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84 sports, single range, just the lift-to-engage lever.

Very recently (the last 3 times i've had it in 4wd, out of many years of fun) the 4wd lever has almost refused to go down...

I'm used to being able to easily drop it in or out of 4wd either at complete standstill or under no strain in 1st, 2nd or 3rd (ie accelerate a bit, then easy slow clutch in, lever down, clutch out) ... and I'm under the impression from old forgotten memory that you can drop it in or out at anything up to 70k

Currently no matter how i jiggle the car, the gears, the clutch... it requires a fair amount of strength (leaning on the lever with body-weight) and it will finally drop with a CLUNK that rattles the car.

Doesn't sound good at all in terms of doing that more often.

Any ideas?

thanks,
Dave

Hmmm.... usually that is the result of the running gear binding up from driving in 4wd on a solid road.... is it doing it every single time.... even when cruising under 40km/hr on a straight road poping it in and out?

Another thing... i know with the L series gear boxes there is actuially a bolt on the side of the gear box... when u remove the bolt there is a spring under it and a ball bearing... this set up determins the pressure required to push the 4wd lever up and down. Not sure if its the same on ea81 boxes but that could be a problem spot.

Dave

yeah i'm a bit concerned because I've never put it in 4wd unless i'm on a fair bit of gravel or sand so the wheels can slip relative to each other. Most recent time was cruising along the 'exit' track from where i'd been, at about 20k or less in 2nd gear, no strain, trying a few times to 'ease' it down and then giving up and just kinda forcing it.

No idea about the bolt, i'll have a look in my gregory's.. (save me scrambling under the car)

mine was doin the same thing ever since i got it but i ended up figuring out a way that it wasnt so bad..cant remember it now tho
its been a while since ive had to use it (car hasnt moved far for awhile now)
mine is a dual range aswell if it isnt the same type lever as wt you have

mine has also done this a few times (since i will be gettin a 5 speed soon)
i have just kept on puttin all my weight on the shifter to get it bak into 2wd

this is probably a very very bad idea and i do not recomend u do that

tristan

All the above examples are from binding in the 4wd system. The shuddering you felt through the car when the lever finally dis-engaged 4wd was the stress in the system being released.
Best way to try and ease this is turn in one direction sharp and try to dis-engage 4wd, if it doesn't happen and you can feel more binding, try in the other direction. It works for me. I've had times in my L where i couldn't get it out of 4wd cos the surface i was on was harder than expected and i'd stopped moving.
Odd sized wheel diametres will not help you drop back into 2wd. Using that much weight to get back into 2wd can't be good for the gearselector/joints and possilbly the dog teeth in the gearbox over a long period of time.
One of my mates only uses 4wd in his subi when 2wd doesn't do it - you'd be surprised how far he can get before he needs 4wd.

Hope this helps, sorry about the long post.

Cheers

If it wont go down easily driving forward, do it in reverse...
Daza.

Have had this with both the 4sp and 5 sp when not on the slipperiest of roads. I get one side of roadwheels off road to induce some real slip and Bob's yeruncle.

another thing i found is not only tyre size but brand. if you mix brands of same "size" I have seen as much as 19mm height difference between them. No logic to this at all

thanks bennie and daza, i'll try reverse / turning / combo next time i need to.. and yeah i'm already the type that pretty much gets my car bogged before i'll put in in 4wd, so having this problem has only made me more reluctant to do so.

About to try fitting 14s to it so will see if that fixes up the binding problem or not.

cooloothin wrote:About to try fitting 14s to it so will see if that fixes up the binding problem or not.

if the binding problem you talk about is with the different tyre sizes then having 4 of the same size will slow the binding (depending on surface type, corners in one direction etc). When in 4wd that locks the centre diff or engages the rear end you will always experience binding. Just want to make it clear that unless you have a Liberty or above models, you will experience binding.

Cheers

loud and clear Bennie.

i'm just hoping that either the tyres (or taking it to a mechanic) will fix up this sticky lever problem (which is probably related to the binding) because as i said up the top... i've had the car a long time and never had trouble before.

What's the oil level/condition in the gearbox like? This may have some effect on the resistance in the 4wd lever. Just a thought since you said you've had the car for a long time...

Cheers

should be good since REPCO's just had the car for a long period fixing up anything and everything... currently owe them over 400

had a leak apparently around the gear selector which they tidied up.
I told the bloke i was contemplating driving to the east coast and wanted her in tip-top shape.

thanks for the advice though, i'll add that to the list in my head in case i do end up taking her back to repco...

It's just bind. Drive a little - probably even in a straight line will work. As mentioned before, sometimes stopping or going in reverse helps as well. I suggest using the clutch also as even though it is not required it will help release some of the bind. Oh, the front wheels need to be straight when you engage or disengage too.

http://www.geocities.com/subarushrine/turning.html

thanks for the help all... finally twigged that there's about 15mm height difference between the fronts and backs at the moment

so while that makes no difference at all to normal driving (and my brain was stuck on the idea that i'd sorted whether odd tyres were ok, because both fronts were the same size) ... obviously it makes a difference when in 4wd.

yet another reason to make the effort to get the new 14's to fit.

UPDATE: solved... musta been the dodgy diameters of the old wheels. Just went for the first drive in the new 14"s and getting into and out of 4wd was as smooth as my dad's bald spot.

Thanks for the advice though everyone, much appreciated. I will keep things like oil levels and turning circles in mind in case it ever gives me grief again.

Dave

but that doest help other ppl lol..my tyres are still all the same
185/65 R13s and the last tiems i was puttin it in n out of 4wd was on a limestone driveway (namely mine lol) and all i remember was that it was stiff
but if i get it running in the next week ill try out everythign and suss out wt works for me

Matatak wrote:but that doest help other ppl lol..my tyres are still all the same
185/65 R13s and the last tiems i was puttin it in n out of 4wd was on a limestone driveway

This would be the problem, you need to be on a surface that is loose. If your driving in 4wd on a limestone/bitumen/cement driveway your going to have problems getting out of 4wd. If your just sitting stationary on a limestone driveway you should have no problems selecting 4wd hi/lo and back to 2wd.

Cheers

mines always stiff as. but i find if i slowly pull it up then push it down softly it disengages quite nicely...