upnorth23

It's winter here in Northern Minnesota! It's actually my first winter with my '01 XJ limited that I bought and repainted during the summer. I'm starting to notice some inconveniences with some things on the Jeep. First of all, in 2wd, the Limited slip diff. is making it next to useless from a stop. Second of all it doesn't drop into 4wd immediately, it takes around 15-20 feet for the gears to mesh. I also don't like the fact that I cant put it into 4wd from a dead stop. Anyone else notice these things and have some good advise/ modifications for me? I was thinking about looking into getting a new rear end for starters. I mostly use it for normal driving but it does see it fair share of snow and towing, and some off roading in between. I love it, and its a freakin' beast in the snow in 4wd!

unidentifiedbomb

Keep the LSD as you just have to work the brake a bit more to get used to this, feather the brake and slowly put pressure on them for a save and steady stop. It is easier and faster to just put your transmission into N neutral and then pull the transfer case to 4HI while in motion in order to get an instant connection.

hankthetank

the lever is a direct linkage to the t-case. mine is immediate and works from a dead stop. this is usually how i get into my parking spot in my driveway. dont go by the light on the dash. your jeep is also 11 years newer than mine...dunno.

upnorth23

It does definetley have to be moving though, when I first came up to school (duluth) I hadent even tried my 4wd yet and until one day I was backing out of a spot after it had snowed, I pulled up the lever and tried to reverse, all I got was some unhappy sounds from my transfer case and spinning rear wheels! Never doing that again! Is this normal or is there something wrong?

93XJLI

you should be moving forward/reverse at least a little bit.. like 2-3 mph. it helps the gears engage.

black2000xj

i have the same issue with my 99 limited with the 242

my xj will go thru alot of snow in 2wd, but its when i stop i have issues

i found that if you know your coming to a red light or stop sign, just thow it in 4 and coast to the stop

when you go to take off...your in

my 91 jeep had the 231...i loved that thing...pull back on the lever and it was ready to roll instantly....

the 242 is nice in the snow with the part time/full time option...

but i must admit...i love those older cherokees with the 231

hankthetank

yeah. i probably have more slop in my drivetrain than the op does, maybe that helps. but it def shouldn't take 15-20 feet to engage...

i can literally stand on my brake and shift it into 4h on a hill, then proceed into my parking spot from my back alley....some serious ruts back there with all the snow we have lol

upnorth23

throwing it into neutral then switching the transfer case works a lot better, so thanks! I would still like to get rid of the limited slip rear end. Anyone done this to their cherokee
?

caronaxtr

I had a simular issue with my 94 ZJ, I believe I had the 242. I found out that my linkage was off a bit.. It was grinding when I tried to put it into 4wheel & wouldn't enguage quickly. Had to adjust it & everything worked okay.

Also, keep in mind, to shift into 4wheel drive your front & rear tires need to be going at the same speed. When you're backing (or pulling out) of a parking spot or a street light in the snow & your rear tires are spinning, your front tires aren't it won't shift into 4wheel...

Good luck, it's a PITA when you can't get your 4x4 into 4wheel...

- I throw mine in N. and let the motor slow down, shift into 4 wheel, put her back into D & off we go!