1999 4wd operation

hi can anyone explain how to use the 4wd levers etc on a jimny from 1999 ?

its not that i can't suss it i haven't picked it up yet and want to test it before i shell out.

cheers rob

Start the engine and let it tick over. Turn off the radio and the heater fan. Open the drivers window, and tell everyone to be quiet.

Pull the small lever back one indent.
You should hear a clack-clack noise from the front as the hubs engage, and a little green 4wd light comes on and stays on.
Pull it back 1 more indent. Nothing will happen, except the lever has some resistance.
Push it forward 2 indents back into 2wd.
You should hear click-click and the light goes off.

Pull back one clack-clack and light.
Push forwards one click-click no light.

Thats it, all working.

DO NOT, NEVER, EVER, EVER try to drive on dry tarmac in 4wd or you as soon as you turn the steering you will feel a snatch and hear a bang as a CV joint explodes.

(if you have a jack, let it tick over in neutral, put it in 4wd and jack up one front wheel. Try and rotate it. It will move a little each way in 4wd. In 2wd it will turn round and round by hand)

just what i wanted . cheers mate. just sold a trooper that i use offroad regularly so i know the perils of running in 4wd on tarmac. pick up the jimny on wenesday.

Sorry, I assumed you had no idea from your first post.

If the green 4wd light flashes it means that there is a vacuum leak, and most likely the hubs did not engage.

If you can get it on soft ground you can try out the high and low range, but the transfer box is pretty reliable, as long as the lever moves properly it will be working.

At starship mileages or if there is a lack of transfer oil the chain wears and can skip under load.

The main things to look for are:
body corrosion: under rear seat, in tool tray, behind headlights, around wheelarch extensions at the back.
Oil leaks: there shouldn't be any, in fact this helps the engine sump and waterpipes corrode.
Wheel bearings/swivel bearings are Mickey Mouse items and wear alarmingly, and cost about 5 times what you would expect.
The swivel housings were never chromed, and cannot be replaced, so they rust very badly, wear out the dust seal and let water in to finish off the swivel bearings. (they don't contain oil, just a blob of grease)

The swivel housings are not waterproof, anything deeper than 6" and they fill up with water.

Also front bumpers/bonnets are in short supply as most breakers have been rolled onto their side, which takes out the bumper and usually the bonnet.

the one i'm getting is tricked up and sorted. lifted , winch bumper and winch but only 60k genuine miles. all history along with bills for mods. very low mileage for a 99. been run as a family car .
cheers rob

and its gonna see some mud