Hey yall

Freak blizzard just hit where i live. Went to use 4x4 on this 84 s10 blazer 2.8 auto i just bought. 4 hi doesnt work and needs to be "held" in place for light to come on. 4 low works but whines like a banshee. i know i need new cv boots as well. Do you guys think its the switch on the transfer case or the actuator beneath the battery holder. extemely time sensitive i need this fixed ASAP.

Thank you all in advance for your help!

 

Hard to tell what the issue is. If 4 Low works, then the vacuum system and actuator is probably ok. If I remember right that switch did one thing, whether you were in HI or LOW. It was either popped out when the lever moved allowing vacuum to pull one way or was pushed in and let vacuum pull the other way. Id guess the 4 Hi issue is a linkage adjustment issue. Does it go into gear (i.e. 4 Hi) when you hold the lever forward?

 

it doesn't work in 4 hi or 4 low now it seems

 

On mine the vacuum actuator is close to the battery and easy to get to. you could get some cheap vacuum hose and try to find a vacuum port to borrow and see if you can engage the actuator to pull the front diff collar over. Hopefully that's it, you can make a cheap work around till better weather. If that isn't the problem its in the T-case, possibly the linkage not engaging fully. To check the linkage you probably want a dry piece of pavement to crawl under it.