manual locking hubs 97 Pathfinder SE, auto trans, stick 4x4

[MountainMan97]

My 97 is automatic but the transfer case is manually shifted with a lever, no buttons or switches. Can locking hubs be used on my vehicle? I need good solid experienced advice here, this is my daily driver.

[moymurfs]

They most certainly can. Milemarker and Warn make manual hubs for your pathfinder. Installation is pretty easy also. People who have done it say it makes the steering feel a bit lighter and you may gain a mpg also. Putting the vehicle into 4wheel drive would just require you to step out and lock the hubs first. Then use the lever as you are now.

[starman8tdc]

I put some on mine. They were only $100 for the pair on eBay, but they were not Warn brand.

[Hooligan]

I bought some of the cheapies too, they didn't last a year. The bearings got noisy when freewheeling. Now I have a set of Warns.

[starman8tdc]

Bearings? There are no "bearings" in these hubs.

[Hooligan]

No bearing? There has to be something in there, maybe a well lubricated precision bushing? When the hubs are disengaged and the transfer case is in "N" then the spline part of the hubs are not turning while the outer part of the hubs are turning at wheel speed. There has to be a bearing to isolate the part of the hub that is turning from the part that is not turning. Mine started making a terrible screeching noise intermittently when disengaged but, no noise when engaged. I had every intention of replacing the bearing but couldn't get the hub apart. You'll notice that the allen head screws are undersized and therefore the allen wrench is so tiny that you can't get much torque on them if the threads are seized. I ended up having to drill out 4 of the 6 screw heads to get the access cap off. Then there was no point in trying to rebuild them. You might want to put some grease on the threads of the allen screws now to make it easier to take them apart in the future.

[starman8tdc]

If they were making screeching sound, you probably ran them dry. You should pack a lot of grease in there. Just make sure its the same type of grease thats in the wheels bearings. Different types of grease DO NOT MIX, and doing so can destroy parts. From the sounds of it, your hubs have been submerged in water or mud at some point, and not re-greased?