wsisco74

I have a 1999 Z71 with 150,000 miles and push button 4 wheel drive. My problem is when im driving my 2wd button light will go from bright to dim to off intermittently. When ive been driving for a while my service 4 wheel light will sometimes come on. When i take off from a cold start it will go right into 4 wheel but when ive been driving for a while its tough to get in and even tougher to get out and when it is in it feels like its in a bind or almost working against itself. Any suggestions?

gotstylez

when your trying to get it out of 4wd..try to back up..slowly to see if that kicks it out of 4wd faster.. im not sure about the going into 4wd slow or u cant get it in at all rpob..somebody will come along and answer those

craftsman454

replace the 4 wheel drive push button switch.

therewolf

In the future, DON'T BUY PUSHBUTTON 4WD. There's a very good reason all of the serious,experienced 4WD guys don't get pushbutton 4WD, IT ISN'T DEPENDABLE.

Unreliable and 4WD don't mix well. If you're concerned about how clunky that manual 4WD shifter looks, you probably don't really need 4WD. They're just a lot of hassle that cost you gas mileage, anyway.

mangleweld

[QUOTE=therewolf;127212]In the future, DON'T BUY PUSHBUTTON 4WD. There's a very good reason all of the serious,experienced 4WD guys don't get pushbutton 4WD, IT ISN'T DEPENDABLE.

Amen!!!!

therewolf

OK, now that we've determined that car salesmen are the only people who like pushbutton 4WD on a regular basis,(being because they only have to sell NEW ones, and they, and the PB4WD both generally look VERY attractive on the showroom floor...)

let's look into the problem a little further. Modern technology hasn't overcome the problem with actuator rods sticking in solenoids which haven't been used in a long period of time.(Say, three weeks to three months.)

What happens here is the solenoids, which are supposed to act as heavy duty switches, get their proper voltage, and then the actuator,(think of it simply as a small rod which is in a sleeve inside an electromagnet) has become firmly stuck, from the vibration of the vehicle causing settling of it's lubricant in it's sleeve. This rod is supposed to move at the proper inductive force, but, being stuck, refuses to budge from it's "at rest" state, and voila'! Defective pushbutton 4WD.

As time, condensation, and vibration continue, the rod either corrodes or the outside of the rod gets a patina or very thin covering of a waxy corrosive or shellac type substance partially coating it which binds it down. Some bean-counter at the head office usually nails the lid on the coffin by procuring the cheapest solenoids which they arbitrarily deem dependable, to send to the factory, for use in mass production of the PB4WD units in question.(Thanks, college-boy.)

As a result the biggest victims of this industry-wide fiasco are the poor end consumers who are sucked in by the attractive, futuristic looking, and obviously very much less clunky looking PB 4WD units. Many times, these unfortunate souls are getting their first SUV or pickup, and they merely want the option of 4WD for emergencies or vacation off-road use, without having a working knowledge of it's intricate design or complications. Nor do they have any true intention on using it on a regular basis, a very minor neglect which feeds the problem. The PB4WD absolutely DO look more sexy than the ugly, more business-like(and infinitely more dependable) 4WD MANUAL column shifter.Unfortunately, much like the gorgeous high-maintenance blondes, you pay an egregiously high price for them at the back end.

The only thing which can be done, bearing fully in mind that you MUST use 4WD either on rain-slick or dirt roads to avoid transfer-case shattering axle-bind; is to use the PB4WD at least twice a week, to keep the solenoids and actuators from freezing up, once you get the system fixed. Then simply bear in mind this technology hasn't been fully de-bugged, and carefully avoid it in your future 4WD vehicle selections.