Just wondering I’ve been staring at my sons Fisher-Price jeep which i’m considering attempting to convert to four-wheel-drive with as minimal body and frame modifications as possible, just wondering if anyone in the community has attempted this, As a point of comparison for my own project. i’ve got a couple ideas I figured could be done relatively simply in a about 8-12 hours Thanks guys!
I'm a 16 year old in Ohio and given the snow I have to use 4x4 due to snow and I have some questions.
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How to safely engage four wheel drive? Should I be stopped? In neutral? Speed? Moving?
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Difference between 4x4 Part Time and 4x4 Full Time?
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Any other information I need to know.
Hello /r/Jeep.
Earlier this evening I drove to my University for a night class, and it was extremely cold/snowing outside. Since the roads were exceptionally slippery I decided to put my 2001 Jeep TJ (50th Anniversary Edition) into 4H (four wheel drive). Everything went fine, I drove to the University, parked and left for 4 hours.
Upon returning and getting into the Jeep I decided that the roads were probably ok for 2H, so I tried to change it back. Unfortunately, this didn't work. Although the stick (sorry, I'm not great with terminology) still moved, it was very loose and there was no resistance, but didn't change the vehicle out of 4H. After tinkering for a good 10 minutes, I realized that there wasn't any way I could get the Jeep out of 4H, but everything else seemed to work just fine.
After I came home and did a little bit of googling, I discovered that my "transfer case box linkage"(a rubber piece) may have been cracked because of the cold, and broken when I tried to put the car in 2H.
The good news is that this is an extremely cheap part to purchase (less than a dollar). The bad news is that I am completely and utterly inept when it comes to handy work. I can put fluids in my car and change the window wipers but that's about it.
I was wondering if you could help me answer a few questions.
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Is it a bad idea to drive around in 4H tomorrow, especially if its dry? It's an extremely busy day and I'd be hard pressed to go find/buy the piece and bring it to the mechanic.
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That being said, if I did manage to make time, but the piece, and bring it to the mechanic, does anyone know how long it would take to install? I'd also appreciate it if someone could tell me how much it would cost me to have a mechanic replace it (if I had the part with me).
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Does my diagnosis of the problem sound right? Or am I in much deeper trouble than I thought?
Thank you!
I know a lot of the people on this sub grew up in this area and know this already. Some people did not grow up here and are here either visiting or for school.
I wanted to make the comment that a dedicated set of winter snow tires not all season tires but winter tires will do more for you than all-wheel drive. Snow tires are designed specifically for these conditions.
I understand that a whole extra set of tires is expensive and hard to store so some people get all seasons. They're not as good as snow tires but they're better than regular tires. If you can afford it get a set of snow tires.
Edit: I just want to make the point that in no way am I saying that good tires will make up for bad driving. Drive for the conditions. But give yourself a little bit of an extra edge by getting snow tires. You can be the safest driver in the world but the fact is safe driving can't account for everything
Edit 2: never mind guys it's been pointed out to me that I'm wrong just drive safely and you'll be fine.
My car has been running real sluggish the last few months but I may have found the problem. My car hesitates a lot and acts like its going to die within the first few minutes of driving and every time I cut the wheel and turn, it halts and "jackrabbits" until I have it straight. Today it snowed so I put it from 2wd into 4wd to get to work. After work I go to start the car, I turn my key and the starter does nothing. I wacked the starter with a stick but that didn't help anything so i put it from 4wd to 2wd and BAM! it starts! I tried playing with the lever and when its not completely on exact spot for its 4wd setting some of the gears (i.e. park, reverse, neutral, and drive) would vibrate the lever for the gear shift. After finding the sweet spot for the 4wd the truck was running better than ever and I didnt experience any hesitation nor "jackrabbiting". What I want to know is if anyone here has encountered this before. Also I would also like to find a way that I can put it back in 2wd without having the hesitation problem. thanks!
Ugh. I hope the 4x4 system in the 3rd Gen are tough. Due to the weather I've been having to drive in I am constantly putting the truck in and out of 4x4. I turned a rather sharp corner after climbing a hill full of ice and snow to be met with a rather clear road surface. I quickly switched to 2wd and the front end banged pretty hard from what I assume was the front wheels binding.
This happened just today. I shifted from 4-wheel full time back to 2-wheel and like always it didn't want to disengage right away, but like always after getting to where I wanted to and parking, then starting up again it fully disengaged 4-wheel and back to 2 or so I thought.
The problem is, on my way home it clearly started making thudding sounds and was trying constantly to re-engage back to 4-wheel. I had no choice other than to just get home, so I drove as gingerly as I could. Eventually I could feel the (I assume) transmission disengaged entirely and the engine just revved without power getting to the wheels and made grinding sounds. So I pulled over, put the car in park and turned it off. Turned it back on rinsed and repeated until I got home. Happened twice.
I know I should have gotten it looked at sooner, but this is where I'm at. If there is an easy way to just remove or otherwise physically permanently stop the 4-wheel drive I'm all ears. Though I'm betting just taking it to a garage is my best option.
Thank you for your time!
