On a 4x4 if you have the FWD shifter in neutral will it hurt the vehicle?

) July 21st, 2010

If you have a vehicle like a Jeep Cherokee and you place the FWD shifter in the ‘N’ position would it damage the transfer case or harm the vehicle in any way? Will it improve gas milage? Advice from pro mechanic Jellies greatly appreciated.

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3 Answers

It’s not gonna go anywhere if it’s in N.

simone54 (7629

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@simone54 If you still have the transmission main non-4wd on ‘D’ why would it not? The main drive wheels will not be in neutral.

Hypocrisy_Central (26879

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Neutral is not a gear, neutral is the lack of a gear.

If you leave something in neutral it shouldn’t engage in any way/shape/form, so you shouldn’t be hurting the case or anything else. If you tried say, shifting it into a gear while it was moving, you would likely do damage.

As far as gas mileage. “Theoretically” you should see some improvement (less drag on the engine=better gas mileage), but I would have to guess it would be modest at best. A 4×4 fan website would be a better place to ask this question, my knowledge on them is very low.

tedd (14078

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