What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

4 wheel difficult to use

Snowman1000

Snowman1000

1/2 ton status
Joined
Jan 28, 2007
Posts
521
Reaction score
0
Location
Freeland Michigan
The four wheel on my truck works now but it is hard to get into 4 wheel drive you really got to pull on the lever hard to get it to pop in then it works is this normal or is there some linkage or somthing I can lubricate
 
what kind of t-case is it? Some times it helps just to roll forward a couple inches while your trying to shift it into 4WD.
 
It is whatever chevy put on there automatic transmissions another question how do you tell what trans is in the truck the 300 or the 700 I would check the build sheet but it says that the truck originally came with a manual but it is long gone except for the bracket that holds the clutch is there some easy way to tell, this is a 75 K-5 with an automatic and a 350 V8 please ask more questions if you think that they will help.
 
Snowman1000 said:
It is whatever chevy put on there automatic transmissions another question how do you tell what trans is in the truck the 300 or the 700 I would check the build sheet but it says that the truck originally came with a manual but it is long gone except for the bracket that holds the clutch is there some easy way to tell, this is a 75 K-5 with an automatic and a 350 V8 please ask more questions if you think that they will help.
Click to expand...
My guess would be a th350 trans and a np203 tcase considering the year. But since you said things got switched around I have no idea. I forget the link but there's a site that has great ref pics for figuring out if its a 203, 205, etc. It also say on it btw, there should be alittle tag thing I think on the front near the pass side for the 203 but I dont really remember I'd have to look
 
I looked on the id sheet in the pass side glove glove box and it just says "conventional 4 wheel drive" and the option number but not the id of the case I will try and take a look in the morning but I think that the transfer case is original but the trans definatly got changed there is a peice of sheetmetal caulked over the hole for the old stick shift this case has a place on the side were the spedo cable screws into but I dont think that that helps much.
 
Yeah curiosity got the best of me and I went out and crawled underneath and from the pictures on a couple of sites that I went to it is a NP203 with the spedocable conecting on the drivers side and what is all this buisness with the four wheel lock when I shift my case it only feels like there are 4 positions lo all the way forward then neutral then 2 wheel the 4 hi all the way back but to me it definetly looks like the Np203. and the trans I just identified by the pan it is a TH350 is that the 350 turbo trans? is it a decent transmission? and what would cause it to not want to shift in the cold weather? if you drive it like a semi-automatic and shift it like a manual until the engine warms up a little then it shifts fine?
 
Are you putting the tranny in neutral before you try shifting the t-case?
 
Sounds to me like the oil is in need of changing in the t-case. I had the same problem during cold weather (the only time I would ever use 4wd around here) and when I popped the plug, I found a bunch of water in the case. It would start to freeze up and made shifting into 4hi a real PITA. So check that first. Next, make sure the linkage isnt binding up. Regardless of what t-case you have, if the linkage is loose or bent, you'll have problems shifting.
As for verifying which trans/t-case you have, look up Petersons 4wd and Offroad. They have a section with pictures of the more popular trannies and cases that can be found in different vehicles. Just look under Tech articles and then under the Drivetrain section.
 
this is a 203 t case so there isnt a drain plug just a fill plug on the back face at the top, so I would drain it by loosening the bottom most bolt on the case? what kind of oil do I fill the case with. I am sure that the trans is a th350 becasue I found a site that had the three different shapes of the oil pans on the trans and myne is a square with a corner cut off which matchs the pics I saw of the th350 trans and yes I am puting the trans in neutral before trying to shift the case
 
The np 203 takes motor oil 10w30 or 10w40 oil. top off until oil is coming out of fill hole. The transmission is a th350. It is considered light duty 3 speed automatic, not a bad tranny. The np 203 has 5 positions, lo, lo loc, hi, hi loc, neutral.

In Order by the shifter with lo loc being closest to the dash board.

Lo Loc
Lo
N
Hi
Hi Loc

If the front hubs are locked then the transfercase will work as indicated. If the previous owner put on lockouts and there un locked, the transfercase will not recognize the lo and hi functions therefore you are forced to use lo loc and hi loc, which spins both driveshafts all the time. When on the street with a np 203, i put it in hi loc and unlock the front hubs.
 
203 shifters suck ass, if they get even alittle bit of crap in them, they gum up and become hard to shift. Pull the boot off the shifter from the inside the truck and expost the shifter. It's a little rectangular box looking thing. Spary the shiit out of it with wd-40 or similar while working it back and forth. That should free it up a bit. Theres also an adjustment procedure for 203 shifters. I think it is described in the Hanyes books you can get at Autozone. That might be another thing for you to look into.
 
Kick the hell out of it when you need to and don't look back. You can't be afraid to use some muscle on it.
 
chalet2506 said:
Kick the hell out of it when you need to and don't look back. You can't be afraid to use some muscle on it.
Click to expand...

Hmm, you should NOT have to do that...And it is possible to bend/break shift linkage if you kick the lever. There is a problem if the shifter cant be moved relitively easily by hand.
 
The shifter moves ok it just doesnt want to go into the gear and some refing is required I will pull the boot up I only can find 4 different gear selections none of the loc or anything?
 
Lubed up the linkage and the 4 wheel works but I still cant seem to find the extra loc deals the front end has a set of spicer manual locking hubs would that change anything?
 
If you have 4 selections plus Neutral, thats a np 203. If you have 3 selections plus neutral, you have a np 205. Either way you look at it, the shifters are hard to shift and the np 205 is the hardest to get out of 4 lo.

If you have the np 205, it goes like this

4lo
N
2hi
4hi

Id rebuild the shifter first and see whats stopping the linkage. The linkage jam is a common problem on the np203. Good luck
 
I am 100 percent sure that it is a np203 I found the data plate and it says new process 203 is this how the gears go now after a good squirting of liduid wrench the lever move pretty easily
4lo loc
4lo
n
2hi
4hi
 
MAN I had a 203 in my last truck, I could NOT get it into Low Loc.

I even tried stepping on it, and kicking it, and eveything. And this was AFTER I used a whole 2 litre jug of WD40 on it.....

Oh and by the way, WD40 bites @ss. I once tried to get a stuck brake union off, and I wrapped it in Kleenex, and soaked it every hour on the hour while at work, and it didn't come off. Pick up some LPS penatrating fluid, and it cut through in 20 minutes. Don't waste your time, or money on that stuff.

It's a crappy Lubricant, and a crappy penatrant.
 
I think that it freed up enough now I just dont know the order for the transfer case my tranfercase only has the gear selector of an np205 with just 4lo n two and 4 hi not the extra stuff.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom