2001 Montero sport will not engage 4WD
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Post by hybrid on Jun 12, 2013 23:40:03 GMT -5
Hi all,
I recently bought a 2001 and took it out to the country for the first time on the weekend. They got rain (which is great, they really needed it) and I was looking forward to giving the car a workout. Very muddy dirt road, shifted to 4WD and no light came on. Ended up getting stuck at a very bad part of the road. The front diff does not seem to engage in either 4H or 4L, but low range itself seems to be working.
I removed the solenoids and they both seem to be working. However, both seem to be powered on with the ignition, whether in 4WD or not. Is this normal? The yellow vacuum line is sucking no matter which mode is selected, and the blue does not seem to suck at all.
At one stage after leaving it in 4WD on the muddy road, the 4WD light started to flicker and was mostly illuminated by the time we got back to the farm, but I'm still pretty sure it was not engaged.
I pulled the boot back from the actuator and it seems pretty good in there. Put in some grease for good measure. The shaft seems free enough, although I couldn't move it much with the car stationary, but I assume it would go in further with the wheels turning once the right spot was located.
I have a manual for it, but can't seem to find a good section on how the 4WD system works.
Anyone know how to troubleshoot these things?
Any help is appreciated.
Jeff
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Post by monty98 on Jun 13, 2013 10:10:34 GMT -5
A common problem with the 4wd system is that the shift lever has a few switches that tell the computer where the lever is located; the switches get stuck every now and then after the 4wd system hasn't been used in a long time, and will only work after getting lubricated well enough.
Shifting the lever back and forth a lot will get some oil up there to unstick the switches. If that doesn't work then you may need to remove and clean them, but that is only a last resort.
As for checking if your actuator would work you can raise the front up with the engine off and the axle should be engaged by default. The vacuum is what de-activates your front disconnect. It's a fail safe built in so that if your switches should fail the 4wd front axle just locks automatically.
Phew...with all that said, if you unplug all the vacuum lines to each side of the actuator the front axle will just always be engaged and when stuck in a tough situation just undo those hoses if the front axle isn't engaging. It will lock the front axle and it sounds like your transfer case is at least behaving alright, just the front that's giving you issues.
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Post by hybrid on Jun 13, 2013 17:37:39 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply.
I did read about shifting in and out of 2H/4H a lot to un-stick the switches. I drove around for 10 mins shifting in an out, but it hasn't worked. Not sure how long it should take before I give up and replace/clean the switch. Either way I'm not keen on dropping the transmission though!
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Post by hybrid on Jun 14, 2013 2:24:35 GMT -5
Ok, another update.
I got underneath it to feel around for the 4WD switches and found a wire that seemed to be disconnected. It was a single wire, yellow with red stripe and it had a white plug. I felt around above the transfer case and plugged it back in where it was meant to go.
This didn't fix my issue though.
I jacked the car up at the front and did some further testing. When I shift into 4WD, I can hear the solenoids, but there appears to be a bad connection because if I move the stick around, I can hear them clicking on and off. I originally thought the sound I could hear was a creaking sound because of the flickering they were doing.
If I'm lucky, I get the solenoids in the right place and when I spin one of the front wheels, it locks. Moving back to 2WD always unlocks. I very rarely see the 4WD light come on though, even if the diff locks. It flickers on and off now and then.
So does this seem like an issue with the switch that might resolve with some more use, or does it sound like a replacement will be required? I have been shifting in and out a lot, but does't seem any better.
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Post by monty98 on Jun 14, 2013 9:15:53 GMT -5
If It's actually locking up then it would seem your 4wd actuator sensor might be faulty or have a loose connection.
To test the sensor switch just unplug the orange connector right in the wheel well next to the vacuum cylinder and touch the two points together with a pin or something and the 4wd light will flash if the lever isnt forward and will be solid if it is.
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Post by hybrid on Jun 14, 2013 18:59:49 GMT -5
I haven't even managed to find a vacuum cylinder on mine.
I've actually got the Australian version "challenger", which are supposed to be the same car.
I will see what I can find, thanks.
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mred
Newbie
Posts: 24
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Post by mred on Dec 7, 2013 10:59:58 GMT -5
I've read the above and wonder if we have the same problem. My wife's '01 Montero Sport 4WD will not engage. When the problem started, the light would come on sometimes, and when it was the 4WD would work. With no light, it would not work. The switch mentioned in the second post seems logical at this point. If that switch lets the 4WD engage, the light comes on. If not, no light.
Does that make sense? If the switches are the problem, is it possible to get to those switches, or does the transmission have to come out?
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Post by ES_97Sport on Dec 11, 2013 16:51:43 GMT -5
A common problem with the 4wd system is that the shift lever has a few switches that tell the computer where the lever is located; the switches get stuck every now and then after the 4wd system hasn't been used in a long time, and will only work after getting lubricated well enough. Shifting the lever back and forth a lot will get some oil up there to unstick the switches. If that doesn't work then you may need to remove and clean them, but that is only a last resort. ... I believe its one switch and it's a sealed switch located on the top of the transfer case. Of course, in the most miserably awkward spot they could find.  There's no apparent way to 'clean' it that I could find. I've looked because I've had to replace two. They DO get 'sticky' for whatever reason (synthetic oil doesn't fix this problem, BTW). Basically, it's just 'is it in 4WD or not'. Not 'is it in 4WD high, or is it in 4WD low'. Just 'is it in 4WD'. Edward |
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Post by ES_97Sport on Dec 11, 2013 17:24:13 GMT -5
I've read the above and wonder if we have the same problem. My wife's '01 Montero Sport 4WD will not engage. When the problem started, the light would come on sometimes, and when it was the 4WD would work. With no light, it would not work. The switch mentioned in the second post seems logical at this point. If that switch lets the 4WD engage, the light comes on. If not, no light. Does that make sense? If the switches are the problem, is it possible to get to those switches, or does the transmission have to come out? When you shift into 4WD Hi/Lo, the circuit is completed and this gives you a blinking 4WD dash light and supplies power to the actuator assembly at the axle. The vehicle is not physically in 4WD at this point. When the actuator engages the split axle shaft (on the passenger side) another switch (at the axle) is closed, 4WD is physically engaged (hopefully) and the 4WD dash light goes to solid (not blinking). Remember, this is "shift on the fly". Pre-(physically)-engaged - blinking indicator. Physically engaged - solid indicator. It is possible to get both a blinking and solid indicator WITHOUT physically being in 4WD. However, if you get either indicator, your problem is not on the transfer case. Once the t-case switch closes the indicator has power as should the actuator assembly. If it's not going into 4WD, the problem is at the axle , not at the t-case. The ECM/PCM is not involved in 4WD, except in the case of vehicles with automatic transmissions, and any interaction is only between the TCM/PCM. There's no control over whether the 4WD systems works in the TCM/ECM/PCM. I went through the 4WD electrical system ad nauseam to figure out how to get the 4WD indicator to work when I riped out the Mitsu t-case and replaced it with the Jeep NP231s which share absolutely NO resemblance to each other AFTER having to do this exercise when I did the SAS back in '02 to make sure that hacking off all the 4WD wiring and actuator stuff wouldn't result in a vehicle that didn't run because some circuit was missing. The 4WD system on the Sports is very simple. The service manuals have very clear diagrams on this. Something to make SURE of is that all the grounds are good on the axle, 'cause this will keep it from going into 4WD, too. Been there.  Re: t-case switch replacement. No, the transmission/transfer case doesn't have to come out. But, you need little hands to replace it. I had the tech at the dealership do two of mine because my hands are too big. He has smaller hands and wrists and managed to do it without too much trouble. But, if the indicator gets to blinking after you shift into 4WD Hi, you're wasting your time IMHO. Edward |
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mred
Newbie
Posts: 24
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Post by mred on Dec 12, 2013 9:15:51 GMT -5
Thank you so much for the info. I get no light on the dash and no 4WD. When the problem first started, I'd sometimes get the light, and the 4WD would work when the light was on. Because of that, I think the switch may be the likely culprit.
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Post by ES_97Sport on Dec 12, 2013 13:31:12 GMT -5
Thank you so much for the info. I get no light on the dash and no 4WD. When the problem first started, I'd sometimes get the light, and the 4WD would work when the light was on. Because of that, I think the switch may be the likely culprit. No worries. Yep. If you're getting no light at all, then I'd start there. BTW, I did replace the first one that went out many, many years ago. The tech replaced mine by coming up underneath, but I took out the transmission cross member, console and tunnel boot and got to it that way. Wasn't easy, but I couldn't reach it from the bottom. Maybe an idea if you're going to do it yourself. Edward |
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mred
Newbie
Posts: 24
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Post by mred on Dec 27, 2013 21:12:13 GMT -5
Well, I've managed to fix the problem for good. My wife's nephew bought the car, and he doesn't care that 4WD doesn't work. LOL
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Post by ES_97Sport on Dec 30, 2013 13:47:31 GMT -5
Well, I've managed to fix the problem for good. My wife's nephew bought the car, and he doesn't care that 4WD doesn't work. LOL Well, that IS one way to fix the problem! Edward |
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mred
Newbie
Posts: 24
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Post by mred on Dec 30, 2013 15:18:10 GMT -5
LOL ... That's not the reason we sold it, but my wife's nephew just totaled his pickup. He's out of work, had an insurance settlement in his pocket, and needed a car cheap so he could have some cash while he job hunts. I told my wife "We've been talking about buying you a new one. Maybe we should just make him a deal on yours and do that." I barely had the sentence out of my mouth before she was calling him.  All's well that ends well. I sure appreciate all the suggestions. A friend has a set of drive up ramps at his house, and we'd planned to check it out together in the new year. We felt we had some really good info here, and he really knows his way around a car. I, on the other hand, ............... |
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Post by laura on Jan 3, 2014 14:24:00 GMT -5
Hi all!
Happy 2014!
Question I have is my 4wd won't shift at all. In reding thru this thread sounds like they could shift to possible work the oil. We can't get mine to budge and we have no clue what I am actually driving in because I have the fabulous periodically flashing 4wd light along with the constant check engine light and periodical abs light on which I have read are all common in the 2001 but trying to figure out how to get my 4wd shifter to move I was told I need new solenoids is that hard my bf works on cats t home just wondering if doing new solenoids will fix this
Thanks for any help!!
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There's no apparent way to 'clean' it that I could find. I've looked because I've had to replace two. They DO get 'sticky' for whatever reason (synthetic oil doesn't fix this problem, BTW). 
