Silly question about shifting into H4/L4

[apullin]

Alright, so this is a bit of a silly question, but I'd like to know the right answer once and for all.
My parent's bought a 96 4runner, with the v6 engine. Very nice car... I use it when I go out to the desert and such here in Southern California.

Now, my dilema is that my folks >never< use the four wheel drive, so they don't know how to engage it "properly", and we seem to have misplaced our owners manual unfortuantely.
I have gotten it into High-4 before by putting it in Neutral and shifting the transfer case shifter down one notch. The green 4-wheel light when on on the dash, so I'm guessing it has automatic locking hubs and all that good stuff.

So, my actual question:
What is the CORRECT procedure for shifting into/out of High-4 and Low-4 ?

Thanks,
Andrew Pullin

 

[jharris2]

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=92

Does that answer your question?

 

[Thai]

It's easy: (NOTE: this applies to 1996-1998 4runners ONLY)

- You can switch to 4-HI up to around 60 mph (i think it's 62 mph).

- You do NOT have to come to a stop or switch to neutral to go into and out of 4-HI.

- Of course, you should not use 4-HI on dry roads because this will cause binding. You can ONLY use 4-HI on slippery roads (rain slick, snow, mud, off-roading, etc.)

- For 4-LO, you HAVE to come to a STOP. You HAVE to put it into NEUTRAL. Once your 4runner is in NEUTRAL, then you can shift into 4-LO.

- As with 4-HI, you should ONLY use 4-LO on slippery roads.

- To switch from 4-LO to 2wd, you need to again come to a STOP and switch to NEUTRAL.

Your 4wd system is PART-TIME.

BTW, the link JHARRIS2 gave you is for '01-up 4wd system...it does NOT apply to you.

Hope this helps.

 

[prlundberg]

There is a discussion about this on another forum, it confused me and after reading my manual I only got confused even further.

When shifting between H4 and L4, the manual says to shift into neutral and put your foot on the brake. That's the easy part.

Now for the complicated part. For my "lever type" (and I think your 96) it only mentions to engage H4 under 50, and disengage at any speed. Nothing about damage on dry surfaces in H4, but it does mention H2 is for use on dry surfaces to minimize wear and provide the best economy and quietest ride. On the "lever/button type" (4WD button on lever), it actually states 3 times damage may occur in H4L or L4L on hard dry surfaces. Again, no mention of a max speed.

Now ADD models (auto disconecting diff) is mentioned in my visor card to not exceed 50mph in H4. However this is not in the manual anywhere. ADD is mentioned in the manual to follow shifting procedure and engage for 10 miles each month. But no mention of what it actually is or which vehicles have it. There is a diagram of the hub that looks like all 4Runners I have seen, is this auto hubs? If so, why does it say not to exceed 50 on the visor card but not in the manual?

I have always thought it was not good at all to run in H4 on dry roads, but my owner's manual doesn't mention it. To me, that seems like too important of an item to have been accidently left out or not made clear.

Not even any mention of if my center diff locks, though I'm sure it does. Toyota could be clearer on this, no wonder there is so much confusion.

Can anybody clear this up? :dunno:

 

[jharris2]

BTW, the link JHARRIS2 gave you is for '01-up 4wd system...it does NOT apply to you.

Oops! :bonk:

 

[Thai]

prlundberg, (NOTE: The discussion below applies for 1999-up 4runners ONLY)

Remember, YOUR 4runner is 2000, which is capable of being in 4-Hi on dry pavement. 1996-1998 4runners could not do this (as in APULLIN'S case). Starting in 1999, Toyota incorporated a gear-based center differential that allows for 4-HI on dry pavement. You can switch to 4-HI (from 2wd) up to around 50-60 mph (i could be wrong about the exact mph you can do this). For the 4th gen 4runners (2003-up), Toyota uses Torsen center diff, which is similar in design (gear-based also).

Summary: your 2000 4runner can be driven in 4-HI on dry pavement. But, apullin's 1996 4runner canNOT!

I do believe that your 2000 4runner can be driven in 4-HI at any speed. However, to ENGAGE 4-HI from 2wd, you must do it under a certain speed. My 2002 4runner has the same center diff as yours (up to 62 mph, i can engage 4HI)...and i have driven it well above 70 mph without any problems...nor is there anything in the manual to state otherwise. I have NOT heard of any problems with driving at high speed in 4-HI for 1999-up 4runners.

To switch from 4-Hi to 4-LO, you have to STOP your 4runner and put it into NEUTRAL. Here are the steps to go into 4-LO:

1. STOP your 4runner; foot on brake pedal of course
2. Shift into NEUTRAL
3. Pull your transfer case lever to 4-LO
4. Shift back into DRIVE
5. Drive away!

When you're finished with 4-LO and want to go back into 4-HI, then just reverse the steps. But to go INTO and OUT of 4-LO, you MUST stop your 4runner and put it into neutral.

Toyota sucks when it comes to these things...they are very vague. I did a lot of research into this on my own.

Hope this helps.

 

[prlundberg]

Thanks for the info Thai.

I don't think ours are quite the same though. I do not have the button.

I'll still be playing it safe, and it kind of irks me that Toyota could not be clearer in the manual. I still have no idea what ADD does.

 

[davidgalvin518]

Very helpful!

New owner of an 07' Sport Edition and I have been messing with my 4WD lately due to the snowy roads! It's nice to know I have been doing it properly!