Hi all,
I am a newbie to the sight but have been driving Ford pickups straight for 22 years now.

My 97 F150 4x4 ext. cab flareside, 4.6l auto., 3.55 rear, auto hub- manual shift selector will not go into low range.

It goes into 2wd, 4wd high okay then starts to tighten at neutral and either grinds, kicks out, or just plain doesn't line up and is blocked from going into low range. I bought the truck new, have had it into the dealer since it was new for hard shifting. The dealer says it is tight but shifts okay. The last time I tried it it fought back so hard I ended up with the shift **** loose in my hand and still couldn't get it in low.

I was in neutral, foot on brake and not moving...just in case someone wonders...

Could it be the linkage? If so how do I check it?

Help, thanks!

 

This might sound a bit crazy, but turn the steering wheel back and forth while trying to put it in to low... sometimes on my older trucks this would work.. becasue the hubs are engaged it will allow the shafts to rotate and possible slide into low... worth a shot... I havent had this trouble on my 99' but i dont use Low very much and i do have the electronic. so hope this helps some.

 

Hello gearhead auntie and welcome to FTE. Sounds like you are doing everything right to get it into gear. I would take it to the dealer again and act stupid asking them to show you how to get it into 4x4 Low and see how they handle it. It sounds like linkage or possibly an internal problem. I too have the manual transfer case with the automatic transmission and mine has always been pretty loose moving to go into all of the gear selections. Sorry I couldn't give you an exact answer to your problem...

 

My 98 4.6 auto goes best into 4low when I'm in neutral but coasting a little bit(2-3mph) but with my foot lightly on the brake. Doesn't even growl. When I'm at a stand still it will grind a little.

 

Thanks for the info, I will try the moving the steering wheel and/or a slow coast. Other than this the truck has been great!

 

I forgot to add..er... can't go into the dealer and play stupid as burnstoughford recommends..even though I am a woman hehe, you see I live in a small town and bought it local! Besides, I am the one who showed the dealer how to check for binding slip splines on trade in Jeep CJ5's...oh well! That is what I get for logging almost a million miles on Ford trucks (mostly Rangers) and loving MUD!

 

I didnt say anything about playin stupid...lol ...3 rangers did