Hey all, I posted this last year about this time on a bunch of sites/pages but never got around to posting it here and actually wound up driving a different truck when it snowed because of this issue. Unfortunately that's not an option this year so I actually have to "fix" this somehow, so here goes...

The previous owner of my 92 Dakota 4x4 had the transmission replaced and ALL of the vacuum lines for the 4x4 were melted in several places on the exhaust upon re-installation. The rest of them I ripped off and capped because it had horrible vacuum leaks everywhere under the truck and under the hood. I am also aware of how problematic the CAD units are on the full size trucks and unsure if this one even works to begin with. So my plan was to just set it up on a cable actuator to manually engage the shift collar/fork thing in the front end with a long cable in the cab. I've done them on Dana 44's and whatever the front end stock YJ's had back in the day but I can't find one anywhere or any info on a kit for the 7.25" front end. I'm guessing there's no aftermarket support because it was only run for a short amount of time before they switched it over. I am definitely opposed to fixing it the factory way because of the cost of parts and aggravation involved. Plus I think it's absolutely ridiculous to engage an axle shaft from vacuum lines to begin with, but that's just my opinion. So here are the options I've come up with:

1.) Finding a kit that works or is possible to make work/fabricate to put the stock or aftermarket shift fork on a cable to engage the front end. (this is obviously the preferred method I'm looking for)

2.) Test the CAD actuator and hope that it works, then rig up some vacuum lines under the hood or an electric vacuum pump to manually engage the axle every time I need 4x4 (a possibility but seems like it's defeating the purpose of full manual control)

3.) weld the damn CAD actuator in place like I have done on the D 44's after finding out it doesn't work and make it permanently engaged. (problem with this is the truck gets run extremely hard and at high rates of speed on dry pavement with an already questionable front end)

4.) buy another truck and sell this one before winter time. Anybody wanna buy a 92 Dakota???

In all seriousness though, I can't be the only person who has wanted to do this in the history of 87-96 Dodge Dakotas so I'm hoping somebody can provide a little insight. I got a feeling that the D 44 or a Jeep setup might be able to be modified but I don't have the $150 a piece to up front in order to get my hands on them. Maybe a link with really good pics and dimensions could convince me, but I can't just take a shot in the dark at something that might not work. As usual, any help is very much appreciated. Thanks for looking guys

 

how about this: it would be similar to the new trucks were the front is locked and Tcase is diconnect? since its not a locked front diff is basically open diff(one tire with no traction spins) ... then this way the disconnect would just be the TCase Shifter
basically it would be no difference then older vehicles either that run around with front hubs locked..

remove the CAD, then removed the "E" clip that locates the shift fork on the shaft. Slide the shift fork over ,without the shaft moving... and put the clip back in. That locks the shift fork over in the engaged position. When you reinstall the CAD, move the collar over by hand, then install the CAD. This will keep the axle locked in at all times.

Basically make it a live axle like my Jeep TJ is that has no disconnect.... and i hit drive highway alot.. well when i got tailwind

i know this is similar to your welding part.. but atleast for summer you can remove if you like or leave it locked LOL

 

That's a possibility as well. I wasn't entirely blown away with the fork flip on the full size CAD 44 though because of the way both shafts are tapered at the end of the splines, it only really engages by like a full 1/4" not including the tapered part. (Definitely not up to my standards for a plow rig in New England) Where as if you weld the fork all the way over, it is at least double that coverage and can never break an E-clip to disengage.

I suppose worst case scenario, I could always find a junkyard CAD to weld, keep my stock one and just swap them out if I ever need to disengage the front. A friend of mine suggested making a bracket that locks on the housing itself and just crawling under there to engage the 4x4 but again, that seems kind of ridiculous and if the splines aren't perfectly lined up, then you would need to rock it back and forth a bit to engage.

My biggest issue is that bushing that holds the front axle in is completely gone on the driver's side as well as my driver's side Torsion bar has slipped in the key to make matters worse. So with cranked T-bars and bigger tires they rub bad on tight turns as it is. With a perma-locked front end I can only imagine it's going to be worse.

Plus the other benefit of a cable locking actuator is it essentially gives you 2 low. Meaning if you put the transfer case in 4 low and unlock the front end, you have low gearing to the rear and no bump or turning issues to bind up the front end in tight spots, like on a customers lawn for instance. Another reason I'm still set on the cable route at the moment

 

i understand the 2low... this is why ive been debating on a locking hub conversion for my jeepTJ cause of the live axle , let alone if i break something i can disengage the front so diff dosent spin if i cant make it out in 2wd i can winchmyself.. so no big deal, atleast i would make it home....

Live Axle i doubt would put much strain since it seems alot of vehicles have gone like this..

Torsion slipped? you got bigger issues to worry about since the torsion has a hexagon shape.. (stop sign) and trust me if it slipped.. its toast and would me soemthign severly wrong... the torsion bars might just be worn out kind alike coilsring get weak..

try torsion mod? remove torsion key and weld strips ontop of it i added 1 inch to top of mine, and got 3.5 inches of lift(safely with proper alignment) on my 92..

i read a pile about the cable hook up and it is possible to mod it... found them for like 50 bucks a kit for D44's might be worth the cash to try

 

yea, the "stop sign shaped" part of the torsion bar is spun into the flat parts of the torsion key. It's holding in place, but it just isn't letting the truck sit right now and I'm afraid that driving it like that for 8K miles or so has probably done the bar in structurally, at least to the point where I don't feel safe re-using it if I was to unload the key and try to get it back in position. So, it is what it is for now.

But back to the more important matter at hand here lol. You said you read up on someone modifying a 44 kit relatively cheap?? I scoured the internet off and on for the past year and have yet to turn up anything remotely close other than cable lockers for the front diff which surprisingly have some decent aftermarket support, but I got nothing for the actuator itself. Also, the Jeep kits I found were like between $110-175 each online. $50 would be well worth the risk. Do you have any links to a page or writeup by any chance??

 

edit.. nevermind... was just the fork for 40 bucks

 

4x4 Posi-lok

They don't have one for your application, so you'd need to modify one and I don't know what they cost. But just in case you haven't seen this particular one yet.