Engaging 4wd

I have owned my 71 CJ 5 for 7 months now and have never engaged the 4wd. It has the single stick trasnfer case and Selectro brand front hubs. I'm not going to do any serious off roading, but i thought I'd find a loosely packed gravel road and try to engage the system to see how it works.

Since I don't have an owners manual, what's the procedure? I don't want to mess something up.

Please advise.

jm

 

First stop the jeep. If the hubs are manual (have a place in the very center of the wheel to put your fingers and twist) then lock the hubs. It will say "lock" and have an arrow next to the work "lock" that points in the direction to lock the hubs.

Back in the jeep, shift the transfer case into 4 wheel high (4H) and you should be in 4 wheel drive high. Ease out the clutch and you're good to go.

Stop and shift into 4 wheel low (4L) and you should go much slower than in 4H.

WHen you're done, shift back into 2 wheel drive (2H), get out and unlock your hubs and you're done.

Some people back up 20 feet or so after they take it out of 4wd and back into 2wd. Personally, I don't know if that is necessary but some do it.

Do Not Drive in 4 Wheel Drive On The Hard Road. I'm sure others will chime in if I forgot something.

And have fun.

 

Actually, you can shift from 2WD high to 4WD high and back at any speed, as long as the hubs are locked.

When shifting into 4WD low (hubs locked), you can be moving very slowly (baby crawl speed) but no faster. This will cause minor gear clash, but as long as you are moving very slowly, it's ok. Moving very slowly, clutch in, pull the lever back into 4WD low.

The shift pattern is, front to back, 2H-4H-N-4L
2HI to 4HI should be notchy, but the throw through N to 4L will be very long.

 

This is the prescribed manner for modern chain-drive transfer cases with automatic transmissions. Doesn't really apply to a CJ with a manual trans and gear-driven transfer case.

Also, the Dana 20 with an automatic can be a bear to get into gear - all sorts of contortions are sometimes needed. Again, doesn't apply to the CJ.

 

you might need to spray wd40 (or similar) on the shift rods if the shifter doesn't ant to move, as they might be rusty. had to do this to my single stick occasionally.

 

The reason some people back up is to alleviate driveline bind that can happen when there isn't enough slip in the driveline between the front and rear axles similar to what happens when driving on a hard surface in four wheel drive. Vehicles with lockers front and rear may experience this more than those without. Every once in a while I have to do this in the CJ-5 or I can't get the transfer case out of 4 wheel drive. Once the bind is relieved it shifts normal. Nickmil

 

Also, when you do try out the low range position, be very gentle with the clutch and throttle. You can ease out the clutch and take off without using any throttle at all. If you are a bit agressive about it you can break things. You really do need someplace either soft or slippery to play with this a bit to get accustomed to it.

 

As always, thanks for the info.

jm