I've never had a truck that wasn"t a manual 4wd, so I wanted to know the best way to shift into 4wd. Same as the manual or is there a different way?

 

Completely stopped or max of like 2 to 3 mphs for 4lo, and 4hi is on the fly and not spinning.

 

depending on the speed you are at, it is best to let off the gas, turn the switch to 4 high and wait for the light to stop blinking and away you go. some people come to a complete stop and do it. i would not recommend doing it over 55 mph.

 

Good points... hopefully you arent going faster than 55 when ya need it, haha Yeah letting off the gas is something that will make the transfer quicker and easier on the truck. The blinking is like 10 secs long and is caused because the computers determining that the truck isnt upshifting, accelerating etc...

 

I believe it won't even try to shift if you're above 55 or whatever the speed is, it's computer controlled so it will probably just wait. That said I usually shift it in at slower speeds and let off the gas till it's in.

 

it's actually safe to throw the switch any time you like. The computer will then decide the best time to lock in 4wd.
quick tidbit on my 4wd - I took the truck into the sand and basically got stuck in a small ravine bewteen two uphills. I was able to get out after a while of trying, but my 4w low is done. it won't switch any more into 4w low. 4wd high works fine though.
i assume the actuator is fried

btw the computer waits for all four wheels to be spinning at the exact same speed or stopped before switching into 4wd, that's how it decides.

 

mine always takes a while to shift into 4Lo (it has the dash ****) how long were you waiting for it to engage? cuz you just might have not been waiting long enough

 

Doesn't truck have to be in park or nuetral to go into 4Lo? Mine does. When I first looked at truck before I bought it, 4Hi worked as it should but 4Lo I would wait awhile and it would just blink, moved truck and tried several more times and finaly would go in. Told dealer before I bought it. They must of done something because it goes in fairly quickly now, but only in park or nuetral.

 

yeah i do think it has to be stationary and in a gear like that. i have the 5 speed and just leave it in N to let it switch in. don't press the accelorator or anything, just let it idle

 

Thats what my manual says