[MoparDave]

I had often wondered if you cud shift into 4wd if not rolling. Someone had said that it you could. We had snow and sleet overnight here in western NC and I was anxious to get out and play in it with the RC this morning. In the past I had always got on the street and shifted into 4wd while rolling and it was always a very stiff operation that required some effort. It had been so long since it had been in 4wd I thought I'd try it before I got on the street. To my amazement the shift lever just plunked into 4wd with no effort at all. I almost had the streets to myself. The closed supermarket parking lots were unmolested so I had a ball sliding around in the slick stuff.

 

[Elwenil]

You can usually shift the transfer case but sometimes the gears don't line up and you might have to inch forward a bit to get it to go it.  Also be aware that on a CAD equipped truck, just because the transfer case is engaged doesn't mean the axle is.  It's usually better to engage a CAD truck with at least a slight roll.  My NP205 will usually shift through the gears while sitting still, but occasionally I will have to bump the clutch a bit to spin them so they line up correctly.  Similarly my NP435 will do the same with 1st and reverse at times.

 

[SuperBurban]

With a working CAD, it is better to be moving at least a little. If you are stopped in the snow, with the rear wheels spinning, and grab for 4wd, the transfer will shift, but if the axle shaft splines are not lined up, the CAD unit will put pressure on the splines, until they do line up, then it may grind a bit, until the CAD sleeve slides over.

My opinion, it is better to put it in 4wd, when you park it before or during a storm, You can always take it out of 4wd, before you leave if you do not need it.

 

[MoparDave]

What does an "88 RC with a 318 have?  And if you maybe recall some months ago I was posting about and unusually long time it took with the starter spinning (abt 8 secs) for the engine to start. Never did locate the problem BUT it sat for about a month with no activity. When I tried to fire it off  Saturday in preparation for the snow and sleet, the battery was dead and I cud not get it to take/hold  a charge, Bought a new battery and  WAA LAA, it starts almost instantly now. I am so proud of my RC. I had it painted factory original color (Garnett something), the rusty spots in front of and behind rear wheels replaced with steel panels. I get so many compliments on it. Thanks for the help!

 

[Elwenil]

'85-'93 1/2 tons and light duty 3/4 and 1 tons with the D44 are all CAD trucks.

 

[MoparDave]

who is a good supplier of the rubber products (door seals/gaskets, door glass window runs, etc. I had all of the rubber seals replaced except liftgate gasket) when i had  it  painted. I have more wind noise that I ever imagined. I ordered the vent glass rubber not knowing that none were made aftermarket for an 88. So I want to re-order the rubber seals again (from a different supplier) and have them installed by pros.

 

[Elwenil]

A poor fitting vent window is an excellent cause of a lot of whistling and noise at highway speed.  Unfortunately, a lot of these noises were there even when new and no one really cared about wind noise in a truck back then.  Dodge didn't really think much about it until '88 when the "GM" style mirrors came out and even then the mounting post causes all sorts of noise.  The BR series is the first truck where they took wind noise seriously and I remember sitting in the dealership watching the "T300" design video from Chrysler going over things like the mirror and door design and the twisted radio antenna and how it was all going to cut wind noise.  Most of the guys in the shop laughed about it.  These days it's easy to forget that these trucks were not nearly as quiet as later models are.  Thinks like post mirrors, sunken windows, vent windows, rain gutters, and protruding door handles are all things that are going to cause wind noise.