncoll]

So tonight i go at it again, and after alot of reading on here last night i decide to pull my tcase motor off. unbolted but still plugged in, it will turn to 4h position, and into 4l. seems to work as it should. so i set the motor back on and click in the 4wd. pull the motor off the tcase and visually inspect it is in fact in 4h, which it is. with the front wheels on and the truck on jackstands again, i put it in gear and see whats going on. The driveshaft is spinning tonight, where it wasnt last night. still no tires moving though. So i get down, and look, driveshaft still spinning, axles not. My hanyes manual is not helping me at all here. Anyone have anything like this happen before? Am i looking at changing the pot?

 

[pillen140]

locking hubs are bad. if the axles are spinning, but the wheels are not, that would make it the hubs.

 

[88broncoll]

locking hubs are bad. if the axles are spinning, but the wheels are not, that would make it the hubs.

i totally agree, but, the driveshaft IS spinning. The axles are not spinning with the wheels on. The axles will spin if i have the wheels off and the hubs off. set the hubs back on and they wont spin. im dumbfounded. OR mabye im just not liking the thought of pulling the pot.

 

[cpubuilder]

Yeah definitely the hubs, usually the plastic pieces inside get worn out, the axle turning but auto hub not pushing out to engage the wheel, or at least that is what happened to mine. I got fed up with mine clicking away (passenger one more than driver side) so almost 2 years ago went out and got some warn manual locking hubs and the coversion kit, (basically some nuts and washers). Cost me $200 or so , but I'm in Canada so should be a little less for you. They work great, haven't had any problems at all with them so far.

Good luck

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

did you check BOTH axles to see if only one axle was spinning with the hubs/wheels on? if one hub is bad, the good hub will lock, stopping that axle, but allowing the other axle and front driveline to continue turning (open differential).

if at any time BOTH front axles stop turning while the front driveline is turning, you have a bad ring and pinion.

 

[88broncoll]

did you check BOTH axles to see if only one axle was spinning with the hubs/wheels on? if one hub is bad, the good hub will lock, stopping that axle, but allowing the other axle and front driveline to continue turning (open differential).

if at any time BOTH front axles stop turning while the front driveline is turning, you have a bad ring and pinion.

you got me, yes, i looked at the drivers side axle, it wasnt spinning. the passenger side was. I have the exact same truck for parts, so out i go to tear it apart. sure enough, put one hub on the passenger side, and bingo! 4wd works! thanks for the help guys. Thought i was losing my mind there for a bit. I guess i was just spoiled or something, my B2 is automatic hubs also, and have never skipped a beat in 21 yrs. I even took the hub in question apart, and cant see anything wrong with it per say, but it just doesnt work.
By the way CPUbuilder, im in Canada TOO!

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

glad you got it working.

im sure you know this already, but im going to tell you anyway: youve been extremely lucky with your BII hubs. auto hubs are very weak and extremely unreliable. personally, i would replace them with manual hubs before they leave you stuck and stranded. just my .02

 

[88broncoll]

glad you got it working.

im sure you know this already, but im going to tell you anyway: youve been extremely lucky with your BII hubs. auto hubs are very weak and extremely unreliable. personally, i would replace them with manual hubs before they leave you stuck and stranded. just my .02

I know, i was told that 10 yrs ago when i bought the B2, but unlike most of you guys, I dont go offroading with it. And a lil old lady owned it before i did. no offroading there either. Mostly i use it to get myself out of a snowbank with less than adequte tires! I just dont like the thought of getting out to lock them when its cold! You gotta admit, shift on the fly is nice!

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the shift on the fly truely is nice, and i enjoyed it while it was on my truck...

...until my auto hubs exploded one night while i was driving home in the ice in 4wd. i was climbing the hill to my apartment when one hub failed. that threw me into 2wd and the sudden transfer of power to the rear wheels on a slippery hill caused me to loose traction and slide sidways back to the bottom of said hill.

just the week before, i had to haul a friend out of a snow bank because his auto hubs failed as he was trying to rock the truck back and forth to free himself.

so as you see, auto hubs fail under the most mundane conditions. if i know im going to need 4wd, i lock the hubs in ahead of time and leave the transfer case in 2wd until i need the added traction. it doesnt hurt the truck to drive with the hubs locked. with the manual hubs and manual transfer case, i KNOW im in 4wd when i need it.

my vehicles are all about ultimate reliability to me, so we may have different goals for our vehicles, and obviously you are free to do as you like with your truck...but even for a vehicle that never sees off road, i would STILL highly reccomend ditching those hubs for something that can be trusted

 

[Ruffinit]

Hey guys, just my two cents.. I believe that the bad rap that the autolockers get is because they just aren't understood. Too many folks have had these and don't understand the workings. When someone gets ahold of one that actually wants and uses it as a 4x4 they fail because they've been used incorrectly before. I found the following instructions in my Ford BII Shop Manual and typed it up because of all the questions surrounding the use of them. Personally like Wicked said above, I like all manual. There is then no question about when you are in 4x4. Here's the post, pay particular attention to the Caution:

http://www.broncoii4x4.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=3016