Shifting into 4wd Hi Question

[steve73]

What's the best or recommended way to shift from 2wd into 4w high...i know it can be done on the fly, but should i take my foot of the gas pedal during the shift process,

or can i leave the pedal pressed as long as I'm going on a straight line and not under load ,and under the 50mph range?

 

[Johnny Utah]

What's the best or recommended way to shift from 2wd into 4w high...i know it can be done on the fly, but should i take my foot of the gas pedal during the shift process,

or can i leave the pedal pressed as long as I'm going on a straight line and not under load ,and under the 50mph range?

are you sure about the "shift on a fly"? I've never heard of that on the 4Runner.

I know my Xterra had it, and it was cool, but, i think it was like below 45 mphs and you can't be accelerating,

Back to the 4runner. I believe you need to be stopped, and shift it into Neutral, and then put it in 4 Hi.

 

[westwind77]

I believe you need to be stopped, and shift it into Neutral, and then put it in 4 Hi.

NOPE! For 4H it IS shift on the fly, it says in the book somewhere around 50 or less. It does not make mention of load or not, personally I always take my foot off the gas, I'm sure each of us is different with that though.

For 4L you HAVE to be stopped and in N.

 

[rickwol]

You can shift into 4wd high "on the fly" as long as you are going below 50mph. As for shifting back into 2wd, that can be done at any speed. There are no caveats about doing it during acceleration that I found but I've never done that, my thinking being that the actual 4wd engagement might be smoother when not accelerating.

 

[Ripsnort]

On the fly in 4WD like the fellas said above, and you should do this for a couple of miles once a month or two, just to keep everything lubed and wet in the transfer case. My father=in-law, who was an auto mechanic (as well as a flight line mechanic) for 40 years highly recommended this. He said the #1 reason for failure was due to inactive use of the 4WD system. I'm not so sure if that statement is applicable to today's sealed systems or not though....

 

[Intruder]

I'm not so sure if that statement is applicable to today's sealed systems or not though....

Pretty sure it says in the owner's manual to drive 10 miles a month in 4wd to keep the system lubricated. I think there was a thread about the best way to do this a while back.

 

[scanny]

What's the best or recommended way to shift from 2wd into 4w high...i know it can be done on the fly, but should i take my foot of the gas pedal during the shift process,

or can i leave the pedal pressed as long as I'm going on a straight line and not under load ,and under the 50mph range?

I don't think that there is a requirement to take foot of the gas when shifting but for some reason I feel better when i'm shifting to 4hi with my foot off the gas pedal.

 

[mhuntwork]

The manual says under 50mph as stated above. It also says that if the light blinks for more than a couple of seconds to brake or give light acceleration to help it engage. Don't know if this is to help the system seek or what but it tells me that light acceleration isn't a serious problem.

I naturally let off the accelerator when I reach down to the shifter though.

 

[philsey]

My 5G is the 3rd S-O-F SUV I've owned, and I've learned through experience that shifting between 2H - 4H - 2H is smoothest if you lift off the accelerator as you shift.

 

[Fernandina4runner]

I have noticed that when you shift on the fly. The 4hi will not engage under power. The light will just flash until you let off of the gas a little and then it will kick in.

 

[steve73]

Thanks for all the input

 

[Johnny Utah]

NOPE! For 4H it IS shift on the fly, it says in the book somewhere around 50 or less. It does not make mention of load or not, personally I always take my foot off the gas, I'm sure each of us is different with that though.

For 4L you HAVE to be stopped and in N.

how come i've never heard of this shift on the fly thing before? I mean.. it's awesome. i just don't understand how this has never come up before! Dammit!

 

[Foques]

^
+1

more so, my level is "locked" when i'm driving.. i HAVE to stop, drop to N in order to be able to change gearing there.. has been same since 5 miles on odometer.

 

[Froggy]

how come i've never heard of this shift on the fly thing before? . . .

Maybe you skipped over that part when you read the manual cover-to-cover? :jk:

 

[Jtraskell]

NOPE! For 4H it IS shift on the fly, it says in the book somewhere around 50 or less. It does not make mention of load or not, personally I always take my foot off the gas, I'm sure each of us is different with that though.

For 4L you HAVE to be stopped and in N.

Westwind, I am pretty sure you have to go into 4wd high first, then into 4low. (In order to get into 4 low). I know you have to be stopped, but I am not sure you have to be in neutural. I will check later.

 

[1000MPH]

Must (or should be) fully stopped in N or P for 4L.
BTW, I often visit a certain trail that requires 4L as soon as I leave the highway.
I stop completely, put the tranmission in N, shift TC from 2wd to 4H, pause for a moment, then shift smoothly and decisively into 4L. This works for me. I haven't grinded (ground?) gears in awhile. The pause seems to help with that. YMMV

 

[Mr. Leary]

4HI, I usually pop the transmission in N so that I am sure that there is no power being applied when I shift the transfer case.

4LO, full stop, transmission in N before shifting transfer case. I also shift into reverse right after shifting to ensure that the t-case hooks up properly (old habits die hard).

NEVER try to shift into 4LO while moving. 4HI, no problem.

 

[Jtraskell]

4HI, I usually pop the transmission in N so that I am sure that there is no power being applied when I shift the transfer case.

4LO, full stop, transmission in N before shifting transfer case. I also shift into reverse right after shifting to ensure that the t-case hooks up properly (old habits die hard).

NEVER try to shift into 4LO while moving. 4HI, no problem.

Yea, stopping good. Park OR Neutral Good, but one MUST go to 4wd High first, then go to 4L in the 5th 4runner. (SR5 version anyways). It even shows this process (4hi first, then 4low) in the embedded diagram on the shift knob....

I usually go in reverse for a few feet after I disengage 4wd, (either high or low) to make sure the t-case disengages! (From the days where you had to get out of the truck and turn the hubs.....I am old):trophy:

 

[NHinAK]

I let off the gas when shifting. The procedures for shifting to 4H and 4L and the speeds associated are on the drivers side visor....

 

[Johnny Utah]

^
+1

more so, my level is "locked" when i'm driving.. i HAVE to stop, drop to N in order to be able to change gearing there.. has been same since 5 miles on odometer.

i noticed that when i would shift to 4 HI, in the beginning it wouldn't engage easily, (when stopped), I had to really kinda force the knob down. No grinding or anything, it just seemed not easy to move, and i didn't want to pull it like a Gorilla. Now that i've done it several times, it drops into 4 HI easily when in Drive.....i haven't tried doing it while moving, since i had no idea we could do that.


and no, i have not read the manual cover to cover...and i probably won't

Anyway, at least this thread has been informative for Foques and Me :biggrin2: Thanks to all the guys that have chimed in and corrected me...and have been nice about it!