Metlic53

ok, i have a 97 xj with 4 part time, 4 hi and 4 lo. my question is, what is the difference between part time and full time? I mean i can put it in part time while im trail riding and it does the exact same thing that full time does. What is the difference here? maybe when im turning it will disengage to free up the front wheels a bit?

infiniteuser

I believe the difference would be, in part-time 4wd, the speed of the front and rear driveshafts are locked together, in full-time, they are not.

Stan6406

thats the answer
part time both axles turn at the same speed
full time they can turn at different speeds

Abovetimberline

x2,the 242 has an aditional diiferential which allows it to run in the open position,in the open position the front and back diffs rotate at different speeds and torgue is transferd to the end that has the least traction,in part time the center diff is locked and both front and back diffs rotate at the same speed.

iweb

I have a 92, 4.0L, auto and in part time it does nothing, full time it will climb a tree. PO told me the transfer case was gone thru recently.

caged

sounds like you've got something wrong there. so either the shift plate was changed, or someone swapped out the t-case from a 242 to a 231.
unless i'm reading your post all wrong.

projectmayhem

if its a 231 it doesnt have a center diff, so full time is unachievable

xjrev10

You can tell when you are in part time or full time very easy by turning on a hard dry surface. Part time will jerk and not feel right. Full time you can actually use on all surfaces. it will not jerk or bind anything. I have read that the part time function is a 50-50 torque split and the full time is a 30-70 torque split.

I like my 242. Great for slippery roads up here in the north country.

00sport4x4

i know this is my first post and I'm already breaking a rule by bumping a thread but you're close to the tech answer I need to know (at least be impressed that I read the rules... before breaking one... sorry).

I bought a 2000 Cherokee Sport 4.0L two years ago because my pickup died, I could afford this and I like not being stuck in the snow.

I know nothing about anything in terms of cars (for example, there's a billion abreviations on this site that leave my head spinning). Anyways, I can go from 2h to 4h to N to 4L (putting it in 4h makes the "part time" indicator turn on)

I was recently in the VA blizzard for many many hours in very bad weather (I didn't get stuck once... I love my jeep) but I had to use the "part time" a lot (never seen a light that says "full time").

Anyways, I noticed when I finally got home that when I was moving slow on dry clear surfaces there was that jerky motion that felt terrible and didn't sound right. putting it back in 2h makes that horrible sound go away.

My question is... did I do something horrible to my wonderful (and probably abused) cherokee by using the 4h for so long during that blizzard? I never use it unless I feel like I'm going to get stuck or the roads are horrible.

projectmayhem

no sir there is nothing wrong with your 4wd u only have what is called part time 4wd the same thing that my 88 and 96 have. like the guy u quoted part time is a direct split of power between both axles. in a full time four wheel drive vehicle there is a center differential that allows a certian amount of slipage between the front and rear axles. in short it allows the front and rear to spin at different speeds unlike the part time 4wd. in your jeep, like mine when turning sharply in 4wd the front axle binds up. in any vehicle when you turn, the font wheels will spin and travel farther than your rear wheels to get around a turn and this is why a full time 4wd doesnt bind up, but when in full time 4wd i gets real hard on components in the transfer case in the winter because it works off of wheel speed sensor and only uses it when it notices wheel speed variances, its fine for a couple spots of slippery road but after awhile the transfer case will where because of the constant on/off situations on a long slippery road

Metlic53

ok my 4 wheel drive full time is the one that jerks and gets in a bind when engaged and when i put it in part time it does the same exact thing when turning

JrRifleCoach

Doesn't sound right. You sure?

By your example:
If driving "full time" on pavement, you'd pop the xfer box chain real quick.

Me thinks "full time" is both axles turn at the same speed.

Metmknice

He is correct, it means that you can use "full time" all of the time, and is safe on pavement. Part-time, the front and rear wheels are "locked" going to same speed.

Stan6406

Its confusing
I have both the 231 and 242 transfer cases

The use of Part time hi 4wd on the 242 and full time hi on the 231 are identical in the manual

Full time 4wd Hi on the 242 is the "addition" on the 242. Why they named it that is beyond me

trio

I'm new to Jeeps also, mine acted in the exact same manner. Is there a limit to how long can I drive with the 4H part time on? I kept switching it back to 2H when the roads were clear not knowing the answer.
Also, are there any limitations to using the 4L?