Sloppy 2wd/4wd Shifting

Quick question for all of you who are way wiser than me on this stuff:

My 4wd shifter is very sloppy. And, from what I can feel, it doesn't stay in 4wd-high. After searching and reading here, my limited knowledge tells me that I should be looking at the transfer case linkage first?

Thanks for helping me out!

 

Dana 20 transfer cases get sloppy at the linkage. Take off your shifter boot and you will see the linkage moving and the shift rods staying still. It's a poor design. Mine was very sloppy too, just made a few new pieces and it shifts much better now.

 

Another option is to switch to a twin stick shifter. JB fab makes a very nice one.

 

:iagree:

 

And affordable! Thanks for the direction guys. I'll peel it apart and see if there is something I can do for the time being... and wait until I clear one of those puppies through the boss.

 

I have the same issue with my D20....sometimes even slipping into the infamous 2L. I thought it was just part of Jeep ownership. Let us know what solution you come up with!

 

I tightened down everything I could in that linkage and greased it. With the tightening, it is staying where I put it, but one can still feel the slop.

The twin stick is on the short list to alleviate this, but it looks like front brakes are going to jump to the top of the priorities.

 

Even when new, you could hardly call the TC shifter "precise."

I think the main wear point is the ball and socket joints on some of the linkage. George's sells this replacement: http://www.willys.net/html/transfer_case.html If you are handy, you can make a replacement with Heim joints and some threaded rod.

There are also detent balls that give the shifter a more positive feel. Replacement balls and springs are available. Certainly there should be a notch between 4HI and 2HI, and you should be able to feel it. Basically 4HI is all the way forward, and 2HI is a notch back. Too far back and you're in neutral; that should be obvious. From neutral you go through 2LO which is not marked and does not officially exist, into 4LO. When in 4LO, the knob should almost touch the top of the toolbox. The shifter is springy enough that you can touch the toolbox with the knob - no harm to that, but when in gear, the knob will ride just above the top of the box.

 

Another problem might be the body contacting the shifter. If the engine and/or trans mounts are worn, the drivetrain can move around wrt the body. The edge of the body metal can push the shifter out of gear. Something to check.

In a transmission, the design of the synchro hubs can push the gears out of gear if the parts are worn. I don't think there's anything like that in a D20 transfer case though. For the TC to leave 4HI, it either has to wander randomly out of engagement, or it has to be pushed. I would think that properly working detent springs would be enough to keep it in gear, if nothing pushes it. Same for 4LO - those are straight cut gears (noisy!) and there are no lateral forces pushing them apart. They should stay, unless they are pushed.

 

Thank you. Mine acts exactly like that myself. I have never been able to clarify that the knob should almost touch the box in 4lo. the only time mine has ever came out of gear is when I thought it was in 4lo and it was actually setting in 2lo.
I have had to work on my linkages due to sloppiness but I like the stock linkage settup.

 

The pivot point of the shifter handle has a brass bushing in it. If your shifter handle wobbles side to side the bushing may be shot. Had that problem on another Jeep and a fresh bushing fixed it up. A friend with a machine shop made me a new bushing.

There are a lot of piece-parts that contribute to the slop. Tighten up what you can even if it's not a large contributer.