Well just driving along the other day and had the back seat loaded up with our dogs, so we had our darling 3 year old daughter in the front seat, in the middle between myself and wifey.

Well she decided to kick the 4 wheel drive shifter....I didn't notice it, my wife did..I did hear a weird pinging type sound. So I look at shifter, it just freely moves back and forth, all the way...like its totally unhooked or something. No going into any gear...

I've started to remove the cover and plate for the shifter from inside the cab..its so hot here in SW Florida I have not gotten very far.

Has anyone heard of this problem before? The truck drives fine in 2 WD....so not sure if its something I have to access from under the truck, or from inside the cab or did she royally screw something up good?

2003 Ram 1500 4x4 4.7

 

This happens quite a bit, and it's nothing to worry about. The linkage came out. Pretty easy fix. Mine is free-floating right now, as a matter of fact. I have the linkage in the center console, just haven't been able to get it up on a lift to fix it (hoping to do it this week). Check out the thread in the DIY on how to permanently remedy the issue. Look underneath and see if it is still there, or if the whole linkage is missing. If the bar is still there, you may just need new bushings, and pop it back in. I can't get my hands up in there, so I think I need to drop the skid plate. Not hard, just hard to do with the truck on the ground for me, personally.

 

oh ok, thanks so much. I wonder if mine is gone since my wife and I heard a pinging sound after she kicked it...will look it up though!!

 

Could be. Actually, probably most likely is. Those bushings tend to disintegrate over time, for some reason, and then the whole arm falls out. The parts are about $40 +/-. If you buy a kit online, just make sure that it comes with the bushings. I'll warn you, though: those things are a royal PITA to get in. You WILL expand your vocabulary (and your kids' vocabulary, if they are anywhere near you at the time) trying to get those things in there. I'd honestly recommend just using Kasper's method (it had been done previously, as well, if you search around on here -- but he has a really good, photo-laden write up).

I just replaced mine today, actually, when I rotated my tires. A "quick job" turned into 3 hours on the lift...

 

Chet, you mean the DIY writeup where the guy buys parts from Lowes and uses turnbuckles? And no matter its still a PITA? I dont' have a lift, just jackstands and a creeper and a bad back, am I in for a day? lol.....

Luckily we don't live in Md anymore, so I dont' have to deal with snow, but still like having my 4x4 working.

 

The DIY write up with the turnbuckle (you really only need one, Kasper likes to overdo things ) is the way to go and shouldn't be that difficult. Replacing the stock arm and bushings, however, can be a royal pain. You will need both hands to get the bushings in the holes, as well as some sort of little prod to push the edges through. Just be prepared for that aspect of it, and you should be fine. It's not terribly expensive fix, but if you look at the bushing and say, "Oh, how hard can this honestly be...?", you will be in for a frustrating time. If you go in knowing that it's going to be an adventure to get those bushings through, you should do alright. You'll be moving your hands and arms all around up by the exhaust, so make sure that your truck is sitting and cool, obviously.

 

Gotcha bud, picked up all the parts today at Lowes...simple as pie with your most excellent writeup....will update you on my progress.

 

https://dodgeforum.com/forum/3rd-gen...ml#post3287377

I'm sure you already found the write up but glad I could be of assistance.

Chet, there's only one way to do things, and that's over doing them

 

I did Kasper but thanks for the direction that way..it was most helpful...I like your pic of using two but I already bought the set up for one.....

 

So, did you attempt the fix yet?