Stanza Wagon 4wd Help

[mpanzar]

Hello Everyone. This is my first post on the forum! Anywho, I've got a 1988 Stanza Wagon 4WD that I purchased a couple of months ago. After figuring out some engine issues and replacing the main shaft bearing in the transmission I finally have the car back on the road. The issue I have now is with the 4wd. When I press the 4wd button it seems nothing happens, although I do hear the actuator moving. When I drive the car slow and try and engage it feels like the drivetrain is binding up. The transmission itself shifts great and I feel that is working properly. When I did the transmission work I found another one in the junk yard from a 1986 and ended up using that one instead of the original, and ironically the same bearings were going bad so changed those and put it in the 88. With the drivetrain binding i though maybe i made a gearing mistake but according to the vin searches and cross referencing the transmission part numbers the gearing appears to be the same. I have the Service Manual but it lacks easy troubleshooting for the transfer case. The owners manual was missing from the car and im not familiar with the proper way of moving in and out of 4wd. I've read issues with driving in 4wd drive on paved roads but not sure if that applies to the stanza. Any information on 4wd and troubleshooting this issue will be appreciated. 

[datzenmike]

 All use a 3.364 ratio rear differential.

 

Standard 4wd use a 4.471 front and the automatic 4wd use a 4.133. Does this even make any sense? The rears would be turning faster than the fronts.

[mpanzar]

Could the center diff / transfer gearing make up the difference? But yes, If that information is correct, it’s hard for me to wrap my head around why they chose to do it that way. 
 

and mine is a manual

[]2eDeYe]

I am not seeing anything in the googles showing the internals of the transfer case.
You could have a different size drive gear in the transfer case to account for the odd axle gears. This would result in different gearing for the auto/vs manual. 
 

If the tcase is direct drive, meaning no differential or clutch to help transfer power I would not drive it in 4wd on the pavement. Especially in low range.

 

Hard to say for sure what type of drive it is without seeing inside the case.  

 

[datzenmike]

The doner car? was it a manual 4wd?

[mpanzar]

The donor was a manual, and the yard provided a vin with the transmission. I randomly selected some of the gears on one of the parts websites and compared the two using the vin number from my stanza and the donors. Everything checked out in that respect. But the car had some unusual work done it so I would not be surprised if that transfer case is not the original… maybe from an automatic? Assuming the same mounting holes. 

[datzenmike]

33127-10R00 is the hypoid gear set for the MT and AT 4wd transfer case.

 

Raise the car right side and see if the wheels turn the same speed?

[mpanzar]

I was trying to think of an easy way to test that. If I tip the car on one side will the two wheels spin? 
 

I just took a look at the manual and here what i found: 

 

rear diff model: R180

transfer case model: TY10

 

rear diff ratio: 3.364 (37/11)

transfer case diff ratio: 0.297

final gear ratio (4WD): 4.471

^^^this is the “front diff” I’ve never dealt with a 4wd with a transaxle before. It’s starting to make sense.

 

regarding the internal view, once I figure out how to post images I’ll add some pics from the manual.

 

 

 

[thisismatt]

If the naming is correct, and it appears so, 4wd is not AWD and shouldn't be driven on the street (no center diff).  Transfer gear appears to be the same for both 2wd and 4wd.

 

www.nissanpartsdeal.com still has pretty good exploded diagrams

[mpanzar]

here’s a link to the transfer case diagram:

1988 Stanza Transfer Diagram

[thisismatt]

Right, it's without any kind of differential so the system will rely on some amount of slip at the wheels, best for off-road use only. Can you get the whole car up on stands and try it off the ground?

[mpanzar]

I should be able to get it on stands this week. Maybe tonight if I’m motivated. The other thing I’m trying to figure out is the general operation. Everything I’ve seen has mentioned “shift on the fly” but that’s all I was able to find. In the case where it feels like it’s binding up I assume the 4wd is engaged but the 4wd light does not illuminate, although I’ve yet to really push the pedal since the binding feels wrong. I’m daily driving it at the moment and there’s a gravel lot behind work, I’m going to try and engage on that surface and see what she does.

[datzenmike]

Only need the right side up. Place in 4wd and 4th or 5th and hold down the clutch. Mark both wheels, spin the rear wheel 20 times and have someone count the front.

[Stoffregen Motorsports]

Knowing absolutely zero about the Nissan 4wd system in the Stanza, I'm curious as hell to know what you find out.

[]2eDeYe]

On 8/8/2022 at 9:57 PM, mpanzar said:

here’s a link to the transfer case diagram:

1988 Stanza Transfer Diagram

 

That is about as direct drive as you can get. Don't want to run that in 4wd on the pavement for sure. 

[mpanzar]

Good news. The 4wd is functional at the moment. Although, the indicator light still does not turn on and there is an odd beep that happens occasionally when engaging. I took the car to a gravel lot yesterday and engaged the 4wd. I started crawling around the lot and did not feel the binding I mentioned earlier. Once I got comfortable I launched the car and to my surprise all the wheels kicked up gravel simultaneously. Additionally, when I drove on to the pavement everything seemed ok. Regarding the binding I mentioned in the earlier posts, I only really felt that when the steering wheel was turned near the extremes just after engaging 4wd. I'm starting to understand the the transfer case a bit more and I believe the transfer case is driven directly from the the transmission. I originally thought it was driven through the transaxle differential, which would not make much sense in hindsight. I believe if the transfer case was driven from the transaxle diff the entire rear axle could become a victim of the open differential... making the car potentially 1 wheel drive under certain conditions. Im still trying to understand the OEM operation for the 4wd, for instances is there a recommended max speed for the 4wd? I'm starting to develop a feel for the car and engaged the 4WD on the street while on my way to work today (going in the straightest line possible). I can feel the load transfer to the rear wheels. But I agree with everyone regarding not using the 4wd on pavement so ill probably stop doing that. I'm going to troubleshoot the indicator light next and try and figure out the electrical logic. Thanks to everyone for all the input and interest.