Ive never used 4x4.Ive heard that the car should be in nuetral or park b4 engaging? When i press the button i hear a clicking noise and 4x4 flashes/lights up but i cannot tell whether thats on or off.I also hear a clunking noise when turning while in 4x4.Could someone please explain to me exactly how 4x4 works and what i should be looking for? If my 4x4 is on will the truck use more gas i.e. my poor gas mileage? the 2 lights for low and 4x4 always stay on but when i press then they light up brighter or flash...

 

clunking noise when turning....i'd check the ujoints on the outter axle shafts..it should be a little hard to make turns in 4 wheel drive. 4wd HI u can put it in gear in park or rolling at a low speed...4 wheel drive LO you need to be in neutral. If you have manual hubs make sure to turn them to lock them. 4 wheel LO is used when off roading when you need a good crawl ratio..that along with 1st gear is really good for trail riding, rock crawling, hill climbs and down hills.

 

dont know if im any help but my two front wheels have to be engaged befoe i can put it in to 4x4 mode. just a dial in the center of the wheel that clicks roud a quarter of a turn. i was told not to use the 4x4 bronco on tarmac only off road. any ideas why that could be jeff? oh and 4x4 will give you less mpg too

 

shouldn't use 4 wheel drive on dry roads mainly cuz of turning..it binds things up and then things brake.

 

How do I know if its on or off? This very well could explain my mileage.The lights stay light up.When i pressed either button they light up or blink.Now when i press them i hear absolutely nothing.Should low and high both be on?How do i turn it off?Is it stuck on??? I know i sound like an idiot...I really have no clue.LOL ohh and its an AT.

 

I have an '87 BII w/ auto trans and electric 4WD switches. (Push buttons up on the head linner between the visors) There should be directions on the back side of the drivers visor about how to engage and disengage the 4WD. I have to follow mine to the "t" or I wont get a good resopnce and I'm left wondering if I'm in 4WD or not. I've never noticed any sound associated with engaging or disengageing my 4WD on either of my BIIs (one is auto w/ electric 4WD the other is manual w\ manual locking hubs) I've gone in and out of 4 High in my '87 auto at speeds up to about 50 mph on ice and snow, and in and out of 4 High in my "86 manual at speeds up to 30 mph (I&S) I haven't used the 4 Low on the '86 manual (yet) The only way I can tell if it is in 4WD is the lights and greater amount of traction; if I am on dry roads I can tell I'm in 4WD by turning tight corners. Turn a tight corner in 4WD on a dry paved road and you'll know, those tires will rub and buck quite a bit. You should not drive in 4WD on dry roads bcause the tires do not all roll at exactly the same rate so if you are in 4WD you will cause a lot of extra wear on your drive train, it doesn't cause problems on slipery surfaces like snow, ice, mud, gravel, and dirt because the wheels slip a little to make up for the diferances in rolling ratios.

Now Back to your problem. If I didn't follow those direction exactly then I would have problems with my 4WD indicator lights blinking but 4WD would not engage or disengage. If you cant find the directions on your visor or glovebox let me know and I'll copy mine for you.

Once when I was pulling a friend off of a telephone pole my truck got stuck in 4 LOW. I had tried switching straght from 4 High to Low without puting the truck in nutral or park. I found the problem to be a short in the switches up on the head linner. I found a new switch cluster at a junk yard for $75 but didn't have the money and ended up pulling apart the switch and with a soldering iron and extra wire I fixed the switch myself. I was lucky I could have realy fried it for good, so be care full if you try your own electrical repairs. That was the first time that I ever used 4 Low; I've never had a problem with it again. Of course the flyweel is out of the truck right now.

John

'87 Eddie Bower BII auto/power everything
'86 XLT BII man trans & hubs power everything else.