Outlaw

Hey everyone i've got a 97 limited and recently i pressed the lock rear diff button and now the lock wont diengage i dont know what to do cause its almost impossile to drive now please help

4runner4ever

Check your fusebox first.
And don't drive too long with the locker engaged. Driveshafts are expensive

RobT2k

Have you tried to drive in little half circles? I usually just have to go left and right a couple times and it disengages. If that doesn't work, I would look into the electrical aspect of it, wires, fuses, etc.

AznSky

isn't there a way you could manually disengage it? I think I read somewhere when somebody was comparing an air locker with a e-locker

Outlaw

Any idea which fuse controls the diff lock or some more info on how to dissangage it manually

data

I had this problem a couple months ago. Mine was locked in the lock position for about one month. It really did suck driving it around like that. Since then I haven't pressed the button. I believe you can pull the motor out of the diff and slide the ring over which then will unlock it. I had no problems driving with it locked except for the fact that it ate my tires to hell.

Outlaw

i c so ur saying that it stopped by itself or did u pull the motor out? What if u were to disconnect the wires to it ?

data

Well mine disengaged when I was going around a corner one day. I tried everything before that, well except for taking the motor out. I tried driving in little "S" turns, reverse, you name it I tried it. Then one day it just clicked over as I was going around a turn. Well it wasn't a soft click. It was a rather loud clunk, bang, boom. I have yet to see if it still works. If you disconnected the wires nothing would happen. It would still remain locked.

Outlaw

I tried looking for fuses and i couldnt find a fuse that controls the rear diff lock does anyone know which one controls it. Also my rear gate window does not function could it be the same problem

Flygtenstein

If the gremlin is electrical, wouldn't the locker just unlock?

Sounds to me that it is mechanical since it is staying locked.

Clogged breather leading to locker motor failure or something similar. Data has pointed you on the right track.

Mad Chemist

A couple of comments/questions:

1) Are you sure that its actually locked, ie. you feel the axle bind when turning? I don't mean to ask the obvious, but I've actually got an electrical fault right now with my locker in which the light on the dash says its locked when it isn't. I can still engage/disengage my locker with this problem.

2) If you crawl underneath and look at the wiring going into the locker motor, you'll see two bundles of wires. One with 5, and one with two, if I remember correctly. Try disconnecting the smaller of the two bundles, then drive in an S-pattern and see if that will disengage the locker. The locker should not be able to engage with that smaller bundle disconnected, but I don't know if it'll help you disengage.

3) Make sure you're driving nice and slow, <5 mph, when trying to disengage the locker.

Sorry if any of this is common sense, just throwing out some options.

transalper

Just some ideas . . .

First off I'd check and clean all the electical connections under the rig. There's one plug that connects the harness to the e-locker harness and then the other two that connect to the diff itself.

When you press the switch can you hear the ECU relays click? It's located by your left foot rest behind the kick panel. If you don't hear anything that might indicate a fuse or other electrical problem (although I'm not sure if the ECU will make noise if the e-locker motor is stuck in the locked position). Try it with the e-locker detection circuit unplugged from the diff (the plug with two wires coming out of it).

Here's a good way to test if the locker motor is working normally:
http://67.122.16.97/carterman/4runne...er/#CONTROLLER To do this I'd jack up the rear end and put the axle housing on jack stands so you can move the wheels to help align the axle splines so it'll unlock more easily.

If that doesn't work then start checking the harness for power.

Meanwhile you can pull the e-locker motor and manually disengage the unit. I have never personally done this before and would want to see some pics before doing it myself.

4runner4ever

If the locker is in the locked position it will stay locked when the supply voltage is removed.
Check your manual for which fuse. I only have a manual for the 2 gen.
The correct way to fix your problem is find the schematics and measure the voltage at the wiring harness on the locker. Or have a friend do it. It's really quit simple if you have basic electrical skills.
But first, check ALL your fuses just to make sure. Especially those in the engine compartement box.
Recently I had 4 blown fuses due to the fact I haven't used it in a while. No time for off roading. Turned out to be corrosion inside the connector in combination with (probably) a sticky electric motor. I use it more frequent now and the problem never has occured since than.