I am a newbie and I just picked up a 91' Trooper v-6 that is close to new as one can find. I love it! However I did not get an owners manual and I do not know the proper way to engage the 4x4 system. If someone could pass along the correct way of engaging it I would appreciate it. I just did not want to jump in and start shoving the lever! Thanks so much.

Joe Golden

1991 Trooper S V-6 5spd
172,000 and counting!

Does your trooper have auto or manual hubs? The procedure is slightly different for each type.

Welcome to Isuzu-dom, and say goodbye to your money! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />


Mike

umm, the front wheels say auto hub or lock or something like that. thanks for the quick reply.

Joe

Alright, procedure for auto lock hubs:

Stop, put clutch in, put lever to 4 hi or 4 lo. Go forward. There should be a little click or maybe a clunk when 4wd engages after like 3 feet.

Auto hubs will disengage whenever you switch directions, then re-engage after a couple feet. So if you need to back up a hill or somethin, you will feel the rear tires spin for a second then the fronts will kick in.

To go back to 2wd, stop put clutch in, put lever to 2wd, go forward, stop, reverse for a couple feet til you hear that click, and you are in 2wd. If you don't reverse it, you are still in 2wd, but your hubs are locked in.

Note: after engaging 4wd, you can switch between 2hi and 4hi without stopping. (NOT 4LO) The poor man's shift on the fly. AFAIK, this does not hurt anything, but still I wouldn't suggest trying it while flooring it and spinning your tires.

Mike

Flip the sun visor down, works every time..... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/ignore.gif" alt="" />

















































For the chart, I mean.... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/shiner.gif" alt="" />


<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
[color:"purple"] WELCOME TO THE BOARD [/color]

Good choice on finding the '91.....I love mine even after 10 years, It'll break my heart when I finally have to give her up.

For an owner's manual and even the full OEM service manual (which I highly recommend) go here:

http://www.helminc.com

Some things you might want to do before too long:

Zero-time (pilot-speak) ALL fluids and grease points so that you KNOW their status:

Hub and spindle (front) - Clean, and re-grease including bearings. The AutoHubs are not maintenance free and are known to wear the end of the splined cv spindle. Many people ditch them and get manuals.

Front and Rear differentials - drain and refill 75/80W gear oil

Engine oil - self-explanatory

Transmission fluid - IMPORTANT - if your trannie is manual, this will take (most likely) 30W MOTOR OIL - NOT gear oil as the diffs do.

Coolant flush and replace

Brake fluid flush and replace

Clutch fluid flush and replace

If your doors 'pop' and are hard to close, I've had some success thoroughly cleaning each spring assembly with brake cleaner, getting the spring really clean and then applying a light coat of grease.

Balljoint grease - inspect condition of rubber boots around all ball joints

CV boots, two per side - inspect and replace if necessary (DO NOT put this one off)

The GM 2.8 is a good engine, much betta than the '80's vintage series, but does have some quirks. Do a SEARCH here on '2.8' and you'll get TONS of information on that motor and swap options

Hope this helps as a primer - the old gals are aging rapidly and need a lot of attention.

Check the option code plate on the pass side firewall and the VIN then go here:

http://www.itog.com and then to the ITOG university. You can verify exactly what your Trooper has. If you happen to have the G80 code, your in great shape with the LSD option, IF the LSD isn't worn out.

Cheers,

The auto tranny has manual hubs and the manual tranny originally came with auto hubs, so we assume you have a 5spd manual tranny.

My '86 engages the hubs within about 6" of forward movement and disengages if I back up about 3". This causes a bit of a problem on a hill when I'm moving slow and disengage the clutch, rolling backwards slightly. My hubs disengage until I start moving forward again. If my rear wheels slip, I don't move forward far enough to engage the fronts again. The cure for this is to move back far enough so they will engage before encountering the obtacle that stopped me in the first place -- sometimes clear to the bottom of a hill. Yesterday I rounded a corner and started up as snowy hill in 2nd gear. The snow and the hill combined to slow me down enough I needed 1st gear, so disengaged the clutch, shifted to 1st, and was immediately stopped by the deep snow, rolling backward enoough that the hubs disengaged. I couldn't move forward due to rear wheel slippage, so my hubs wouldn't re-engage. I had to back down the hill (thankfully there were no other vehicles on the snowmobile trail I was on at the time).

OTOH, you can't beat the auto hubs for convenience on snowy or icy roads. Just come to a stop, put the lever in 4Hi, and start up in 4wd. No slushy mess on your feet, no slushy mess on your carpet, etc. And you can shift into and out of 4wd after the initial lockup, without stopping. But be aware, if you stop (at a signal light, for instance), and roll back a few inches, your front hubs may disengage, and you absolutely should NOT try slipping into 4wd while moving again.

4wd is only for conditions where there will be wheel slippage. It does not give you better traction on dry, or even wet, pavement. Use it only where snow, ice, mud, sand, etc., are causing loss of forward traction.

Many have switched to manual hubs. My pup came with them. At the first warning of snow, I locked the hubs and I will unlock them when spring comes.. No mucky shoes or carpets and no backing down the hill to re-engage the hubs.

JD

Thanks for all the help guys. I could not climb the hill at my house the other night due to the snow. I was clutching, rolling backwards and all that good stuff. I think I should go to manual hubs for ease of 4x4ing. What do you guys recommend in a manual hub? Is it a DIY and about how much do I expect to spend? Thanks so much!

Joe

Hit up the search button on the top and make sure you select "all posts" under time frame. Search under manual hubs or manual coversion. You have 3 choices as far as i know.

1. Aisin (which came stock on many Isuzus)
2. warn
3 superwinch

Check out the pros anc cons of each. I personally reccommend going to the junkyard and pulling Aisins. They are tough as nails.

I also personally reccommend pulling anything at the junkyard over sbuying even if cost is not a factor. Reason being, you get a great lesson on how things are installed ON the vehicle. And you can get a good idea as to how to set it up on yours. This is much better than getting a box full of little shiny parts with some halfassed directions and having to check the forums at 2am for a instructions.

manual hubs are very simple and have few moving parts. Making them ideal junkyard finds.

Also check out independent4x.com darlington-offroad.com and calmini.com for more ideas.