Chevrolet Repair: s15 jimmy autolocking hubs, blown fuse, axle shaft

Question
i have a '86 s15 jimmy 2.8lt and when i bought it 3yrs ago the four wheel drive worked fine but this winter it just stoped working. when i put it in 4hi the transver case works and the front drive shaft spins and in low range too but the axle will not engage.im guessing it is the auto locking hubs. is there a cheap fix for this?


Answer
Hello James,
How Cheap??

There is an activator in the front differential, where the right axle shaft housing connects.
It may be electric, or it may be vacuum operated.

I will send a few links, which are actually from aftermarket parts companies, trying to sell manual engagement modifications, which might work just great. I haven't tried them, but I have replaced actuators. The orriginal part costs about $80.00 I think.

Keep in mind, it could also be just a blown fuse, or a loose wire, so check them first.

If you want super cheap, you could remove the actuator, and fabricate an extension for the end of it, about an inch longer, and leave it engaged all the time, but I don't recommend it.

You could look at the links I am sending, then remove yours, and fabricate a manual one, but you need to seal it so water doesn't get in.

www.4x4posi-lok.com/PDFs/troubleshootguide.pdf

offroadltd.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=ORL&Product_Code=PSL600

www.4x4posi-lok.com/

www.pirate4x4.com/welcome1.html

www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/PR-shaft/index.html

Then go here, www.chevytalk.org/ and search for actuators and read the posts. Like this one....

http://www.chevytalk.org/threads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Board=UBB46&Number=1033380&S...

I am Fixitfox on that site.

Good luck,
Van