Hey everyone.
I just inherited a 97 AWD 4dr blazer. It has its share of redneck hillbilly backyard mechanic fixes during its not soooooo long history having had 11 previous owners.lol
It does have a a few quirks left in it that I am trying to fix.

First one is whenever I start out from a parked position my back hatch unlocks like I have hit the release button.My back up lights also stay on until I get moving.Not sure if they are both related but I kinda think they are since both happen after moving the shifter.
Is there a ground wire I should be looking for,somewhere?I think this because the leather or vinyl around the shifter had been removed and not properly seated.

Second problem is I have to replace the front diff.I checked out the fluid hoping it was low and found a rather disgusting milkshake in there.The bearings are howling like dog with its tail caught in a blender. I rinsed out the diff with a bottle of brake clean as best I could and refilled the diff with new oil but that poor hound is still howling.A replacement will hopefully be found soo. Do they all have a 3.73 gearing in them.I am hoping that is what I have in the front.The rear has a 3.42 I believe.

I am open to suggestions because I have no manual at the moment.
Much appreciated Ray!


More quirks to follow...soon!

 

I'm not sure about your electrical problem there, cause I'm terrible at electrical. lol I have a couple of issues in that department that I'm tryin to fix too.

Your Front should be the same as your rear end. If they aren't, then some one switched one of them out with the wrong one and putting it in 4wd would kill your tranny or transfer case or an axle. Because one set of tires would be moving faster then the other set of tires.

As for your dog howlin in the front end, it could also be the hub bearrings goin out. One of mine was whining & the other was grinding, changed out both a couple months ago.

sorry I can't be more of help to ya, but this is all my tiny brain will allow me to remember for now! lol

 

I will ask that question again in the proper section but I always understood the front gearing to be a bit higher then the rear.

Has anyone got a wiring diagram for this truck or a linky to some?
I do believe it to be a ground wire or wires that may be causing the problem with my back up lights and my rear door.
Has anyone else had this problem?

 

As grimm said, your front and rear are geared the same. Check out the RPO codes in your glove box to see what the gears were from the factory. Also, like he said it wouldn't hurt to check out the hubs.

 

I will check out the hubs properly but there is no side to side or up down play at the wheels.I am pretty sure the front diff bearings are fubar.No idea how long that milk shake was in there.

So does anyone have wiring diagrams for 97 awd 4dr blazer.I would like to figure out this rear dr and back up lights problem? Thanks.