I just recently purchased a 94 F150 4x4 E4OD and it has manual locking hubs. The hubs are Warn and are newer. I am unsure of the details about using these hubs. I know that you turn them to lock and then can use either 4H or 4L by pushing in the buttons inside the cab. Have to be in neutral for 4L to engage. My questions are:

How fast can i safely drive with 4H engaged, 40 MPH?

Can I leave the hubs locked and be in 2WD by just turning off the switches for either 4H or 4L inside the cab? Is it safe to do so? And can i switch back and forth inside the cab to 4WD on a snowy day without having to get out and lock the hubs?

Thank you,

-Greg

 

I have an 88 with a manual transfer case shifter but

I do have the warn lockouts. When you are going to engage 4 wheel drive no matter what, make sure both them are locked in, twice actaully. Wouldnt want to be drivin through mud, engage 4wd and you only have one locked in

I was stuck once...like my rear axle under mud, my drivers rear tire made a 4 foot deep hole, twisted so i only had one front tire spinnin at the front.... ANYWAYS, on my drivers front tire, there was a root that was actaully in the perfect position to unlock my hub. When its unlocked it's not a pretty sound. Trust me, you'll notice it. Sounds like you busted a axle shaft or axle u joint. You will not be able to drive in 4x4 with only one locked in. It will only do major damage.


Question...why do you want to drive in 4h at 40 mph? On the way back from hunting, we were going about 40 in low on the icy road...sucked gas though


you can drive with your hubs locked in, but unlock them when you get out of the mud, or whatever you need 4x4 for. If you drive them locked in down the highway, you will notice the friction. Instead of your front end not doing anything, there's gonna be parts moving because the front end is engaged, obiously.

If its a snowy day, like you said, then keeping them locked in wont cause any problems, as long as you arent going 55 mph...I drove about 5 miles with the 4x4 engaged on a snowy night. No problem. I have been told many times it is not good for the 4x4 when your on pavement. Gravel roads are fine though.

I cant remember with the push buttons, but i think you need to be in neutral to engage it? either that or be under a certain mph...

If its possible, i personally would still stop the truck, put it in neutral and engage it with the push button.


Do you know if these lockouts, and the 4x4 works well? I test drove a '92 with a push button and it had some 4x4 problems. Light not going on, not sure if it was fully engaged, hopping, noises etc.

 

Correct.

I think you can do it up to 45 mph, but if you need 4wd, you shouldn't be going that fast.

That's exactly what most people do. When I know I'm going to need it a lot, like when playing in the snow for the weekend, I'll lock them in and leave them there until I know I won't need 4x4 anymore.

Also, you won't do any damage at all by having one front hub locked. You just won't have 4wd. You can go as fast as you want with the front hubs locked.

One thing to add is that you absolutely cannot engage the 4wd unless you are on a slippery surface. If you lock the hubs and push the 4x4 button on dry pavement, something will break, usually a u-joint.

 

Thanks for the answers.

I don't plan on driving 45 MPH in 4WD, I was just wondering what the limitations are. I just want to know as much as i can about my truck so that i know what i can or can't do Also, what is the difference between 4H and 4L? I would assume that 4L would be for slow driving through mud or over really rough terrain.

-Greg

 

I live in th snow belt(Canada), and I typically lock my manual hubs at first snowfall and that's how they stay all winter unless I'm going somewhere that involves a lot of highway driving for extended periods. I make sure all the U joints are in good shape and well greased of course. I hit 70+ MPH daily on the way home from work on a short Hwy sprint with the hubs locked(4x4 disengaged) with no problems. You will notice the drag with all that extra drivetrain locked in and spinning.. but there's no damage potential. Of course, the better the U-joint condition and the closer the shafts are to correct balance the smoother it will run.

 

You can shift into and out of 4 Hi at any speed, but you have to be stopped to shift to 4 Low, because the gearing ratio for the the whole vehicle changes. Your max speed in 4 Low is probably 30mph in top gear.. it's designed for climbing and heavy pulls and takes the strain off the torque converter and clutch disks.

 

When you put it in 4L, you are reducing the gearing by a factor of 2.69:1. So your max speed is now about 25 mph. It's useful for crawling over VERY rough terrain that would tear the suspension out if you went any faster than 5 mph. I think I've used it once - going down to the campground area at Camp Verde hot springs in AZ. Those last 200 yards are ROUGH. Other than that, it's not used for much.

 

Thanks Conanski, Andy, and Josh -Greg