hey so i picked up a nice 97 4 Runner and so far so good except…. Diff lock doesn’t work. I can hear the relays clicking and the actuator engaging and disengaging but the light won’t stop flashing and it won’t engage even after lots of tight S turns and donuts to try and get it to engage as i’ve heard they can be a little finicky. yes i am in 4low. wondering if anyone has some insight before I insure my other vehicle so I can start tearing into the diff.
Thanks in advance!

 

Is it in 4lo?? My buddy had a 99 with a rear diff lock and it’s been a while but I thought he told
me it only worked in 4lo…..I could be wrong though I’m sure someone will chime in to verify.

 

Check this out.

The motor may be turning, but not engaging because the gear is stripped.

Take the actuator off, and bench test it. Let us know how it goes.

 

yup in 4 low in low gear. like i said i can hear the actuator moving but it’s just not fully engaging i guess.

 

I've had a couple issues, one when the magnets came unstuck (if that's it when you stick them back on they are in a particular north/south order)
And an intermittent/weak lock action because the wiring between the motor and hanger by the gas tank had degraded so that it wasn't getting all the juice depending on how it was sitting under there.

 

I tried taking the harness off and checked it for any corrosion or loose wires but it all seemed good. possible i missed something or it’s farther up the harness as i only checked the part that goes from the body down to the diff. could you explain the magnet thing a little more? i’m not quite sure i understand. like the electro magnets in the actuator?

 

My harness looked fine, a continuity test between the plugs while it was moved in different positions sussed it out. Was one of the power- one of the two bigger wires. I could hear it sort of work, but it couldn't get the job done. Intermittently it was fine and sometimes I'd get nothing.

And from the other e-locker problem I had. In this case it was engaged when the magnet glue failed:
Symptoms: E-locker would not disengage. No sound coming from the actuator. the top of the magnet housing did get warm.
Problem: Magnets came unglued. One broke. Normally these would be evenly spaced.