1996 Ford Ranger 4x4 clunking while in 4x4

[Kade831]

Hi so I have a 1996 Ford ranger 4x4 with the 4.0 and auto hubs it is snowing and getting icy so I put it in 4x4 went in no problem but it started clunking every 20ish seconds even if I wasn’t accelerating I was just up in the mountains and was doing some off-road in the snow could that have caused this problem? And when it clunks it some times it’s 1 or sometimes is 3 or 4 in a row it doesn’t sound like the transmission could my transfer case have gone out?

 

[Fix4Dirt]

sometimes the transfer case are known to bang on their way out. which case you got? the 4405? or 1354

 

[Kade831]

sometimes the transfer case are known to bang on their way out. which case you got? the 4405? or 1354

1354 I think

 

[RangerX]

The 1354 is stout and not known for problems. I’d bet money it’s the hubs. These auto hubs don’t last, and most have died years ago. Mine died in the late nineties!
Put on some manual hubs and you’ll be good to go.

 

[Kade831]

Ok that would make sense thanks for the info!

 

[410Fortune]

Yes if visually everything checks out
Radius arm bushings
The three u joints in the front ttb
U joints in the front d shaft
If all of that looks good then I would for sure suspect the auto hubs, we consider them mostly garbage… they were never good and they always fail when you need them the most

96 ranger 4.0 uses the 1354 yes
The 1354 if it says 4x4 in the dash the the t case is in 4hi, when it reads 4 low then you are in low range, the lights mean the t case has shifted it is the only way the lights can work

Let us know what you find
Warn manual hubs are the way to go