Engaging low ratio

Spent the weekend doing our first bit of proper off roading in the D40 and come across an annoying characteristic of the D40 and wondered if this was normal.

When driving in the muddy stuff I switched over to Low Range (4Lo) and it took a LONG time to switch from 4Hi to 4Lo and often required me to drive back and forth a couple of car lengths or so at least 3-4 times before it stopped flashing and engaged. While this flashing was going on the truck had little power and nearly none in the 0-1500 rev range. Eventually it would kick in to low range and run fine. A similar rigmarole had to be repeated to switch back out to 4hi.

This presented obvious risk because the time you are most likely to need to call upon 4Lo is when you are stuck and want to use the low range to unstuck yourself. As was the case at one point when we got stuck in a boggy bit (nothing huge if I still had my Patrol but enough to bog the Nav). So I selected 4Lo and tried to apply a bit of power but the 4lo just flashed on the dash and didn't engage. I waited a good 20 seconds and no engage. So I applied a little power and still it flashed. So I decided to have a go at getting out assuming the 4Lo would kick in eventually.

Now I'm not the ham fisted idiot type to try and full throttle it in low range and the look surprised when i dig deeper and coat bystanders in mud. i know to apply the power gentle and crawl/pop it out. However it lacked any power and had no real bite on the clutch right up until clutch full out whereupon it just succumb to a faded stall (didn't even judder or lurch into a proper stall).

In the end I restarted, reselected 4Hi and managed to work her out forward and backwards. Then for the rest if the drive whenever we looked like getting near some mud I put her in 4Lo well in advance, did the backwards and forward dance to get it to engage and then drove the bit in question in 3 or 4 th gear in 4Lo just in case.

Now I know my last truck was a Patrol (1 GQ and four GUs) which has nice reassuring clunky leavers to engage 4hi and 4lo so you knew when it was engaged, but I presume I should be able to select 4Lo with the electronic whizz bang system from a standing start just the same, or is this not the case?

Is this a design feature (i.e. this is normal so just get used to it) a fault (so go talk to Nissan but don't expect them to have a clue) or some sort of operator error on my part (fault in the nut behind the wheel)?

cheers

to select LOW you must have it in NEUTRAL and be STATIONARY. If you read the manual it says NOT to move the car while engaging LOW range or you can DAMAGE your driveline.

If you STOP the car put it in NEUTRAL with your foot on the brake it should make a quite noticable CLICK and be in LOW and only take a couple of seconds.
To go back into HIGH you need to do the SAME, STOP then NEUTRAL and BRAKE BEFORE selecting HIGH.
To go from HIGH to 2WD you can do that on the fly so there is no need to stop (although i do)

yeah i dont think its normal the 3 d40's i have all engage from hi to low straight away. sometimes it take's a few seconds when rolling to come out of hi range to 2 wheel drive tho, all three of mine are manuals

But one thing is to put it in low before u need it... So if you come upto something your unsure about have it in low range ready to go. Well that's what I do any way.

Better to be in low range before you (have to stop and starting sinking) need to be.

Cheers fellas. I'm fairly certain we have been stopped and in neutral but will give it a concentrated try tomorrow and see. It is possible I wasn't in neutral but was certain,t stopped each time. Cheers

If its not in neutral that light on the dash will flash forever.
It sounds like when you were going between 1st and reverse gears to "rock it back and forward" that it went into low while you were in the transition between gears, therefore it was in neutral for a second which allowed it to go in and must of given you the impression that it was the "rocking" that allowed it to select low.
will be keen to hear how it goes tomorrow all the same.

What they said.

It's not precisely "vehicle must be stopped". In exact terms, your foot must be on the brake pedal. There are switches that bring on the brake lights and there are ABS sensors that tell the computer that you're not moving. The gearbox knows what gear you're in - the manuals have the dreaded neutral position switch (NPS) and the autos have a whole bloody computer in the sump of the gearbox.

With ALL THREE conditions satisfied (stopped, on brake in neutral) THEN the transfer case will switch over and you'll hear - and possibly feel - the thing clunk as it changes.

4LO is absolutely unmistakeable. Touch the gas gently and she moves like half the car is missing.

And as a couple of people have mentioned, I always put mine in 4LO before going into any tricky stuff and take it out when I'm through - sorta like one less thing to have to worry about.

Yeah, pretty basic rule of 4wding...prepare, prepare, prepare. You shouldn't find your self in a situation where you need to engage low range part-way through an obstacle.

As for getting into low range, if you follow the procedure then it happens within a couple fo seconds. If you are following the procedure, then something is obviously amiss.

Ok fellas, tried as described as I'm sure it will be no surprise to hear it all worked perfectly. Thinking through what I was doing before it was he pressing the break I wasn't doing, never needed to hold the break peddle down to engage 4lo in any of my previous 4x4s but then I've not had an electronic selection before always the nice clunky lever.

I double checked by not holding the break in but following all the other steps described and 4Lo didn't engage. So mystery solved.

Cheers for you help fellas, saved me a lot of heart ache.

Enjoy