Front end not locking in... might as well be driving a 2wd s10!

i pulled my new toy out of the barn the other day and tried to get it to lock into 4wd and nothing happened. i couldnt even get up a hill with it.(then again its got no top and no glass so it weighs nothing and didnt have shocks so it lost traction quick, but still....) the lever feels like it is moving to easily but the linkage looks to be hooked up. i dont have a whole lot of time so i wanted to know what to check when i go out there instead of just crawling all over the jeep like we all do when we dont really know what to do. its a 95 cherokee w/ d30 of course and i think the selectrac 4x4 system. its only got "part time" so that one.

i tried to search but couldnt find much cause i didnt know what words to search.

thanks

The same thing happened to me awhile ago. It turns out the shifter linkage had come out of the tcase. Seach about that, because it has been covered. Or, the vacume line on the axle might have come off. Really all you have to check when you crawl under is the 4wd system, so axles and Tcase. Not that hard at all.

Starboard M said:

The same thing happened to me awhile ago. It turns out the shifter linkage had come out of the tcase. Seach about that, because it has been covered. Or, the vacume line on the axle might have come off. Really all you have to check when you crawl under is the 4wd system, so axles and Tcase. Not that hard at all.

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My vacume line came off a lot till I zip tied it to the axle, I have a homemade posi-lock now and no more problems.

Check all the vacume lines from the t-case to the axle, if it's been sitting a while they may be dryrotted.

The shift lever is usually not too stiff anyway, but if it doesn't feel like it's locking into 4wd it is most likely the shifter linkage like Starboard said.

well it's looser than my '99 but then again i guess it should be. its loose but it follows the pattern so i dont know. i would say its the vacuum lines. it sat for probably a year in that guys garage. i'll have to check it out tomorrow or something