Was getting an intermittent (2-3x a year) automatic shifting into 4x4 high (light on dash / front axles engaged) when the dash selector switch was set to AWD. Plus, the motor was a bit rusty.
Very straightforward, guys. Picked up the new motor on ebay for about $75. Few tips:
Very straightforward, guys. Picked up the new motor on ebay for about $75. Few tips:
- Nice DIY on youtube on this. How To Install Replace 4WD 4x4 Shift Motor Ford Expedition Lincoln Navigator 97-01 1AAuto.com - YouTube
Good for reference. Best things I learned from this were (1) use needle nose pliers to remove the red locking ring inside the large electrical connector (connector between the shift motor and the truck's wiring harness (2) you need an awl-type tool with a semi-flat tip to open up the locking pins inside the electrical connector (the one on the old shift motor) to free some of the wires, which you'll need to transfer over from the old shift motor connector to the new shift motor connector. Once these locking pins are pushed "back" away from the wire, they can be easily pushed out of the connector. I used needle nose pliers to push them into the new connector until they locked in place. I will say I had a lot less clearance than this guy did in the youtube video.
- Best practice is to map out the connector plug in the old shift motor (the connector has 14 wires coming into it - each point on the connector plug is numbered) on a piece of paper, noting which colored wire goes into which connector hole. And then group the wires that are connected (e.g., 6 of the wires go to the shift motor, 1 wire goes to the transmission top, 2 wires go to what looks like the speedo gear area, etc.).
- Once I had these mapped and grouped, I put the new shift motor next to the old one (you could hang it up there with bailing wire) and transferred the wires from the old shift motor connector to the new shift motor connector.
- Only 3-4 10mm bolts hold the shift motor in place. And I broke both of the connector mounting tabs and went back with zip ties.
- My original shift motor had silicone sealing it to the transfer case. So I went back with silicone.
