HI everyone im new here, and just recently acquired a 1994 ranger 4.0L v6 4x4, 5spd manual. Everything works great except for the 4 wheel drive. I jacked it up this morning and placed it on jackstands then clicked in 4x4.

The passenger side drive shaft moves and i can hear the hub clicking, but the tire doesnt turn. The driver side drive shaft wasent moving at all. I know nothing about 4 wheel drive hubs but am wondering if the hubs need to be replaced or if the problem lies further....seeing as the driver side driveshaft wasent turning when the 4 wheel drive was engaged does that mean that the problem is in the transfer case?

Thanks Greg

 

If it is vaccum hubs, maybe they have gone bad.

 

The one tire spinning on an open diff is not always true. Hubs were usually a problem with Rangers that is why they got rid of them all together on the 01 and up trucks. Swap for some manual hubs and enjoy.

 

Vacuum actuators that control hub engagement go bad a lot. Go with manual hubs and make it easy on yourself. And open diffs will spin both wheels in the air because there is no greater resistance of either tire side to side.

 

sounds like there is a hub issue, and/or spider gear issue

 

Thanks for all the quick replies...There factory automatic hubs and i have no idea what controls them. Im guessing it would be vacuum since there automatic?

What would cause only the one passenger side driveshaft to spin though? Unless thats normal?because if i have to tear into the front diff i dont think it'll be worth my time and money to fix the 4x4

Thanks again Greg

 

Your hub lock up when engine torque is applied to them.

 

I had a friend give it a few quick revs while it was on jackstand and it made no difference to hub engagment. but it might not of torqued enough though.

 

what could be is that the diff is an open diff, the left hub is engaged (vacuum) and there is enough resistance on the one tire to make the tire not spin, and the other hub is not engaged so there is less load on there...

when you say driveshaft, i assume you mean CV shaft? driveshafts go from tc to diff

 

Im going to start tomorrow by taking the hubs off and cleaning them with brake clean and then letting them sit in hot atf fluid overnight.

 

don't think it's your hubs spesifically, i bet it's your vacuum actuators...

 

Is there any way of testing the vacuum actuators? If not are there any write ups on replacing them?

Thanks Greg

 

AVM's thats what i got, i had the same problem as you right around 140,000 miles. and later when your electric motor goes up you might wanna put in a 1354m if your up to the task.

 

1994 trucks did not have any vacuum actuators.

From TRS: With automatic hubs, there is no need to stop or get out of the vehicle to lock them in. The spring-loaded hub automatically engages on the fly when the transfer case is shifted from 2WD into 4WD. The application of torque to the axle causes the splined collar inside the hub to slide on to the axles splined stub shaft and lock. http://www.therangerstation.com/tech...Diagnosis.html

 

oh well dont i sound like a fool for not knowing sry lol

 

if u have a 94 you should go with Warn hubs.....if the hubs are the problem. You can't tell they are bad if u put it on a jackstand and test it i put my truck on a lift got all 4 up in the air put it in 4x4 and they all spun but the hubs were bad. when the trucks on the ground like you said they need to push more power

 

thanks everyone for the help. Im really hoping to get this fixed before the snow hits!

When i had the truck on jackstands i had a friend click it in 4wheel drive while i watched the cv shafts. the passenger shaft spun and i could hear the hub clicking but the tire wouldnt move. The driver side shaft wasent moving at all even when reving the motor. I kinda thought that both cv shafts would turn though. is it possible only one turned because its a limited slip diff?

Im going to soak the hubs and clean the spindles tomorrow and ill post my results.

 

Rangers only came with open front diffs. Good luck man.

 

i did not know that, thank you for the correction, i thoguht you were talking about 02+ or something around that age

limited slip would cause both to spin, but as whippersnapper said, ford only puts open diffs up front (something i will probably change eventually) regardless though, with the amount of resistance on the wheels when they are in the air, they should both spin

 

Well after cleaning the spindles and hubs they still dont work and just make clicking noises with the 4wheel drive engaged. Ive already started looking at manual hub conversion kits and the cheapest ive seen so far is 240 shipped and thats through amazon. Thats also the warn kit with there 29071 hubs and warn 32720 spindle kit and the large socket. Are there any places that might sell it cheaper?

Thanks Greg

 

WARN 29071 4WD Locking Hubs Ford Ranger Explorer 90-97:eBay Motors (item 390117185064 end time Jan-10-10 0504 PST)

you will still need the conversion kit but i think they sell those on summit, or 4 wheel parts has a "bag" thats cheep and has everything you need

 

I did the warn manual hub conversion sat morning and they work perfectly! Only took me 2hrs and that was including putting new pads in.

 

im looking to do the same on my 97, how much did you spend on yours?