floor shifter stuck in 4hi

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jebbatron

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i have a 89 bronco with the manual shift control 4wd. for some reason it doesnt want to come out of 4hi the shifter is just stuck in place and it wont budge. what could be the problem?

 

Krafty

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I would look at the shifter just under the floor before it goes into the transfer case, there is a guide for the shifter with a block between 4 Hi and 4 Low ( neutral) so you couldn't change it without moving the shifter to the left to get past it.

there could be something in that guide that is causing your problems. I remember when I had my 89 f150 I ended up breaking of my shifter at that notch because It was giving me so many headaches.

in the 92 and up series they use a tcase shifter that requires you to push it down to get from low to hi or vice versa with a safety thing in there that you can only do it when in neutral ( at least on my e4od auto). Also with my shifter if it doesn't return all the way up in 4hi it won't let you go into 2 hi , But probably not relevant to your situation.

 

miesk5

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yo, WELCOME!

Have you tried shifting the tranny to Neutral or clutch depressed in manual tranny, then trying?

"If disengagement doesn’t immediately occur, a slight movement of the vehicle forward or rearward will usually cause it to disengage" by Ford

laastly, w/tranny in N or clutch depressed in manual tranny, turn engine off. Then turn it On and try again to shift Xfer case into N,

other possibilities;

1356 Manual Shift Wear; "...Manually shifted units usually exhibit wear on the selector shaft in two areas (figure 5). Shaft wear in any form will make the unit disengage or have very sloppy shifting. The star shaped end of the shaft where it mates with the shift cam is also prone to wear. Borg Warner released an updated shift cam with an Allen ***** to tighten up the fit and retain the manual lever. Look at the section of the manual lever that rides in the case, which is also subject to wear from dirt and two dissimilar metals in close contact...Always inspect the bore of the case for excessive wear. Figure 6 shows the bore is worn over size and will no longer hold the selector shaft in position. The only way to fix this is to do some machining and sleeve the bore, or to replace the case altogether..." (some figures are gone)

Source: by Mike W via web.archive.org @ http://web.archive.org/web/20030131161714/http://www.atra.com/gears/sep01/taming.html

1356 Manual Shift, No Movement or Neutral Position Tip/Saver Spacer & pic; "...Many 1987-1995 Ford F series 4x4 trucks and full size Bronco owners with 1356 manual shift transfer cases commonly complain of a "no movement" or an occasional neutral condition. This condition is usually caused by the linkage wearing the transfer case at its point of contact (1356 manual shift models only). Sonnax offers a case saver spacer 36605-01. This case saver spacer goes between the shift selector cam and the case and requires no special tools to install. The spacer moves the cam closer to the shift fork, thus preventing and/or eliminating: 1) one or both shift forks from becoming disengaged from the shift cam, 2) "slop"from the linkage caused by a worn linkage bore in front case half. This item is a specific size/thickness not commonly found in ordinary flat washers. This repair is quick, easy and a lot less expensive than repairing or replacing the case. Model: 36605-01..."

Source: by transmichigan.com

 

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