Questions about first time out west wheeling trip

Oh you guys are hilarious!

Well we powered through the drive in one go and woke up to do some mild trails.

During the beginning of Imogene I was going down a feature in 4 low and it failed to slow me down. It was as if nothing was catching.

4 Hi and 2wd work still. But I ended up turning around and heading home at that point.

Soooo how broken is my transfer case?
 
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Schwifty Rich said:
Oh you guys are hilarious!

Well we powered through the drive in one go and woke up to do some mild trails.

During the beginning of Imogene I was going down a feature in 4 low and it failed to slow me down. It was as if nothing was catching.

4 Hi and 2wd work still. But I ended up turning around and heading home at that point.

Soooo how broken is my transfer case?
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Sounds like the shifter is out of adjustment.
 
Schwifty Rich said:
Oh you guys are hilarious!

Well we powered through the drive in one go and woke up to do some mild trails.

During the beginning of Imogene I was going down a feature in 4 low and it failed to slow me down. It was as if nothing was catching.

4 Hi and 2wd work still. But I ended up turning around and heading home at that point.

Soooo how broken is my transfer case?
Click to expand...
Next time just use 4 Hi and brakes, it locks the front and rear so your brakes evenly work on front and rear axles just like the engine braking. You only need 4 lo for going up.
 
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Gonna need 4 low in Moab won't you? Have you tried to pull it in manually from underneath? I know a good shop here in Albuquerque but were about 6 hours south of Ouray. Maybe one in Farmington NM as they have "Choke Cherry Canyon" there and tons of rock crawlers there.
 
Schwifty Rich said:
I won’t make anything worse by using it this way?
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I have no idea what your issue really is. I don't think you'd damage anything using 4hi down a hill a few times if that's what you are asking. Just a little extra wear on the brakes. If I did burn up a 231 at Moab I wouldn't be too upset, it would be worth it to me but I don't really know where you are coming from and your case is a bit more expensive than mine. If I called the trip and found it's just a linkage I would not be happy, that's all I'm really saying.
 
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pagrey said:
I have no idea what your issue really is. I don't think you'd damage anything using 4hi down a hill a few times if that's what you are asking. Just a little extra wear on the brakes. If I did burn up a 231 at Moab I wouldn't be too upset, it would be worth it to me but I don't really know where you are coming from and your case is a bit more expensive than mine. If I called the trip and found it's just a linkage I would not be happy, that's all I'm really saying.
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I see. I wasn’t really asking for permission as much as I was trying to gauge my level of damage.
I’ll still go out and do what I can. I was just worried of the problem causing other problems, especially since I don’t know what going on with it.
 
Maybe an automatic is more forgiving, but I can't imagine making a tricky decent in 4H with a manual by relying on the brakes and slipping the clutch and risking killing the engine.

Get under the Jeep and work the shift lever at the transfer case. At least see what is going on. Moab is no excuse to needlessly break something just because the scenery is pretty.
 
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jjvw said:
Maybe an automatic is more forgiving, but I can't imagine making a tricky decent in 4H with a manual by relying on the brakes and slipping the clutch and risking killing the engine.

Get under the Jeep and work the shift lever at the transfer case. At least see what is going on. Moab is no excuse to needlessly break something just because the scenery is pretty.
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Operating the brake and clutch at the same time is difficult?
 
Using the brake going downhill in hi range is way sketchier than using the engine in low, especially in low traction situations. You don't have much control and it is way easier to start sliding sideways. There isn't even a comparison between the two methods.
 
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jodomcfrodo said:
Using the brake going downhill in hi range is way sketchier than using the engine in low, especially in low traction situations. You don't have much control and it is way easier to start sliding sideways. There isn't even a comparison between the two methods.
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No, in 4wd there is almost zero difference, the front brakes are tied to the rear. This has been talked about before.
 
pagrey said:
No, in 4wd there is almost zero difference, the front brakes are tied to the rear. This has been talked about before.
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You are absolutely incorrect. You can't control the Jeep using the brakes as well as the engine can. The engine cannot lock the tires up and send you sliding. The brakes can. Have you ever gone down a steep hill in a Jeep before? I can't believe anyone with experience would say something like this.
 
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Engine braking is taught to inexperienced drivers so they don't panic and lock up the wheels with the brakes and remain in control. An experienced driver can release the brakes and modulate them, something you can't do easily with the gas pedal. Ask @mrblaine what he thinks because you obviously think you're the expert and I'm a novice. You should drive however you want regardless.
 
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jjvw said:
All I know is that with my manual, I would prefer to have all the options to control speed. And that includes engine braking in low range.
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I 100% agree. All I was suggesting is that the other is an alternative that works and lets you still have fun on the trail. I wasn't suggesting anybody drive out of their comfort zone or anything. @jodomcfrodo this is a normal technique used by pretty much anybody that has done a very steep decent in an automatic and in a pinch would work just fine with a manual. I don't mean to argue the point, sorry if it sounded that way. There just aren't any trails that are stick only so all of us that wheel difficult areas with automatics know this is how it works. I mean really, from your comment it does sound like you haven't made a decent in an auto. You have to rely on the brakes and no, it's not dangerous or something a beginner would do.
 
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