can the 4wd selector lever strip/slip?

boilermaker2 · **Posted:** Tue Aug 19, 2014 10:54 am

papaindigo wrote:

To the extent I've "seen" the "linkage" from underneath when I repaired the connection to the transfer case (viewtopic.php?f=5&t=57790&p=642668&hilit=options+considering#p642668) the system consists of the 4-wheel drive shift lever which is connected to a cable in a housing which loops forward and then back to where the cable housing is held in place under the vehicle by a metal bracket and a plastic retaining clip and from there the cable fits over a pin on a lever on the side of the transfer case and is held in place by another plastic retainer.

When the shift lever is down I believe the transfer case lever is all the way back and you are in 2-wheel drive. As the shift lever is pulled up then the transfer case lever is pulled forward thru the various 4-wheel drive modes.

I don't know that there is any "adjustment" in the cable but if so it would be toward the lever end. At least I don't recall noticing any adjustment under the vehicle. Also I certainly could be wrong but I see no physical way with the shift lever down that you could be in 4wd and no way you could get to 2wd by pulling up on the shift lever.

FYI this is not a CRD "thing" so any decent Jeep shop should be able to check it out.

Thank you. That was what I was looking for.

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Tue Aug 19, 2014 10:54 am

boilermaker2 wrote:

geordi wrote:

The selector handle is THE ONLY TRUE INDICATOR of the position of the shift forks.It is connected via a cable to the shift lever on the body of the transfer case.

Thank you Geordi. Can the shift lever on the body of the transfer case go bad? Have you heard of this? I am 99.9% sure the light/indicator is not my problem. If I put my selector handle anywhere but in FullTime 4WD, it is in 4WD. This is the only position where it acts and behaves like it is in 2WD

Boiler2

For the 242 t-case there is no true indication of what selection your actually in,even with the shifter.The 242 is a indirect shift t-case,meaning that handle and cable moves a shaft with check balls and springs to engage 2wd/4wd unlike the 231 t-case(command trac) which that handle/cable is directly connected to the shift fork.

The 242 is known for shifting issues and getting stuck in part time 4wd when trying to shift back from full time 4wd to 2wd.The tires all have to have the same tread depth(within 3/32" of each other) and must be the same make and brand,and also must be aired up the exact same.The planets have to align and all that other crap for the 242 to shift correctly if you don't use 4wd that much,it likes to stick in the wrong selection.

geordi · **Posted:** Tue Aug 19, 2014 11:01 am

You will probably want to have a transfer case shop look at this for you, this will require both a 4-wheel lift and knowledge of the NV242 case that the CRD (and every other KJ) has.

I will say this much - Either you are in 2WD mode when the lever is all the way forward, or if it won't get there / you are certain that you have a 2WD somewhere else in the positions... Then something is broken in the shift collar. DO NOT PULL THE CRD IN NEUTRAL (like behind an RV or truck) until you get this checked out.

My transfer case was damaged (probably by the previous owner) and I never knew it. I never went "off-roading" so I only used it in 2WD or neutral. During one event of pulling it behind a box truck, the transfer case re-engaged itself somehow and promptly incinerated the transmission. When the TC was opened up later, the guy said he found the front wheel gear in half, and half the teeth missing from another gear. The shift fork was bent severely. Obviously something violent happened, he wasn't certain exactly what.

kidjedi · **Posted:** Sun Sep 25, 2016 4:47 pm

papaindigo wrote:

To the extent I've "seen" the "linkage" from underneath when I repaired the connection to the transfer case (viewtopic.php?f=5&t=57790&p=642668&hilit=options+considering#p642668) the system consists of the 4-wheel drive shift lever which is connected to a cable in a housing which loops forward and then back to where the cable housing is held in place under the vehicle by a metal bracket and a plastic retaining clip and from there the cable fits over a pin on a lever on the side of the transfer case and is held in place by another plastic retainer.

So I got in there to fix my typical non-functioning 5-way plunge switch 4WD indicator light, but now my cable is no longer attached to the transfer case lever. Papaindigo's description describes perfectly what I'm seeing, but there is no retaining clip where the end of the cable (a loop) slips over the pin attached to the transfer case arm. I'm assuming the retaining clip was worn and fell off when there was slack in the 4wd lever cable (the plastic washer on the inside of the cable loop between the loop and the t-case selector arm, is definitely almost completely deteriorated, so I'm assuming the same thing happened to the retaining clip). When I reattached the 4wd lever to the console area to test the new switch, the shifter just flopped around because the cable was no longer attached to the t-case.

Now I need to reattach the 4WD shifter cable to the pin on the t-case arm, but I'm not sure what the retaining clip looks like, or where to get it. I checked all over the groun (it's the middle of the day, so plenty of light), but it's nowhere to be found. I think it probably fell off a while ago, and the cable was just held on by a bit of tension. I'm assuming I can just get a properly sized retaining clip to slip over the pin and hold the cable on the t-case selector arm, but I thought I'd post this in case anyone runs into a similar problem. I'm also worried that a typical retaining clip (pretty thin) won't be strong enough to keep the cable connected to the t-case lever with frequent shifting in the coming winter months.

can the 4wd selector lever strip/slip?

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