Can you shift into 4WD on the fly?

[t3jason]

I have been looking at the delicas for a month now and most poeple shift into 4WD when at a stop.The one dealer today said that you can do it at 60 kms .He tried - and man WHAT a Anasty grinding sound that was. I really liked the vehicle and wanted to buy it , but now I`m wondering how much damage was done.He also was driving it in 4WD on drive pavement and didn`t know not too.He has just got this vehicle so i suspect that he hasn`t damaged it that way.All else was great . Are sliding rear windows an issue?

Should I stay clear or consider it anyway?

[patty]

no it can not and yes it is a horrible noise.Some people say that one your wheel lock light is on you can shift into 4 on the fly, i however can not do this it still makes the grinding noise so you'll have to try it.

[39Ronin]

If the hubs are locked you can go in and out of 4x4 on the fly. So initially you need to stop, shift into 4x4, drive forward and engage the hubs. After that you can shift in and out of 4x4 under 60 km. If you reverse the hubs will unlock. It sounds like he decided to try and shift it into 4x4 before having the hubs engaged. As for driving on dry pavement, not recommended but if you are going 100% straight and not for very long it should be ok.

[marsgal42]

Transfer case: yes (4H), no (4L).

Hubs: no.

If you think you're going to need 4WD it's common practice to stop, engage the hubs, then engage and disengage 4WD as needed. You can drive in 2WD with the front hubs locked. I did this in several snow storms last winter.

...laura

[BCDelica]

And driving in 4H, or 4L, on high traction surfaces like dry pavement can result in:



http://www.4x4abc.com/4WD101/driveline-bind.html

[Green1]

I generally figure that the most likely damage from driving on dry pavement in 4wd is increased tire wear, however more serious stuff can occur too...

as for "on the fly", as has been posted already, as long as the hubs are locked (wheel lock light is on) you can shift in and out of 4H on the fly (4L requires stopping and shifting to neutral)
Officially they say "under 60km/hr" for shifting on the fly, however I have done it at about 80km/hr and had no reason to suspect I was doing any damage, the big thing to remember is to make sure that you are travelling in a straight line when you do it, and that the front and rear wheels are moving at the same speed (so don't try to shift AFTER your wheels start to spin, it's too late!)

[Erebus]

But if you get tires with really hard rubber, and therefore very poor traction, then you won't have to worry about driveline bind because the tires will do the slipping for you. In other words, you will never BE in a high-traction situation.

Not my recommendation, just Sunday morning goofing.

[coaxial]

Yep once your locked in on the fly from 2h to 4h is very useful. Just have the wheel straight and no spinning or skidding tires. I just briefly step in the clutch when I do it to be sure all tires are coasting. Still stop completely for 4h to 4L