so i took it apart, for very little apparent reason, and i see three wires. a red, a yellow, and a white. which two should be connected to each other for the 4WD to be disengaged?

 

just, umm, curious.

bump. i need this drivable by tuesday or wednesday.

If it aint broke, don't fix it.

If it aint broke, don't fix it.

 

it is broke. i can't turn the car without a heavy lurching effect.

There is a post somewhere in here that explains the system, and shows you how to disengage 4wd by pulling a vacuum line off the actuator under the hood(better than nothing in a pinch) Does any one know the name of that post?

I take it you're talking about the locking diff switch on the Full Time 4 WD system. Are you sure the switch is bad? Mine has the same problem shifting back to unlocked position. If you look under the hood, just behind the shock housing, you should see two small solinoid vacuum switches - look for the vac hoses. These channel the vacuum to a double sided diaphram that either pushes the lever via a cable to activate the locking center differential, or pulls the lever to deactivate it. On my car, one of them is D E D dead. But even if I switch the hoses mine still won't unlock. The likely culprit for me is uneven tire wear. On my old shift on the fly Hi / Lo 4 WD Subies, if my tires were old and worn, I would have a hard time shifting back into 2 WD mode. On my GL-10 w/ the FT4WD tranny, my diff lock would be very difficult to shift back into normal mode. I have to either use an air compressor connected to the correct vac line, or get underneath the car with a pair of plyers to force the lever back into normal unlocked mode.

 

Just a reminder, you should never shift into 4 WD mode on dry pavement. It's sooo tempting to do from time to time, but it's bad for the tranny.

Green w/White stripe wire is 12v from Fuse 10

 

Blue wire is 2wd when connected to 12v

 

Green w/Yellow stripe wire is 4wd when connected to 12v

 

its a Single pole/Double throw no off switch.

 

Edit:Uhh, aparently wire colors are different in '93. Check for 12v at one of them with a test light. The other ones are 2wd and 4wd respectively. One of them should light the 4WD light when connectted to 12v, the other is 2wd.

I take it you're talking about the locking diff switch on the Full Time 4 WD system.

No, he has a push button single range box.

 

Get a manual with loyal wiring diagrams.

For the record, I ended up basically taping two of the wires (can't remember which ones) together, in the dark, at 5:30am, and it stayed drivable...ish...for as long as it needed to.

 

Of course later in the week I ended up with a presumably cashed thermostat and a fat burn on my hand and previously boiling coolant all over my favorite shirt...but that's another story.

 

It still does need to be fixed though so everybody's input is still appreciated.

 

And to clarify it is indeed the red button on top of the shifter. Single range.