so tonight i needed to use 4wd to get in and out of parking spaces (not plowed)... first i got stuck in the alley so stopped to put it in 4wd and seems like it didnt go in all the way.. played with the lever and it was fine, got out of the alley, put it back to 2wd (pavement visable) drive around looking for parking find a spot, put it in 4wd no problem... park in the snow and leave it in 4wd cuz i will need it to get out... few hours later go to leave back out, pull out into the street, go to put it in 2wd and i wont budge.. i can move the tc to N and 4lo but wouldnt go into 2wd.. i tried putting clutch in while in gear, put it in neutral with the clutch in and out, nothing.. tried moving back and forth.. finally i forced it into 2wd. get home, same thing lots of spots that are plowed in, put it in 4wd, start pulling in, hit the deep snow and have to give it more gas and i hear a loud bang and it popped out of 4wd.... move the lever around put it where it shows 4wd and it makes like a noise like if you grind a sycro on a manual trans cuz the clutch isnt in all the way.. mess with it more its in 4wd (so the lever says) but only 2 wheels are spinning... so bascially i got stuck in my lifted 4x4 cuz the 4x4 is not working for some reason and i am really pissed off.. anyone have this happen to them? would this be related to my tc drop or did i just blow my tc? its an NP231
A) Your TC linkage may just need adjusted since you put a TC drop in. A TC drop is putitng strain on your TC, and the linkage can't handle it. Depending on the amount of TC drop you had, you'll most likely put to much strain on it and it won't function properly. I've found the best way to adjust it on the NP231 is to undo the little bolt on the long shaft, put the TC in 4L and than put the shifter in the 4L, tighten the bolt on the shaft again and it should be close to being adjusted correctly.
B) Due to the strain by not having it adjusted properly you could of trashed one of the bushings that holds the "z" into place. The rubber bushing's go bad and the entire linkage falls out and won't function properly. It'll bind and not let you move the lever. Crawl under your XJ and look at the linkage, if it looks like the photo below you'll need to replace the bushings.
