While we're on the subject of transfer cases.

My '74 CJ5 has the cast iron 3-speed with the transfer case that AMC put 2WLo into, but it jumped out under repeated loading & unloading of the driveline. AMC just removed the 2WLo label from the trans. case shifter knob.

Shoot me for not remembering the model numbers....I at least remembered my name today!

I had one '74 trans. case that almost consistently held 2WLo, but had to sell it.

Somebody is now offering a part to fix the 2WLo & supposedly make it a functioning gear. I know that i could go dual stick, but has anybody seen this new part or the company that manufactures it?

I've been GOOGLING my tail off to no avail.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
gj

 

As far as I am aware the only transfer case used in 72-75 CJ's was the Dana 20, which does not (not suppose to anyway) have a two wheel low. You can get it to go into two low by moving the shifter lever up slightly from 4 low, but it's not designed for this, thus the popping out of gear sometimes, especially on older, worn transfer cases. Twin stick is the only true way to get two wheel low.

 

I had the transfer case to prove that there was an intended 2wLo for around '74. Somewhere there is an article or two on this folly. I just spoke with a '77 owner who found a viable 2WLo in his D20.
Thanks for responding.

gj

 

Could be, but I suspect it's a myth. I owned both a new '73 and new '75, and worked at a Jeep dealer at the time, and never heard a hint of such a thing. After this many years, I'd be more inclined to believe some owner removed the interlock along the way.

 

I know that nobody touched my two sets of '74 engines and drivelines. It took me 31 years to blow up my transmission and that was due to pitting from running in acidic cedar water. My blocks and transfer cases are/were all original, complete with tags, etc. My head was remanufactured approx. 20 yrs ago.
The position of this 2Lo gear enages midway twixt N & 4Lo, not "slightly up from 4LO".
No offense, but I would think that if such a thing happened, Corporate AMC and Dana would want the dealers and mechanics to be the last persons on earth to catch wind of such a thing to avoid leaking it to potential buyers.
I know from my experience with Harleys & Javelins that anything is possible, especially when clearing out inventory and/or gearing up for new production.
Could it have been a manufacturing fluke that became myth?
Thanks for responding.

gj

 

No offense taken - you're certainly right about one aspect: if there were a 2LO position, it wouldn't be publicized. You can already twist axles and break Trac-lock differentials with 2HI and a 304, and providing a 2LO would have upped the warranty liability a lot. I know there is an interlock pill in the D20 that's supposed to prevent 2LO, so it seems unlikely that any Jeeps were supplied with a "secret" 2LO - more likely "accidental" 2LO, if at all.

 

I've never torn into a transfer case, but that man w/the '77 and a working 2Lo told me that somebody advised him that a pill may have been left out. He said that he likes it for teaching his 11 yr old how to drive his rig without having to worry about going too fast.
It definitely requires a touch of finesse to drive smoothly in Lo.
Some day I will find a tech string or article on this whole shebang.

The Samuel Johnson quote almost sounds like a variation on some of The Proverbs from The Bible. Interesting...

Thanks again for your time.

gj

 

Took a look in my original '73 Technical Service Manual. Nothing mentioned about a D20 (only transfer case that year in CJ) 2Lo.

 

Like I said, it was a red herring idea, so the manuals would not reflect it if it was true.

It's always possible that it could have been a special order from a service corps. or another country.

Thanks for responding.

gj

 

I've got my Dana 20 out of my 73 right now and it does indeed also have 5 positions when you shift it. I just can't figure out which one is 2WLO. What order does it go in?

 

It is possible the detent pill was worn to the point that it would allow 2-lo. Those pills will wear out under heavy use. I removed mine when I rebuilt my t-case so I could do a true twin stick.

 

With a single trans case shifter, it goes from firewall -
4H, 2H, N, 2L, 4L.

If a Novak twin stick, one shifter is front Lo, N, & H and the other is rear - Lo, N, & H, with a lockout for 2 Lo as well as a lockout to eliminate two different speed selections across the sticks.

I've found more uses for 2Lo than 4Hi except for snow (I need my front TruTrac to drag/control my rear Detroit Locker in snow).

The military is said to have used 2 Lo extensively for towing heavy wheeled artillery around bases & camps.

gj

 

like Tim suggested, myth
talking to one person does not nail it down IMO
just leave your hubs in free position
same effect, if you like doing that of course

 

I often never locked my hubs (unless necessary) when pulling F-600's, or otherwise using 2Lo in sugar sand, etc. It depended on the conditions.
I've used this position extensively.

I can't see using 4Lo w/o locked hubs. I would imagine that the front pinion bearing would not be slung properly w/oil.

Myth or not, I'll use it till it fails, not too far from any other Jeep-jumping Motto, eh?

gj

 

Thanks, I thought that out.

When I do pinion bearings/seals, I lock the hubs & drive in 2Hi up to 40 mph, just down the street, then back down to sling the oil before applying any kind of tangential load (an angled driveshaft under power) to the yoke/seal/bearing assembly.

I'm not happy with spinning a driveshaft free while the other is under load for an extended period. I've seen too many things happen in heavy construction & industry.

A question about these detent pills - since the previouis owner of Jeep never even locked the hubs, much less touch the transfer case, and everything was actually atrophied from lack of use, could the pills wear from shifter slap? I haven't yet been able to look at the expanded t-case parts.

gj

 

Thanks Glenn.

gj

 

I once owned a '73 CJ5 with a Dana 20 that would shift into 2Lo. I don't know if it was supposed to but it sure felt like there was a detent there for that purpose. I used 2Lo sometimes and I never had a problem with it jumping out of gear.

Matt

 

If you had a shift rail out and you could see a detent for 2Lo, I'd say gonzojohn is correct. If there is no real detent there, then obviously AMC had no intention of making 2Lo available. "What say ye the brethren"