HammerZ71
01-24-2012, 01:03 PM
This would pertain to anyone with the floor mounted shift lever (manual transfer case).
I searched high and low when I bought my truck new off the lot for a Laramie (I wanted the leather seats) with a good, old fashioned manual transfer case. Was like the proverbial needle in the haystack as when you step up in trim, they liked to put the electronic (shift knob on the dash) transfer case in.
I didn't want to ever have to deal with vacuum leaks, bad shift solenoids or a motor that could fry when I was on the trail.
Ended up my dealer found ONE and brought it in for me.
Reliability is enhanced due to the fact that there is a simple linkage rod that connects the shifter to an arm on the transfer case.
Now for the bad:
The rod is connected at both ends by simple rubber bushings (grommets) that hold the rod in place. Pretty common on manual transfer cases actually. The problem is that over time, exposure to the elements and if you're like me and get them wet, they are prone to dry-rotting and cracking over time.
I recently was fishing the intercoastal for redfish on some pretty gnarly trails that take you way in the back of a local lagoon. Great redfish spot as the area is VERY hard to get back to.
Shifted into 4WD fine, got back to do my fishing, landed a couple of nice reds, mostly over the slot limit, but did have a nice 26" red to take home to filet. As is common, I got hit with a late afternoon thunderstorm that came out of nowhere and was quite severe. Trip cut short, I packed up and headed home. When I reached the paved road (about 3 miles) I went to shift back to 2WD and my shift lever had NO resistance. You could power flick it all the way up with your finger and it would just fall all the way to the bottom (rear).
So, no way to shift to 2WD. Because of the severity of the storm, investigation of the problem was not possible, so I drove home in 4WD, just taking it easy on turns.
Next morning, when it was light and the sky was clear I climbed under to investigate and found my ENTIRE linkage arm was GONE! Obviously it was there when I ventured off-road and shifted into 4WD, so I decided to grab my g/f and drive up to the trails to look. I then pushed the shift arm of the transfer case back to 2WD position while I was under there (also a tip in case 4WD fails to engage when you need it - you can always climb underneath and push the arm into position on a manual transfer case).
I brought up a pick of the linkage I found online to show her what to look for. Luckily, not 2 miles from my house in the middle of road she says "is that it" and sure enough, there it was. Must have been hanging on by one of the bushings till I got almost home.
Upon inspection, what was left of the bushings were dry-rotted and in pieces.
Because I was able to find my linkage arm, I only had to purchase two bushings from the dealer for $8 each (still crazy high for a little rubber grommet IMO).
All of five minutes to press the unit back on and it works perfectly. I then decided to attach a tether to my linkage arm in case it ever should decide to fall off again. I used a simple piece of 130 lb. test PowerPro braided fishing line, but I intend to find me a small link chain to replace it at some point.
Now the interesting thing here is that the parts guy at the dealership wanted to sell me the entire assembly for like $300 - that included the floor shifter, linkage arm and bushings. Luckily for me, I have a moderator on the forum where I am an admin who is a Mopar tech at a dealership and he was able to furnish me with the part numbers for just the bushings and the fact that I was able to find the linkage arm!
Moral to this story: Climb under your truck and periodically check the condition of the bushings. It's easy enough to do at every oil change time. I'd go ahead and run some kind of simple lanyard to the linkage arm too while under there - just in case. Also wouldn't be a bad idea to pick up a couple of the bushings just to have on hand. With the 4th Gens going to ALL electronic transfer cases I can see these bushings going into short supply in the future. Worth the $16 for a couple of spares IMO.
The part number for the bushings is: 68078974-AA
Here is a pic of the linkage on a manual transfer case:
http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/6458/gedc0163.jpg
and my new bushings with my "found" linkage just before I re-installed it:
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll301/hammerz71/0912011134.jpg
My linkage arm must have been run over while it layed on the road for about 14 hours because it was a little bent, but all I had to do was clamp it in a vise to straighten it back out.
Admins or Mods: It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to link to this in 2nd Gen Ram, Dak & Durango sections as their manual transfer cases operate the same way...
I searched high and low when I bought my truck new off the lot for a Laramie (I wanted the leather seats) with a good, old fashioned manual transfer case. Was like the proverbial needle in the haystack as when you step up in trim, they liked to put the electronic (shift knob on the dash) transfer case in.
I didn't want to ever have to deal with vacuum leaks, bad shift solenoids or a motor that could fry when I was on the trail.
Ended up my dealer found ONE and brought it in for me.
Reliability is enhanced due to the fact that there is a simple linkage rod that connects the shifter to an arm on the transfer case.
Now for the bad:
The rod is connected at both ends by simple rubber bushings (grommets) that hold the rod in place. Pretty common on manual transfer cases actually. The problem is that over time, exposure to the elements and if you're like me and get them wet, they are prone to dry-rotting and cracking over time.
I recently was fishing the intercoastal for redfish on some pretty gnarly trails that take you way in the back of a local lagoon. Great redfish spot as the area is VERY hard to get back to.
Shifted into 4WD fine, got back to do my fishing, landed a couple of nice reds, mostly over the slot limit, but did have a nice 26" red to take home to filet. As is common, I got hit with a late afternoon thunderstorm that came out of nowhere and was quite severe. Trip cut short, I packed up and headed home. When I reached the paved road (about 3 miles) I went to shift back to 2WD and my shift lever had NO resistance. You could power flick it all the way up with your finger and it would just fall all the way to the bottom (rear).
So, no way to shift to 2WD. Because of the severity of the storm, investigation of the problem was not possible, so I drove home in 4WD, just taking it easy on turns.
Next morning, when it was light and the sky was clear I climbed under to investigate and found my ENTIRE linkage arm was GONE! Obviously it was there when I ventured off-road and shifted into 4WD, so I decided to grab my g/f and drive up to the trails to look. I then pushed the shift arm of the transfer case back to 2WD position while I was under there (also a tip in case 4WD fails to engage when you need it - you can always climb underneath and push the arm into position on a manual transfer case).
I brought up a pick of the linkage I found online to show her what to look for. Luckily, not 2 miles from my house in the middle of road she says "is that it" and sure enough, there it was. Must have been hanging on by one of the bushings till I got almost home.
Upon inspection, what was left of the bushings were dry-rotted and in pieces.
Because I was able to find my linkage arm, I only had to purchase two bushings from the dealer for $8 each (still crazy high for a little rubber grommet IMO).
All of five minutes to press the unit back on and it works perfectly. I then decided to attach a tether to my linkage arm in case it ever should decide to fall off again. I used a simple piece of 130 lb. test PowerPro braided fishing line, but I intend to find me a small link chain to replace it at some point.
Now the interesting thing here is that the parts guy at the dealership wanted to sell me the entire assembly for like $300 - that included the floor shifter, linkage arm and bushings. Luckily for me, I have a moderator on the forum where I am an admin who is a Mopar tech at a dealership and he was able to furnish me with the part numbers for just the bushings and the fact that I was able to find the linkage arm!
Moral to this story: Climb under your truck and periodically check the condition of the bushings. It's easy enough to do at every oil change time. I'd go ahead and run some kind of simple lanyard to the linkage arm too while under there - just in case. Also wouldn't be a bad idea to pick up a couple of the bushings just to have on hand. With the 4th Gens going to ALL electronic transfer cases I can see these bushings going into short supply in the future. Worth the $16 for a couple of spares IMO.
The part number for the bushings is: 68078974-AA
Here is a pic of the linkage on a manual transfer case:
http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/6458/gedc0163.jpg
and my new bushings with my "found" linkage just before I re-installed it:
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll301/hammerz71/0912011134.jpg
My linkage arm must have been run over while it layed on the road for about 14 hours because it was a little bent, but all I had to do was clamp it in a vise to straighten it back out.
Admins or Mods: It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to link to this in 2nd Gen Ram, Dak & Durango sections as their manual transfer cases operate the same way...