Re: New Acquisition

From: Jason Bleazard (dml@bleazard.net)
Date: Thu Dec 08 2005 - 18:02:19 EST


On Thu, December 8, 2005 5:42 pm, James Calder said:
>
> Well I gone and got it. It's a flame red '96 4X4 Club Cab MarkIII
> conversion.

Congrats! I only know of one other MarkIII on the list, they don't seem to be
very common. Got any pictures?

> Is there supposed to be a 4X4 light on the dash when it's engaged?

(I'm assuming '96 is the same as '95) It's not on the dash. It's down on the
floor just aft of the transfer case shift lever. It also sometimes reflects
in the windshield at night. It's a "heads-up" 4x4 indicator.

> Since there is no hub lock, do the front axles and drive shaft turn all the
> time even when not engaged in 4wd

Yep.

> or is there some sort of electronic locking hub?

Nope. Look at it this way: it keeps things lubricated. I don't think there's
enough of a difference in fuel mileage to be worth worrying about it. Once
upon a time, they used to use a vacuum disconnect system, but figured out that
letting everything spin all the time actually resulted in less worn out parts
than fooling around with some over-complex and unnecessary disconnect system.

> Is there supposed to be a noticable difference in the front steering
> compared to a 2wd? It kind of feels as though 4wd is engaged, especially
> when turning in reverse.

I don't have a 2wd to compare to, but if it's stuck in 4wd you'll obviously
want to get that fixed. It should be pretty easy to figure that out. Find an
empty parking lot with some snow, or a gravel road, or something, and see if
either front wheel spins when you drop the gas pedal.

The 2wd and 4x4 models do use different steering setups, so it could just be
that you're not used to the difference in feel.

> 46RE 1st=2.45, 2nd=1.45, 3rd=1.00, 4th=.69. What do the ratios change to
> when 4wd low is engaged?

Low range is 2.72:1, so you just multiply each of those numbers by 2.72. In
other words, 1st=6.66, 2nd=3.94, 3rd=2.72, 4th=1.88.

-- 
Jason Bleazard  http://drazaelb.blogspot.com  Burlington, Ontario
his:  '95 Dakota Sport 4x4, 3.9 V6, 5spd, Reg. Cab, white
hers: '01 Dakota Sport 4x4, 4.7 V8, Auto, Quad Cab, black



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