Grinding going into 4L

[noloc45]

So I've been with my jeep for about 3 years now.

From time to time when shifting to 4L it gets tough and it causes a grinding noise like when shifting manually incorrectly.

I have the auto transmission. I put it into neutral and try shifting down and one day it'll shift down fine and another day it'll grind. Whether I'm moving slowly or stopped.

Can't quite figure out what I'm doing wrong. And sometimes it's embarrassing when I have people with me lolol

But really I'd like to figure out what I'm doing wrong because I'm obviously doing it correctly half or most of the time.

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[zgrw]

To best of my knowledge, some grinding noise while going into 4low is normal.

 

[JeepU4IA]

Shifting into 4 low works best when you're rolling at 2 or 3 miles per hour. While your transmission is in neutral, let go of the brake and let the Jeep roll if it's safe and apply firm steady pressure on the tranfer case lever. It should pop into 4 low without grinding when the gears align. If you're on a flat surface it's okay to be in drive to let the Jeep roll a bit. In the end a little grinding is no big deal.

 

[GATORB8]

Shifting into 4 low works best when you're rolling at 2 or 3 miles per hour. While your transmission is in neutral, let go of the brake and let the Jeep roll if it's safe and apply firm steady pressure on the tranfer case lever. It should pop into 4 low without grinding when the gears align. If you're on a flat surface it's okay to be in drive to let the Jeep roll a bit. In the end a little grinding is no big deal.

X2
Rolling is actually the instruction in the manual.

 

[noloc45]

Thanks all.

I guess I just have to do it more often and figure it out. Rolling on some trails isn't always easy though lol

 

[J0E]

I guess I just have to do it more often and figure it out. Rolling on some trails isn't always easy though lol

A little grinding doesn't hurt. I have the problem of seeing how far I can get in 2 HI. By the time I need 4x4 it's sometimes difficult to get roll. Sure miss manual locking hubs, that would let me drop to low range and be in 2 WD and not heat up the tranny.

 

[noloc45]

A little grinding doesn't hurt. I have the problem of seeing how far I can get in 2 HI. By the time I need 4x4 it's sometimes difficult to get roll. Sure miss manual locking hubs, that would let me drop to low range and be in 2 WD and not heat up the tranny.

So I have this issue too.

Typically I like entering everything in 2wd ...the slowly putting on all the powers as I go and it gets more difficult

Is this the wrong way to think? Should I enter the trail in 4Low from the get go always?

 

[Yellow Cake Kid]

Rolling can make it possible to find the ability to shift into 4 Lo, but it is almost always going to be clumsy as you are jamming two sets of mechanisms together that, due to the large gear ratio, are extremely sensitive or responsive to drive line rpm, and less likely to be aligned (I am trying to avoid the term "synchronized") when you attempt to connect them. Try to make the shift when you are rolling very slowly on the most even ground you have available, and the front wheels are pointing straight ahead so that the front and rear wheel speed is as closely matched as possible.

If the stars are aligned you may be able to shift into 4 Lo when the vehicle is stopped, and on those occasions it will seem smoother, but the ability to do so will be rare as everything has to be aligned and there is no mechanism to ensure that it is. It will just be pure luck.

Try to learn how to anticipate or intuit the need for 4 Lo and to recognize and utilize the best opportunity to make the shift before it is too late and becomes more difficult.

This is easier on trails you have driven many times and can seem impossible on trails where you have no foresight. Try to learn how to recognize the need and identify the best stretch of trail to make the shift before you really need to be in 4 Lo.

I find that sometimes all you can do is back up a couple feet up and try rolling forward again. If that doesn't work back up and try a sequence of rolls and pauses until you can make the shift.

You will occasionally clunk and grind the gears despite your best efforts. It can seem disheartening; it's not good for the gears but they are tough and made for the service. You will find that there are situations when you probably can not do anything better, and you just have to get it in gear and move along.

Good luck!

 

[AlgUSF]

Not wanting to start a new thread, I've practiced a bit putting my wrangler into 4L. I've embarrassingly made some decent grinding sounds. Intuitively getting to 2-3mph in a vehicle the size of a Jeep is difficult, definitely have to keep my eye on the digital speedo. I've dropped it down at ~10MPH once not looking at the speedo.

My question is, are these grinding noises just embarrassing or does it cause any appreciable damage? Like is it worse than missing a shift on a manual and grinding? I assume the shifting mechanisms are similar between the Jeep TC and a synchromesh transmission and I've ground gears a few times and the transmissions last over 150K.

I try to be careful, but sometimes in the heat of the moment and lack of familiarity cause people (like me) to make a mistake. I'm just hoping that the TC is designed to account for these "mistakes". Any thoughts?

 

[LanceMagnum]

I find the best experience is when I'm rolling, but at much less than 2-3 mph, more like 1/2 mph

 

[Jim1964]

So I have this issue too.

Typically I like entering everything in 2wd ...the slowly putting on all the powers as I go and it gets more difficult

Is this the wrong way to think? Should I enter the trail in 4Low from the get go always?

That’s an excellent question. Over time, my thinking has evolved on this.

For many years, I enjoyed the challenge of making a trail in 2WD or with as few aids as possible. What I’ve recognized over time, is this does more trail damage -spinning tires etc.- and increased wear on the machinery. And with the increased popularity of this activity, trail wear is a real issue.

These days, I take my satisfaction in making obstacles look easy by properly assessing them and engaging enough assist to walk over on the first attempt. I don’t say you should start a trail in 4L, but I DO believe if you get caught on an obstacle and need to touch the transfer case lever, it’s a failure to properly read the obstruction.

Just my opinion, but I believe “tread lightly” should apply not just to remaining on the trail, but doing as little wear to the trail itself as possible.

In closing, I’ll throw some shade on YouTubers, because most of them popularize trail damaging behaviors such as blasting through water holes and aggressively spinning tires, because it looks good on camera.

 

[AlgUSF]

I find the best experience is when I'm rolling, but at much less that 2-3 mph, more like 1/2 mph

Yeah, I tried this a few times in a gravel lot today, and you pretty much have to creep where it is barely rolling to get it to engage smoothly. Doing the shift per the manual's instructions causes a good amount of grinding and a noticeable jump when it locks in. Your description was much better than the Owners Manual's description, I guess since they say 3mph is recommended that the grinding doesn't overtly damage the TC, but gosh does it make a scary noise.

 

[fdFifty]

I find that this platform is just particularly tricky to shift into 4 low because the shifter and shift mechanism itself often introduces a lot of resistance/interference. As mentioned above you can have quite a discrepancy between gear speeds and it's difficult to mechanically synchronize these. Ideally, you would approach it like you were "float shifting" a manual transmission (or shifting without using the clutch). You would apply light pressure back on the shifter until the gears find a mesh and go together without much fuss. But when your shift mechanism is binding and can't translate that right amount of pressure- you will have to put a decent amount of force on it, and in turn get grinding.

The t case shifters do seem to loosen up on these over time but they still can choose to bind for some inexplicable reason. I just switched over to an automatic so I'm sure I'll be experiencing the "JL 4low shift learning curve" all over again. Still beats having an electronically actuated T-case any day, though.

 

[ALK]

Not wanting to start a new thread, I've practiced a bit putting my wrangler into 4L. I've embarrassingly made some decent grinding sounds. Intuitively getting to 2-3mph in a vehicle the size of a Jeep is difficult, definitely have to keep my eye on the digital speedo. I've dropped it down at ~10MPH once not looking at the speedo.

My question is, are these grinding noises just embarrassing or does it cause any appreciable damage? Like is it worse than missing a shift on a manual and grinding? I assume the shifting mechanisms are similar between the Jeep TC and a synchromesh transmission and I've ground gears a few times and the transmissions last over 150K.

I try to be careful, but sometimes in the heat of the moment and lack of familiarity cause people (like me) to make a mistake. I'm just hoping that the TC is designed to account for these "mistakes". Any thoughts?

As long as you're not stupid about it, a little grinding is perfectly acceptable.

 

[Ratbert]

The t case shifters do seem to loosen up on these over time but they still can choose to bind for some inexplicable reason. I just switched over to an automatic so I'm sure I'll be experiencing the "JL 4low shift learning curve" all over again. Still beats having an electronically actuated T-case any day, though.

The transfer case in my manual JLUR was incredibly stiff when I bought it and never loosened up over its 16 month lifespan. It took significant muscle to coerce it to move at all.

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