NEED HELP WITH 4 WHEEL DRIVE!!

[tkremer]

4 wheel is not working for me I am thinking its the manual lock in hubs. The drive axles are turning when I put it in 4 wheel drive but the wheels do not. It just makes me wonder if it is not someting else since both of them are not working. Do both hubs usually go bad at the same time, or is there anything else that could be wrong? Its on a 88 F-250 7.3. Thanks

 

[WildWest]

If one hub doesnt work it will just spin the loose one.

Put it in 4wd jack the rear and front up on stands for saftey and check to see if both the stub axles are turning or just one on the frontend.

Could just be a spring issue.

Are these auto hubs or manual?

 

[tkremer]

they are manual hubs

 

[WildWest]

You say both axles spin or have you checked the axles in the front end?

Id take the lock out apart and clean it some muddy muck may have it stuck in the open position there is a spring that applys pressure to make it lock in and a spring in the frontned that applys pressure to unlock it

Depending on the last time you checked your wheels bearings you should probably take em apart clean them repack with some good grease i prefer marine grease in my front hubs

 

[tkremer]

The wheel bearing are due to be packed, could that effect the 4 wheel drive to not work?

 

[WildWest]

No i said if you dont know when they were serviced it never hurts to take it apart to check everything out

The outside part of the lockout is easy and quick to take off some allen or possibly torx screws

The rest the setup has some snap rings then some locking nuts that supposedly require a special tool i have taken the same ones off rear full floaters using a flat punch chisel aka *****.

I had a blazer awhile back that woulndt unlock i took the top screw out of the lockout and flooded it with aerokroil that freed it up then it worked great it has gotten some water in due to a leaky o ring on the selector knob then rusted.

 

[JPR]

easy way to check the hubs, keep the transfer case in 2wd, lock both hubs and try to turn the front drive shaft. If the drive shaft spins, look to see which axle shaft is spinning, that is the side with the problem.

If you can not spin the drive shaft, then unlock both hubs, then place the transfer case into 4wd. Then try to turn the drive shaft, the drive shaft should not turn, if it does, then the transfer case is the problem.

 

[tkremer]

I put my truck on jack stands, put the transfer case in 2wd, and locked the hubs. I turned the front drive shaft and both wheels would spin but in opposite directions. Then I put it in 4wd and the front drive axle would not spin. So does that mean that both hubs would be bad?

 

[7.3shrk]

That means it should be working. When the t-case is in 4wd, it is effectively locking the front and rear wheels together. Now try locking the hubs, put it in 4 wheel drive, and spin one of the wheels. The opposite one should turn the opposite direction.