I previously had a 2000 Ranger SCAB and had nothing with problems with the dash switching 4x4. The front end would either not engage and grind horribly or not disengage and stay in 4x4. Dealer replaced several pieces of the 4x4 system at least 3 times. When I sold it the next owner they actually lived around the corner from me and she had nothing but problems with it as well and ended up selling it. Best truck I ever owned if the 4x4 would not have been a problem. Now have a 2004 F150 with the floor shift, 8000 km and the usual amount of 4x4 use and no problems. Oh, and if you are wondering I switched into 4x4 with the ranger as it read in the owners manual and by service staff.
I like the 4x4 on my old '91 F150, manual hubs and floor shift, ahhhhhh the good old days.

 

 

Thanks for the info! Now I know what the electric motor does, but what is this.... GEM to actuate the center-axle disconnect on the front end, so even if the manual shifter engages, you still have to rely on the electronics to engage the rest of it.

 

Yes the GEM controls the vacumm solenoids that engage and disengage the front axle. The Gem actually grounds the solenoid. The solenoids then open or close the vacuum source to the vacuum motor on the front axle. The GEM also energizes a electromagnetic clutch that spins the front drivesahft up to the vehicle speed so there is no clunk when the shift occurs. Well that is the theory anyways.

JMC

 

Well I had trouble last week with the 4x4 button...Was down on our beach 40 miles from home...turned on the 4 high and it seem to work ok...1/2 hour later we were leaving and on a good dirt road...so I turned the button to 2 high...Nothing happened...tried many times as I drove slow down the road..still nothing but now I see the light on the dash telling me the truck was in 4 low...Stayed there for 10 miles...eating gas by the gulp too...I stopped as I was worried..looked in the fuse box even ...I don't know why...So with the truck stopped I tried backing up while trying the button and it came out of low range...Then it made a clunking noise and with the button set in 2L it came out of 4 H...I have not touched it sense as I don't know what to do or what this means...Is there a special way to use 4x4 or put it in 4x4..what was the noise I heard ?? The truck is used when I bought it...a 2001 and everything else works well but this happening has made me no trust it now...I need a oil change and wonder if the ford tec can see anything while doing that...Any advice welcome...

 

The electric motor is prone to failure. It can stick and not move the shift lever. What also happens is the contacts inside the motor housing that tell the GEM which position the shift cam is in are reliant on the motor moving. When it sticks the contacts are also stuck so the GEm has a hard time figuring out what to do. When you backed up you had to move the tranny on its mounts and that is most likely what jarred the motor. Or the Digital Transmission Range Sensor on your tranny is going south and it confuses the GEM becasue its input is also required for the t-case shifting to happen. Have it checked out at your Dealer.

JMC

 

I have had mine since 99, and it has failed once, but I think it was frozen. When it got warmer, it came right out of 4x4, and it never fails me. Heck, even if it does now, with the abuse that it's been through already, I got my money's worth out of my electric shifter. I can't imagine why anyone would want to get out and fight with the cold, mud and/or snow to lock/unlock their hubs, especially when half the time you're already sitting in the middle of a deep mudhole before you know that you should have locked it in.

 

Hello...Here's what I found out at the ford dealer after they checked it for me...They found it all worked a-ok...I just did not know how to use it...

When it went into 4 low I was stopped...I was driving as I tried to get it into 2 high...It would not come out...I have the dash button and it has no neutral..

To get the 4x4 out of low range I have to stop the truck...put the transmission in neutral and put my foot on the brakes then shift the button...

It works great now...but it cost me 37.50 to have everything checked out and to tell me that...But they road tested it as well and I now know what I have as I bought it used...