Transfer case stopped working???

Hi,
Today when I went skiing, I was driving up the mountain, I was in 2wd, turned into the ski are parking lot, and pulled the handle to 4WD part time and it had no sound or anything, and the Jeep did not go into 4WD. Drove into the parking lot and nothing. Stayed in 2wd. Dropped it into 4WD full time, and no drive at all!!! The motor just rev up. Put it into 4WD low, and the Jeep went into lower gear, but still no 4wd! Went home in 2WD ;-(

The Jeep is a 1989 with a select trac transfer case, AW4 auto, 4.0 motor.
It has been running fine, 4WD has been working just fine. I did have the 242 put in about a year ago. Could this just be a bad adjustment on the selector?

It just seems strange that it has drive when the selector is in 2WD, part-time and 4WD low, but no drive at all when it is in 4WD full time?

Any advice would be appreciated
Thanks,
Bob

So, it used to be a Command-Trac NP231?

Hi Joe,
Yes, it had command trac.
Switched the shift gate, bezel, and took out the vacuum front axle, and locked the drive shaft in place.

Thanks,
Bob

Ok, might sound silly but I would start with re-adjusting the selector lever.

Lift out the bezel, pull the lever all the way back into 4lo, place a 3 mm (1/8") shim (drill bit) between the rear of the shift gate and the shift lever, then lock it in place with a bungee cord.

Crawl underneath and loosen the adjusting bolt in the trunnion on the upper rod. Either use a pry bar or a large pair of pliers to shift the transfer case fully into 4lo. Tighten the adjusting bolt in the trunnion, then replace the bezel and and test it.

The problem could just be worn shift pads on the fork.

OK,
Did the adjustment as suggested, and now, it runs in Full time 4wd, but I can't get it to 2wd!!! It seems like it needs more forward travel in the gate!!!

It does seem like the part-time and full time 4WD system is working now! Which makes me feel better............

Do I need to just re-adjust the shaft? Or is there something worn out in the transfer case?

Thanks,
Bob

Sounds like a linkage arm issue. It's been a number of years but I think going from 242 to 231 (the only way to go in my opinion, not the other way) the arms weren't the same length, some cutting and welding was required to make everything happy.

JJacobs said:

Sounds like a linkage arm issue. It's been a number of years but I think going from 242 to 231 (the only way to go in my opinion, not the other way) the arms weren't the same length, some cutting and welding was required to make everything happy.

Click to expand...

You are talking about the lower rod? Could be that is the problem.

OP--pull the bezel, and see if the lever is hitting fully forward against the front of the shiftgate. If it is not, then JJacobs has hit the nail on the head. If it is impacting the lever, and therefore preventing the lever moving all the way into 2wd, then you may need to modify the front shiftgate and/or recheck your adjustment.

BTW--you don't happen to have a tc drop installed, do you? The cheap kits don't have a lever adapter bracket, and that can cause problems.

The set up is stock, no lift or any different setup.

So,should I loosen the adjusting bolt, and see if it goes forward? The 2wd worked prior to my "issue".

Right now, I can push the lever more forward, but it does not lock into 2wd, as if I don't have enough "throw"

Does the 231 and 242 use different linkage parts? I know they use different gates.

Thanks
Bob

cherokee4fun said:

The set up is stock, no lift or any different setup.

So,should I loosen the adjusting bolt, and see if it goes forward? The 2wd worked prior to my "issue".

Right now, I can push the lever more forward, but it does not lock into 2wd, as if I don't have enough "throw"

Does the 231 and 242 use different linkage parts? I know they use different gates.

Thanks
Bob

Click to expand...

Honest answer, I don't know--maybe someone with the correct parts manual can chime in and provide the answer. I would think, logically(?), that 2/4hi/F/N/4lo would require a longer lower rod than 2/4hi/N/4lo.