new need help

[bcraig]

Hi,I amnew here and need help.
I have owned a Ranger 1996 with the 4 cyl and manual trans for years ,I neede a4x4 foruse one farm and as a genera lpurpose vehicle I bought a used one yesterday and not knowing what to look for got into some problems I dont know how to remedy.
This is going to be long and as detailed as I can make it in an effort to get the best help I can.
When i was looking at the truck(1996 Ranger with 4 liter and auto transmission)I asked the guy who owned the truck how to put it in 4wd,he told me to put in Neutral and turn the switch to where i wanted it( 4high 4 low etc)I did soand heard a little bit of a clunking noise and it felt like it had gone into a lower type of drivemode(ratio),I bought the truck and took it home.Now i find that when i got home (in the country)that justthe rear wheels were spinning ,no clunk going into low 4wd but dash light was on. I could hear and feel something best descried as a grinding ,clinking when switch was in 4low according to dash light but could not see front tires spinning in wet grass of pasture(wife was helping me look as well)
Then pulled up to very small incline and had her watch the front wheels for pulling and she tells me not only are the front wheels not spinning but the drivers side rear is not spinning either.the only wheel turning was the passenger side rear.
Now iamreally confused ,i pulled it onto an asphalt part of drive with just the so called switch in 2 wd and gave it the gas and left ruber marks with both the drivers and passenger side rear tires!I am not a mechanic sodont understand how only one rear wheel(passenger rear would turn in wet grass on an incline when in so called low 4wd but then leave marks on the asphalt when in 2 high?
Some more information i can provide is that the shifting of the transmission is confusing. When itest drove the vehicle it seemed to shift ok but now seems to be shifting at different times now and seems like when going from1st to 2nd especially that it lingers in first and then goes to second,lingers so much that it seems like it has 5 shifts(including the overdrive.
Lastly the key in the ignition does not seem to turn backwards far enough and in fact I can take the key out and still start the vehicle!
I am obviously not a mechanic of any sort but am going to have to learn how to work on this as I cant afford to pay a mechanic to work on it.(retired on small fixed income)
I tried to write down everything I could so someone with that knowledge could figure out if all of it was connected.
I have 2 jackstands,basic 1/2 inch ratchets and sockets up to an inch,a small compressor and a vice and Pneumatic jack,grinder,vice grips etc to work with.
I would really appreciate some help here .
Thanks
And God Bless
Craig

 

[4x4junkie]

Sounds like your auto locking hubs may be bad and is why you're not getting power to the front wheels in 4WD (pretty common problem).
Usual remedy is to swap to manual hubs which are far more reliable (though of course they do require you get out of the truck and lock them in ahead of time before you use 4WD).

The one-wheel thing on the grass is normal (and can be either side too). It all just depends on traction conditions at that moment whether only one or both rear wheels will spin. A limited-slip (posi) differential can lessen the frequency of only one wheel spinning.

Not sure on your transmission shifting issue... (I'm more of a stickshift guy) I'd say give it a flush & filter service and see if that helps. If it persists, then maybe it's something like the modulator needs replaced or adjusted.

Key is probably just wear. If you're concerned about security, the lock cylinder isn't hard to replace.

Hope that helps

And welcome to TRS.

 

[cvar]

Hi Craig. Welcome to TRS. Good that you're willing to fix your truck. It's a nice one to work on, and no special tools are needed for most jobs.

Do you know about 4x4 locking hubs, transfer cases, and shift motor?
The 4x4 shift mechanism is a common problem for many of us. The "Info-Technical" section above has lots of useful info for you. But it helps to know what to look for.

BTW, shifting 4x2 to/from 4x4Hi can be done while driving at speed. Shifting to & from 4x4 low is special, and you need to be stopped, in neutral, with foot on brake, per Owner's Manual.

The transmission turns the rear driveshaft, but between them is a 4x4 transfer case. That transfer case is a little gearbox that sends power to your front driveshaft. The dashboard switch only sends a signal to a transfer case shift motor (http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/TCaseshiftmotor.shtml). That little shift-motor tends to seize up, unless it gets regular usage, so yours may need cleaning (or new brushes)?

But if you heard a clunk into 4x4 mode, then maybe your shift motor did work, sending power to front wheels? If so, that's only the 1st step. Next, the front differential drives 2 front axle-shafts (1 per side), but each front wheel hub is what grabs the axle-shaft to apply power to that wheel. Maybe your hubs aren't grabbing? Do you have manual or automatic locking hubs on your front wheels? The hub is visible between your front wheel lug nuts. Auto locking hubs are prone to failure, see http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/index-axles.shtml Chances are, that's your grinding noise? The hubs are not properly grabbing the axle-shaft splines? Time to clean the hubs?

My ignition key does that too. I just ignore it.

Trans shifting weirdness could be caused by low Tx fluid. Or maybe the valve body needs cleaning?

 

[bcraig]

Re

Sounds like your auto locking hubs may be bad and is why you're not getting power to the front wheels in 4WD (pretty common problem).
Usual remedy is to swap to manual hubs which are far more reliable (though of course they do require you get out of the truck and lock them in ahead of time before you use 4WD).

The one-wheel thing on the grass is normal (and can be either side too). It all just depends on traction conditions at that moment whether only one or both rear wheels will spin. A limited-slip (posi) differential can lessen the frequency of only one wheel spinning.

Not sure on your transmission shifting issue... (I'm more of a stickshift guy) I'd say give it a flush & filter service and see if that helps. If it persists, then maybe it's something like the modulator needs replaced or adjusted.

Key is probably just wear. If you're concerned about security, the lock cylinder isn't hard to replace.

Hope that helps

And welcome to TRS.

Hi,thanks for taking the time to help me here, I really appreciate you taking the time to explain some of these things to me.
Craig

 

[bcraig]

re

Hi Craig. Welcome to TRS. Good that you're willing to fix your truck. It's a nice one to work on, and no special tools are needed for most jobs.

Do you know about 4x4 locking hubs, transfer cases, and shift motor?
The 4x4 shift mechanism is a common problem for many of us. The "Info-Technical" section above has lots of useful info for you. But it helps to know what to look for.

BTW, shifting 4x2 to/from 4x4Hi can be done while driving at speed. Shifting to & from 4x4 low is special, and you need to be stopped, in neutral, with foot on brake, per Owner's Manual.

The transmission turns the rear driveshaft, but between them is a 4x4 transfer case. That transfer case is a little gearbox that sends power to your front driveshaft. The dashboard switch only sends a signal to a transfer case shift motor (http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/TCaseshiftmotor.shtml). That little shift-motor tends to seize up, unless it gets regular usage, so yours may need cleaning (or new brushes)?

But if you heard a clunk into 4x4 mode, then maybe your shift motor did work, sending power to front wheels? If so, that's only the 1st step. Next, the front differential drives 2 front axle-shafts (1 per side), but each front wheel hub is what grabs the axle-shaft to apply power to that wheel. Maybe your hubs aren't grabbing? Do you have manual or automatic locking hubs on your front wheels? The hub is visible between your front wheel lug nuts. Auto locking hubs are prone to failure, see http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/index-axles.shtml Chances are, that's your grinding noise? The hubs are not properly grabbing the axle-shaft splines? Time to clean the hubs?

My ignition key does that too. I just ignore it.

Trans shifting weirdness could be caused by low Tx fluid. Or maybe the valve body needs cleaning?

Hi,I have already thanked the first post for hiscourtesy and help and would like to thank you as well.
No i did not understand how those things worked.My hubs do say Automatic.
Hopefully the way both you and the first gentleman talked these are not huge issues and I can do the work myself,this makes me feel a lot better as I was very concerned thatthey were major expensive issues that i cant afford.
Again, thanks guys
Craig

 

[cvar]

More info about your auto hubs is here: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums...rforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=232754</a>

 

[bcraig]

More info about your auto hubs is here: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums...rforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=232754</a>

Thank you again,I am going to check the hubs today and see what i find.
Best i can tell I can just follow the info technical sticky and it will guide me in removing them right?
If there is a problem I think that after reading what I have read that I will replace with manual hubs.Where is a inexpensive place to get the manual hubs?
Thanks
Craig

 

[cvar]

Take off your lug nuts, and the hubs will fall off, on their own. No tools. Clean yours, first.

My 4x4 shift-motor and auto-hubs work great (after I cleaned & lubed). The auto-hubs are fussy about re-inserting them just so, to ensure they seat properly against the rotor (and not 1/8" off). Tire shops always screw it up, so I retry all 5 rotary positions until they seat perfectly, then insert lug nuts.

Some some photos are here: http://imgur.com/a/d8skq

.

 

[bcraig]

re

I have truck jacked up and took passenger side off ,I have another floor jack so i suppose i could goahead and take off the drivers side as well?
Then clean all the grease off I can see? have gas or kerosene to clean the grease off,do i go ahead and take it down to wheel bearings or stop there and take a few pics and compare?
Thanks
Craig

 

[cvar]

Yeah, clean & lube it all up. Personally, I'd double-check my wheel bearings while I've got it apart, but that's just me. Esp. if the truck is a new purchase. Check play of WB & shaft, too.

The auto-hubs have a cam, and their own style of lock nut (see my photos #4 to #6). Clean the cam, plus everything inside the main cup of the hub. Then lube & reassemble.

I'd check brake pads & hoses, too, while it's all apart anyway.

 

[bcraig]

re

Hi,I just took off where I told you above and then went and got some fuses and brake cleaner and time i got back it was getting dark so I will pick up where I left off tommorow.
Anyway some observations of today are,when I looked at the hub itself I turned it upside down and hit it against the tire and a piece came out that in your photos is still on the hub,this piece while round has a flat on it approx 1/2 inch wide,Also when I hold the hub in my hand and shake it Back and forth there is probably 1/16 inch movement in the hub itself.
I did notice as well that there was a lot more grease(bout 2 times asmuch as in your photos.Although very very little all the way down in the hub but all over every part I could see. Did not feel gritty though.the splines on both the hu and axle seems fine so far though it seems like there is a little bit of in and out play in the axle and I can turn it .
My wife(bless her heart bought me 2 more jack stands so now I have 4 !
Anyway iamtaking it slow as I dont want to tear up more than I fix !
Thanks again
Craig

 

[cvar]

The hubs should not be greased heavily. Wash out that grease with ATF (soak overnight) and then lubricate them with ATF or else very light grease. They'll work better that way.

Got photos of the piece that fell out? Or did you manage to reinsert it properly?

The usual problem with auto-hubs is that they loose the ability to push inwards (towards the cam, in direction of the differential), and a big washer acting as a spacer fixes that. Read below:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/581318-4x4-in-1997-ranger-doesnt-work.html


http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=201782

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=122696

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/454540-save-those-auto-hubs-easy-fix-with-pictures.html

 

[bcraig]

re

I will try and get a couple of pics up.
I am probaly confused here,is the hub the part that falls off or what you see after the part falls off that is stillon the axle?
Thanks Craig

 

[cvar]

Craig, the "hub" means both the hub-body assembly and the cam assembly. You need to clean excess grease off both. The WB locking nut & key are usually not meant when you say "hub".

To add confusion:
Often the term "hub" is used to refer to just the main body, which looks like a top-hat with the 5 lug-nut holes, even though that's not all of it.

Somebody's nice closeup photos are here: http://truestreetcars.com/forums/parts-accessories/6690-ford-automatic-hublocks-4x4-hubs-175-a.html

 

[bcraig]

re

Craig, the "hub" means both the hub-body assembly and the cam assembly. You need to clean excess grease off both. The WB locking nut & key are usually not meant when you say "hub".

To add confusion:
Often the term "hub" is used to refer to just the main body, which looks like a top-hat with the 5 lug-nut holes, even though that's not all of it.

Somebody's nice closeup photos are here: http://truestreetcars.com/forums/parts-accessories/6690-ford-automatic-hublocks-4x4-hubs-175-a.html

Hi,thanks for explaining to me,the part that fell out of the tophat was the piece out of the cam ,on the pass side,on the driver side the cam came outin one piece and I had to seperate the 2 main pieces.The part that faces the tophat has striations going around it that can barely be felt by fingernail but on the drivers side can be easily seen and felt with a fingernail.There is approx 1/4 inch back and forth movement on the axle right behind the jeezus lock ring(best way to get off and on without a special tool?)oh I forgot to say that on the drivers side there were tiny shavings on the cam bothe the side with the spring and the side that faces the tophat.I asm going to try and include some crude pics and soak the parts overnight,I need to pour atf in the tophat right ?
Thanks
Craig
http://i.imgur.com/wzxdB6ob.jpg

By the way there is somerust as the pics will show on the drivers side and also where the knife blade it pointing on the pass side on the drums themselves.Is that a bigissue or indicitive of anything?
Tommorow if i can get the ring off I am going to check the wheel bearing as you suggested.
Thanks again
Craig