How to: Rebuild 4X4 Shift Motor

[loosenut]

....You must be an "Elite" member to sell on this Forum..

Thank you, but i really don't have the money to spare, but for a motor, someone could pay for it for me? hint, hint...

 

[Freshmeat]

Wow, that was easier than I thought. I was paranoid that I wasn't doing it right, but when I got the motor apart it really was simple to understand after seeing all the pictures and whatnot. The dash buttons hadn't worked in at least two years... wasn't getting clicking from the back or anything. I didn't feel like taking the time to clean everything as thoroughly as everyone else, so I took it apart, blew off all the dust, added a little bearing grease on the teeth of the big gear, and threw it back together. Popped it back onto the transfer case, fired up the Ex (still sitting on a floor jack- not necessarily the safest idea), and both 4x4 and 4LOW work, now!

Thanks for the write-up and thanks for those others who asked repeatedly where to mark and how to do different things- by the time I got into it on my own I had a good idea of how it all should work- and I even managed to get it all right on the first shot!

 

[otto_klein]

Help Anyone

Please Save My '91 XLT stuck in 4L

Having carefully read the 18-pages of this great thread,
I thought it was time to give it a go and become part of
the T/C elite. Dismantled cover cap, reached the gear &
indeed the bushing had vanished.

Replaced with a hose, and it's only then that I realized I
had forgotten to place both match marks on cover and gear

Followings DeRocha's instructions on message #296 and
Brain's illustrations at #1, I considered positioning everything
accordingly.

A minute later - the minute of truth - I press the High Range
4x4 dash button and see the light coming ON but NO "click"
from underneath. Tried Low Range, in vain.

Afterwards when I pressed 4H again to disengage, the
Transfer Case emitted it's usual sound. As a result I am now
stuck in 4L with all lights OFF on the control panel!!!

I suspect my shift motor to be OK but positioning to be
totally wrong. I would highly appreciate any help regarding
this early diagnosis.

What would you guys recommend to fools like me that
venture a serious fix without marking the parts properly.

Please advise.

 

[Zach_just]

I have done the same thing as you otto_klein but I bought my shift fork bushings, once put back in mine did the same thing, no high and stuck in 4L. So back to the 98 TC with no Speed Sensor in my 97.
I also received 4 bushings when I ordered mine, does this mean there is somewhere else that needs them or are the 2 just spares.
If they are spares I would be willing to let them go If you pay for shipping.

- Zach

 

[DeRocha]

... I realized I
had forgotten to place both match marks on cover and gear

I suspect my shift motor to be OK but positioning to be
totally wrong. I would highly appreciate any help regarding
this early diagnosis.

What would you guys recommend to fools like me that
venture a serious fix without marking the parts properly.

Please advise.

The cover needs to be installed close to its original position or as you found out it won't work.. To manually determine the correct cover position you will need a continuity tester to probe the pin outs...

Take a peek at Shift motor rebuild for related info.

 

[lydenw]

I'm going to attempt to rebuild my shift motor this weekend.

Now, I have never done anything mechanical on a vehicle outside of a brake job, oil change, etc. I have read how easy it is and everything, but do y'all think it can be done by a novice?

The symptoms are the classic ones, Nothing happens when buttons are pressed, no noise from 4x4 module, did the module test and it was fine. I assume its the shift motor from what I've read.

The 4x4 hasn't worked since I've had the explorer. I bought it from an older lady that said it hadn't worked in a long time either. Do you guys think it will work since it hasn't been used in such a long time?

 

[Bwana Bob]

Yes, you can do it. Just make sure you make a scribe or ink mark on the gear case cover so that it will be aligned the same way when you put it back on.

I suggest using some penetrating oil on the gear case Torx screws and use a hardened steel Torx bit.

You can check the mechanical parts of the transfer case by rotating the shaft with pliers through the detents, with the shift motor removed.

Bob

 

[mrcable46]

WOW, I been looking at this post for about a year thinking hmmmm looks easy so I cheated a little, I went and got a shift motor from a junkyard. Figured I could try it and if it didn't work I could rebuilt the old one, but good news, it did work.
Now the problem is, in 4x4 it feels like the passenger side is not working right, like its locked up somewhat. I havnt had 4x4 for more then a year so I guess I need to do a rebuild on the axle and drive shaft.
Anyway just wanted to say thanks for this excellent post

 

[N3LRX]

Thanks for the thread. I just bought a 93 Explorer XLT and the 4wd does not appear to work. I suspect this is the culprit. I'll know once I get the chance to tear down the shift motor. For now I'll just have to settle with 2wd.

 

[N3LRX]

I went to the junk yard today to buy a used motor assembly so I could just rebuild it and swap out the one in my truck now and they wont even sell me one. "Very poor design, we won't deal with them" they said. Since they refused to sell me one I asked if they'd give one with no warranty. They laughed, imagine that..

 

[Maniak]

I went to the junk yard today to buy a used motor assembly so I could just rebuild it and swap out the one in my truck now and they wont even sell me one. "Very poor design, we won't deal with them" they said. Since they refused to sell me one I asked if they'd give one with no warranty. They laughed, imagine that..

Time to find a new yard and never give them any business. My guess is they want to sell it with the transfer case.

I have yet to find a yard that won't sell a part because it "might be bad".. if it might be bad they charge less, give you a warning and so no warranty.

~Mark

 

[cmluther]

Great article and thread - much better than Chilton! My Chilton manual indicates that there is a magnetic clutch assembly on the '94. Haven't been under the unit (yet...) but will check to see if there is a motor. On mine, the dash lights illuminate, but nothing engages. The lo-range selector does work, but not the 4X4. Thoughts?

 

[DeRocha]

Great article and thread - much better than Chilton! My Chilton manual indicates that there is a magnetic clutch assembly on the '94. Haven't been under the unit (yet...) but will check to see if there is a motor. On mine, the dash lights illuminate, but nothing engages. The lo-range selector does work, but not the 4X4. Thoughts?

Did you already read through the 4x4 troubleshooting guide? It can provide insight into which part of your 4x4 system is failing.

 

[4x4troy]

pulled my shift motor today and tore it apart.sure enough that plastic bushing was in three peices.replaced it with a 1/4" fuel line and it works great. i now have 4wd.thanks a million for all the wonderful and money saving how to's.

 

[Lostwave]

I did it!

Hey all, I have lurked here for a little while. Anyway, my 4x4 would not engage, so I read all 18 pages of this thread and decided to give it a try in my driveway. Before taking everything apart, I wanted to just take the cover off and see if I could get to the usual culpret bushing.

I took the gear cover off with a security T-20 bit (after marking its location first) and then tried to get the large gear out. Of course it wouldn't budge. So I came up with a brilliant idea. If the bushing was getting crushed causing the sensor to be off by a smidge, why not just put the cover back on slightly misaligned from how it was originally. So I put it back on about 1mm off from my marks and hopped in the truck to test it. Sure enough, it popped right into 4x4.

I barely did anything and it took about 10 minutes.
Don't know if I will run into problems in the future, but its working great now. Low works too.

Just thought I would let y'all know.

This is a great resource here and I really appreciate all the expert knowledge you all are sharing.

Off to drive on the beach again! See y'all.

Justin.

 

[FJHF15099]

again very informative and is making me much more comfortable about buying my explorer tomorrow!!

 

[DeRocha]

If the bushing was getting crushed causing the sensor to be off by a smidge, why not just put the cover back on slightly misaligned from how it was originally. So I put it back on about 1mm off from my marks and hopped in the truck to test it. Sure enough, it popped right into 4x4.

I barely did anything and it took about 10 minutes.
Don't know if I will run into problems in the future, but its working great now. Low works too.

Just thought I would let y'all know.

This is a great resource here and I really appreciate all the expert knowledge you all are sharing.

Off to drive on the beach again! See y'all.

Justin.

Justin, yes the above works as you have noted. The real issue that can come into play with adjusting the cover vs replacing the bushing is torque wind up. When you turn off 4x4 the motor rotates the gear until the electrical contacts on the gear & cover tells it to stop. The gear doesn't stop instantly and can still rotate the gear slightly (few mms). This extra few millimeters of travel can exert a tremendous force which when up against the stop bushing is ok since it acts like a shock absorber . If however the bushing is completely gone their is no bumper to absorb the extra force and the geared sensor can be under large force in the OFF Position.. If you then try to press engage 4x4, the motor may not have the power to move the geared sensor. (basically like trying to remove a lug nut that has been put on way too tight)

 

[jugglerone]

Ok My 92 Explorer would not go into 4X4. Read the posts. Took the shift motor out and took apart and saw the bushing was in several mpieces. Replaced it with replacement. Before putting shift motor back onto vehicle I put power and ground to the motor to see if it worked now. Indeed it did turn in both directions. But, when I put it underneath the truck and connected the wiring harness to it and turned the key on and hit the 4X4 hi button, NOTHING happened. The fact still remaine that the control module does not light up ever, even when trying to test it. Also there are no clicks at the control module when depressing 4X4 button. So why would the motor not work when I hooked it to the car? Is it the motor or the module? or what?

 

[smudman]

4x4 motor fuse blowing.

I have an '01 Explorer Sport. My 4wd hasn't worked in awhile and finally got around to working on it. I had a blown fuse in the relay box for the 4x4 motor and replaced it, put the new one in turned it on and it blew it again. My friend that works for Ford told me to tap on the motor so I did. Replaced the fuse again and it didn't blow but no 4wd lights on startup. I replaced the module and I now have 4wd lights on startup but when I turn the switch it blows the 4x4 motor fuse. Could it be just a short across the leads or do I have to take the motor off and give it a good cleaning? Any info is much appreciated.

 

[jugglerone]

I do know that the was very low voltage at the shift motor connectors prior to removing the shift motor. So where does the shift motor connecters run from?