Ok will maybe try the aftermarket one and if it doesnt work i can return it. Probably gonna pull apart the other side today or tomorrow afternoon.

 

So this afternoon I pulled apart the RF hub assembly, and much to my pleasure, I found the plate and bearings in much better shape. The plate has minimal to no wear rings, and isn't pitted at all. The strut pole looks brand new, and everything in general is in much better shape. That side has never had trouble engaging, so I put it back together and left it alone. Now I remember that this is the side which had oil in the hubs, the LF was pretty much dry. The LF coil does pull the old ring in from about 1/4' away, just doesn't have enough grab because it is bent so bad. Hopefully in a few days I will have the new ring and we will be good to go!!

 

If the left hub was dry check for signs of seal leaking either from the hub seal or back of the strut from the strut seal. Usually will be a oily dirty mess in these areas if they are.Running dry on fluid can cause internal damage or add to it.

 

Yes, it was initially dry when it was given to me, but I immediately filled it up and did the same with the other side, although it did have some fluid in it. I had a question, my dad is an auto mechanic and said when he puts together trailer bearings that are tapered, like this hub, he tightens them finger tight and leaves it. At 12 FT LBs, the hub didn't turn super freely, so I backed it off a little. Does the manual specify the 12 ft lbs? After I backed it off I couldn't loosen it by hand, and the AWD worked fine so I left it. Also, The OEM plate was 2 times the price of the other one so I will probably give it a go.

 

Seems every year model that the hub nut torque changed. Early models without the castellated nut used a "rolling nut torque" which never worked right.Those we torqued to around 20 foot pounds and they seemed to work ok.Then with the first cotter pin and nut they started out with 10 foot pounds. Even later models had a max setting of 144 inch pounds(12 foot pounds). That's where I usually torqued them to after preloading the bearings to 15 foot pounds,backing off the nut then a final 12 pounds torque. If you have to back off the nut a little to line up the cotter pin holes then that'd leave you somewhere around 10 foot pounds.Hand or finger tight may work on some tapered trailer bearings but you're not dealing with an armature plate that rides up against a hub coil either. Final torque needs to be at least 10 foot pounds or the awd system won't engage properly or you'll either end up with warped plates like the one you have.

 

Ok, I will make sure there is at least 10 on them

 

I also need to replace the air filter at some point and wondered if a Uni is better than stock? From the sounds of it they are way better, and not much more pricey than a stock replacement. Just wanted to see what some thoughts were!

 

Either an oem paper filter with the prefilter or an Uni would be my choices. If an Uni gets clogged with dirt the engine will just die from lack of air. Not much of a chance of dirt getting past it.And they will last for years if you take care of them.

 

So today I got the new plate in the mail and a few minutes later we were re assembled and ready to go. After several test runs it was confirmed- I now have full 4wd in forward and reverse! So thankfully the plate fixed it and we are good to go. Thanks for all the help OPT!

 

Plates are the cheapest parts of the awd system but one of the most important parts.