m2hbvic

I've got a '95 GC 4X4 w/ the 5.2 V8, 46RH auto tranny, and 198,000 miles on it and was wondering if removing the front driveshaft (permanently) and using it as a daily driver in 2WD would be okay for the tranny/transfer case. I've heard rumors that the transfer case has some sort of viscous clutch in it and it might get damaged by doing this. True or false??? And does it really matter with all the mileage it has on it???
TIA,
Vic

jmaxj

true, you will burn up the viscous coupler. weather or not it's in 2 weeks or 2 yrs who knows but it will happen. mine lasted 3 months before it blew but i had a buddy who's jeep made it almost 2 yrs with no front driveline. so i say its up to you but be prepared for it to go at some point.

m2hbvic

Thanks jmaxj for the info. BTW,when the viscous coupler burns up, what happens??? Do you lose driving power to the rear or do you just lose all driving power to the front??? Or both front and rear???
Thanks,
Vic

caged

not to mention, your jeep can still move when in park.

ChileRedBateman

^^^based on this statement, I'd say you'll go no where when it burns up...

FAlfani81

In my 93 the VC started binding on me and I ended up pulling the front drive shaft as well. It used to creep away when in park after the t-case fluid cooled down. I drove it like that for about 3 years and then swapped it out with a 231

m2hbvic

Thanks guy for the heads up. I was hoping to be able to leave the front driveshaft disconnected (never need 4WD in a grocery getter) and save some gas, less wear and tear, etc, but I guess that's not possible with that viscous coupler setup. I, FINALLY, got around to pulling the trans/transfer case yesterday to rebuild the tranny (burnt up after 198K miles, bought GC for $800 at salvage yard). When I separated the tranny from the T/C I noticed some gray and black RTV was used on it, so I'm wondering if the T/C or viscous coupler has been replaced sometime early on. I guess I might as well do the 231 conversion while I've got it sitting on the bench, or else just swap in a regular RWD/2WD transmission and be over and done with it. Anyone out there do a 4WD to 2WD automatic trans swap on a '95 GC???
Thanks,
Vic

tiwvr1

If you remove the front drive shaft you will notice no improvement in fuel milage. The shaft only spins when u need 4X4. It will be a waste of time to remove it.

jmaxj

not in a V8 ZJ, the 249 is a full time Tcase. when i removed mine i went from 16-18mpg's to 19-21 mpg's on a bone stock rig.

m2hbvic

Thanks guys. Yeah, I figured that viscous coupler would have to put some kind of drag or load on the drivetrain and affect the overall gas mileage. When I removed the tranny and T/C Sunday, I couldn't believe how heavy that whole setup was when I lowered (more like dropped) it down onto the driveway. Heck, just the weight of it all has got to kill the mileage! Oh well, I guess I'll leave it as a 4X4 setup and rebuild the whole deal and get it back on the road, ASAP, to shut the wife up for now, and hope that that viscous coupler holds up for awhile until I either find a 231 T/C or a 2WD tranny to swap into it.

BTW, has anyone come up with a replacement part just for that viscous coupler, that converts it over to a solid or direct drive setup without having to swap out T/C's??? Sorta like the solid spool setup in rear axles that does away with the limited slip differential. Just wondering.
TIA,
Vic

FAlfani81

I personally noticed no improvement in mine at all. The front diff is always engaged so there is pretty much always the same amount of drag with the drive shaft in or not. But if your VC is starting to bind then yes, in that case you might notice a sight improvement in fuel economy depending on how bad its binding.