Sluggish 4x4 release

[Bruce Berger]

I finally got my Pinzi put back together after breaking my 4x4 slave cylinder over Memorial Day weekend. Everything seems to be working OK except that the 4x4 control take about 45 seconds to a minute to release when placed back into 2wd. The indicator light flickers some before it finally releases. It looks like the pressure is not releasing quickly enough or perhaps the spring is weak.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should look at. I wouldn't want to be out some distance from home and have it get stuck in 4WD.

Thanks,

[todds112]

Mine takes quite a while too if I'm moving. If I'm sitting still it's pretty much instant.

[pcolette]

Ditto with Todd. Sometimes it's quicker than others but there's no real pattern to it.
Paul

[Roman]

This issue was covered before somewhere within this forum.
As much as I remember, the cause is some sort of waxy deposit inside of the master cylinder.
I have similar problem with front lock, but no time to make a repair (cleaning).

Roman

[Jimm391730]

Even if it working like factory new, it won't release if there is any pressure on it. Unless you are going perfectly straight the front wheels are always going to be going faster than the rears. Depending on the terrain the rears will be doing the pushing and the fronts will be dragging and this will keep torque on the sleeve, preventing it from releasing. In reverse the torque is reversed, so try stopping and backing a few feet (3-5) with the steering slightly to one side. If the light pops off easily this way then it is probably releasing just fine, if not then something is sticking or delaying the release.

Jim M.

[pinzwheeling]

I had the same problem a while back. There are three things that I know of (Jim, pipe in anytime) that can fix the issue.

1. You need to bleed the hydraulic system for the locker / 4x4. Flushing the hydraulic line is the easiest and cheapest possibility.

2. You need to rebuild the actuator. Buy a rebuild kit from EI or other vendor. Pretty inexpesive and should only take 2-3 hours. The rebuild is easy, however, removing the actuator requires disassembly of the whole area around it.

3. This is actually the easiest, and turned out to be my problem. The "T" fitting on my actuator had a small crack in it. Check the area underneath the actuators for bubbled paint or brake fluid. The "T" fitting was only a couple of bucks and fixed my issue.

Of course, Jim or Dave might have a better idea, this is what fixed my issue.

Michael

[pinzwheeling]

BTW, do NOT force the lever into 2wd. This can break the actuator. On mine, if I drove for a mile or so, I could then shift back to 2wd rather easily.

[Bruce Berger]

It seems to release reliably, just not as quickly as the old slave cylinder. From your responses this is not unusual so I'll just leave it but keep an eye out for any changes.

Thanks,