4WD just went out this morning on my 1999 Ram 1500. Crawled under the vehicle and sure enough, the vacuum tubes were both disconnected! Plugged them back in, 4WD engaged and light came on. Would have never guessed! Thanks!!!
SUPER JOB Bud. I just lost my 4x4 yesterday all of a sudden when I needed it. Light not lighting-up, so I will be checking it out and you Helped a lot. Thank you. ,,,,,
Very clear overview of the system. Between this video and one of the others on RU-vid showing how to change the actuator, I have a very clear understanding of the system and I'm confident I'll get my brother in laws Cummins fixed easily.
Thanks a lot man.you really saved me alot of money. My 4wd stopped working .after looking at your video I checked the lines they had been pulled loose somehow.Thanks.
Excellent way to explain the process of how the vacuum works,my 98 had a failed actuator and a broken part where the vacuum line attached.Once replaced all was fixed and a great added bonus was I had a nasty rough idle that was totally unpredictable and would get so bad the truck would stop running while setting still and after I replaced the actuator and put everything on tight I no longer have the first miss or bad idle it runs perfectly now,and before this I replaced all the top throttle body sensors and it did no good at all except Peace of mind.I fully expect my gas mpg to improve now before this 10 mpg was all I could hope for.
Great video. Thank you. However, the 4x4 light does come on the dash, but the front wheels do NOT turn. I can tell this because there is snow or gravel sprayed onto the wheel well. Any suggestions. Thank you. Tony
I have a few vacuum problems with my 1996 dodge ram 4x4 V-10. I have one line that is not connected, located on the driver side front of the engine. The line is coming up thru a conduit by the headlight and it is laying next to the valve cover. I can't locate where that line plugs in. I also don't have use of the 4 wheel drive or of the cruise control. It sounds like a relay switch.
What about a situation where my truck is slipping out of 2wd, 4wd works fine. Once I’m under load in 2wd it just barely starts to grind, I replaced all my hoses to the switch but am lost
Hello your great at Wrenching and your videos are very helpful precise when I’m having trouble with today is that my overdrive keeps kicking in and out when I’m going down the highway and 4x4isn’t working either but I was wondering were exactly does it go. I have a vent hose looks like on the side of my transfer case with a big hose on it and then I have a block deck that goes into the top of the transfer case with four hoses coming up off of it what I’m wondering is white order these for thank you runs the white the green the red and the black go into that blocked it goes on to the top of my transfer case or if it even matters and I’m assuming the short big holes is a ventIf you could hit me back she would like to get this straightened out thanks and keep up the good work
I really appreciate your video, my 98 Dodge Ram 1500 4x4 light switch keeps flashing on and off. The truck is not on 4x4 while driving down the road. I replaced it with an $8 light switch. There is another switch that is $20 at the auto parts store. Probably should have bought the $20 part instead of the cheap one. The 4x4 light switch turns on after I place the truck in 4x4 and turns off. While driving on the road the 4x4 light flashes on 2H. The $8 switch may not have good contact. Any feedback will be greatly appreciated.
I've had the Actuator motor go bad, switch In the transfer case go bad, and a leak ontop of the vacuum switch. All in the same year lol. That was 4yrs ago, Its really a good system when it works
I hear you, I've been fortunate enough to have only had vacuum leaks and one bent CAD actuator arm. Some people dump the whole setup and just use a posi-lock cable, can't blame them, but I really enjoy the automatic engagement. I'm also not the only one that drives the truck, so last thing I need is for someone pull the cable while spinning lol.
Wow, really? I've never used one, but have heard "glowing reviews" from multiple people. I assumed they had some form of spring mechanism to counter the splines aligning issue. I guess not. One advantage they do have though is easy 2wd low. Because of that I may end up installing one on the buddies truck in the video, though it will more than likely be my own home brew version.
CumminsWorks I've never understood why people shell out so much money to replace a system that works. maybe they were so happy because they weren't smart enough to diagnose a simple vacuum system.
I think there are two main groups of people that go with the posi-lock system. Ones the people that buy 4x4 trucks for the looks, so when it fails, they go with the posi-lock so they don't have to troubleshoot the problem, and it's fairly reliable, so they won't really have to worry about it any more, they hardly use 4x4 anyway so practicality doesn't matter. Then there's the backwoods group, who like cheap mechanical reliability, and 2wd-low. I know multiple people in this latter group, and they're all happy with it. Only complaint is the cable transferring noise into the cab, which the first group generally doesn't really care about and probably doesn't even notice over their dual 5" stacks. lol You do bring up a good point though, the system seems complicated but is actually very simple to troubleshoot once you know how it all works, at some point I should make a full troubleshooting video guide.
How they question I put my truck in to neutral and I went to go put in for low in I started hearing grinding sounds for a back right off do you know why that is happening I have the exact 1999 Dodge 1500
I'm new to 4x4 truckd, just got a 99 ram 1500, the vac system is gone, long story short, I hit my first mud hole and couldn't get into 4x4, called the buddy that sold it to me and he showed me that I have to press the red " actuator " button n push in, then back up 5 to 10 feet and then it locks, truck has so many mods to list but does that sound like a vac delete and some crazy locker system? I just wanna het stuck in 2 wheel then hit 4x4, so do I have to pull a vac system from a junkyard or are there after market things I could buy n install to get that push button no backing up b.s. thing it's got now? Advice and or links to forums would be nice if anyone has any
1995 dodge that single vac. line on the actuator where does the other end plug into I have a vac. line under the hood that is plugged just bought truck no 4 wheel drive looke at the actuator every thing un plugged plus that connection on the left has a large bolt screwed into it any ideas
I really need to know where those vacuum lines lead to. Both the grey and green are broken on my truck but I can’t for the life of me find where up the line it leads to.
I have a 2008 dodge ram where the 4 wheel drive kicks in all by itself when every it pleases. Replaced everything but front axel actuator. Can some one please tell me what's going on with it?
Curious, if the switch on top of the T-case is bad, will that keep the 4wd from engaging, or will that just keep the light from lighting up in the dash? No apparrant leaks so wondering if I should replace that switch or look towards the actuator on the housing
It will do both, prevent the light from coming on and prevent 4x4 from working. Best bet is to check the vacuum and make sure it's being switched. If not, the actuator rod may be bent which is somewhat common which causes it to not engage.
I have a 2001 dodge diesel...i have 24 lbs of vacuum...but can only get air to my front vents when 4 wheel drive is engaged.....when I kick out the 4 wheel drive only air through my defrost vent
My guess would be that there is a large leak on the 2wd side of the circuit. So when 2wd is engaged it causes a leak. try doing a leak down test in both 4wd and 2wd with the engine not running. Best of luck to you mate.
Light was out. The break on the black line right at the rubber connector was cracked. I used Goop to seal it. Oh, women's work is never done! That filthy dash.
Hey. My 2001 Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins HO is stuck in 4x4 and I tried shifting the lever underneath Becuase my linkage rod disconnected. When I tried shifting it back to 2h it was. Really hard ?? What should I do
Did you figure out the problem on this? Somewhere I thought I saw you comment saying you did, but I can't find that comment now. Obviously checking the oil would be a good place to start, after that you really have to tear into it to find out much more. Luckily they're very simple to go through.
Yes sir. There's also a magnet near the drain plug, but I don't remember how easy it is to get at off the top of my head. It may be the case you have to pull the T-case apart to get to it.
DUDE! IF I'D HAVE KNOWN THIS IS WHAT HE MEANT WHEN HE SAID VACUUM TUBE WAS ALL THE 4 BY4 NEEDED ID HAVE CHECKED INTO FIXING SOONER. only thing is when i replaced the trsnsfer case nothing was hooked to it. Other than drive shafts. No wires or vacuum lines nothing....
Something was smoking in the right front tire area. Hard to see while driving. 1st I thought brakes but there were no scorch marks on the rotor or pads and the caliber was easy to come off.Then I thought it was hub bearing, replaced it and the axle was still very hard to turn. Is this normal? Or can the truck be stuck in 4 wheel drive (which ain't good) or is this side (pass side) suppose to be hard to spin? The other axle (driver side) spins freely. HELP my truck has fallen and I'm walking. Thanks for the great video!
What year of truck is this on? On a 94-02, the passengers side should be just as easy if not easier to spin than the drivers side. Just to be sure, did you try spinning the axle with the brakes removed to insure no dragging? By the sounds of it, you basically eliminated the possibilities on the outside of the axle, For me, next thing I would do is pull the front diff cover off. You could very possibly have lost a bearing. You should be able to tell fairly easily by taking a quick look at everything, and inspecting the old oil that came out. Best of luck man, I hope you get it figured out!
97 Dodge Ram 1500 5.9 eng. Yes with no rotor on it still very stiff to spin. As I said I sure thought it was the hub bearing and it wasn't. I will try taking the diff plate off and I am guessing it would be easy to tell if that is my problem? Thanks for your help.
So $525 less in my pocket and the mech replaced the seal and the actuator (4 wheel drive works again) and did a visual inspection of the differential and replaced the fluids and the son of a gun is still hard to spin.But it drives down the road with no noise or grinding. Thoughts?
Geez man, I'm not sure. I would have thought you got everything. How hard is it to spin? Can you spin the tire without the other tire or front drive shaft spinning? If so, the axle has to be unlocked, so the drag must be on the outside. You could try driving it a ways while trying not to use the brakes, and then checking to see how warm everything is. Bearing, brake disk, u-joint, ect. You can either go by feel, or tractor supply typically has cheap little IR temp guns for less than $15. I wish you the best of luck man, I hope you can nail the problem down.
Great video. Thank you. However, the 4x4 light comes on the dash, but the front wheels do NOT. I tell this because there is snow or gravel sprayed onto the wheel well. Any suggestions. Thank you. Tony
After driving it around in 4x4 for a little bit, jack up one front tire and try to spin it. If it spins, check if the front driveshaft is spinning as well. That will tell you if it's the axle or the T-case causing the issue.
