Ok, ive tried asking this already but im not gettin any posts for help or advise offerings. My 4wd was not working. I was told it was the actuator. I put in a new one and the 4wd worked.! yayyyy. well now that the driveway is completely glare ice..i need the 4wd, and whateya know...the 4wd isnt working. the light still comes on...the front driveshaft engages... Why isnt it engaging? the actuator bad after 3 uses? uuuuuggghh this is a pain in the a$$

 

hmm, I dont think so. Have you checked the vacuum lines and the electrical plug to make sure they didnt come loose at all?

 

thanks for at least one reply burb. yea i checked both and both were as they should be....tried messing with it some more and still no go on the 4wd. what could be wrong with the hubs? works one minute...the next..doesnt. stumped....

 

hey mac did you talk in a discussion about this earlier?
things to check include that you have the vaccum lines on correct, that when you have it in 4x4 you have vaccum at the right port on the actuator, is the actuator actually moving, the pads on the fork and the fork is not bent, and that the shaft inside of the housing does not have the bushing worn out so the shafts do not fully align allowing the collar to slide from shaft to shaft check these things and let me know. does the light come on when it works? if it does i presume it is not coming on now right? just trying to get some more info willing to help let me know more thanks

 

Try checking your vacuum level. All the hardware could be fine but if the vacuum is lacking, the system might respond as you described. Your climate controls work off the same vacuum. Arethey working ok? Hope this helps. Maybe someone knows what the vacuum level should be.

 

they usually produce appx 15 inches or better of vaccum good thought though about the defrost controls if they work from defrost to vent and such though

 

YOUR C-CLIPS FELL OFF!!! the acuator is working and turning on the light....But the fork is not moving, thats why it worked before and not now, usually when rookies (no offense) replace the actuator, they accidentally spread the c-clips, when reinstalled they work themselves off. if the light is working and the 4x4 is not then one of the c clips fell off. check it out and let us know

 

lol 6inarow, none taken. i appreciate the advice. you can bet ill be pulling that out again and checking that. In my defense though, im 19 and this is my 7th car/truck. Ive done a "mild" resto on 2 of those. (a 66 mustang and a 68 chevy C-10). Idk if thats worth anything, but i will admit this is my first dodge/solid axle/diesel. That would be awesome if it was simple like the c-clips. THANK YOU GUYS!

 

Get us some info and pics up of this beast hu...

 

For what its worth, before my 2wd ram I had a '99 powerstroke 4x4. I had problems with the auto hubs, as did almost everyone. I would turn the switch, the light would lite up indicating it was in 4wd, but actually wasn't. Problem was (as with most ford auto hubs) that the hubs would carrode together and not move. I could move these from auto to lock (manual lock) but needed pliers to do it. Never cared for autolock hubs and switched to full manual hubs. Fixed this with my ram by going 2wd. Let us know what you found.