Confirmed it's the actuator being replaced.

My 4Runner 2006 had water / corrosion on 4WD ECU (rear glove box), lights comes on and all system jammed in December after drive in very heavy rain. For winter driving somebody offer me to force to engage 4HI by put 12v current to TF actuator, and now the motor contacts are burned... The copper contacts can't touch the motor anymore. Is it possible to repair contacts???

Gents,

There are two separate motors in the actuator. If the 4 hi/lo light flashes, chances are the circuit is fine, but the motor isn't cycling fully to engage 4wd. So in this case the motor is spinning, but doesnt produce adequate torque to overcome the friction caused by non use. If 4wd doesn't engage, the second motor to lock the differential will not operate either.

As far as no one knows how to put it back together..removing the lower half of the actuator is simple..if you remove it and lower it straight down, nothing moves out of synch . I got the motors to turn on their own after gently rotating them with a small screwdriver. Took some back and forth, and having a helper cycling the switches was a big help.

It's been a couple years since I did this and everything still works fine �� I do make sure to engage 4 hi/lo every month or so to keep things moving freely.

There are other posts that go into completely removing the actuator (actuator shafts have c clips / bolts on to the shift forks in the transfer case so Toyota recommends completely removing the t case to properly remove the actuator shafts..an involved operation. A couple have tried work-a-rounds to do the actuator r&r without dropping the whole case by pulling the actuator off and leaving the shafts inserted in the t case, danger is damaging the actuator shaft seal with the teeth on the actuator shaft--they taped off the teeth during insertion--when the actuator is slipped back on) I didn't attempt r&r on the entire actuator so cannot attest to that procedures results.

I'm confused. I thought, on the V6 (VF4AM), one motor was for 4 hi/lo and the other motor was for the differential lock?

This is a huge distinction in diagnosing my problem since both 4-hi and diff lock work perfectly but 4-lo does not.

Looking at the FSM diagrams (here), shift fork no.2 connects to the "high/low clutch sleeve". I assume that means one fork/shift rod controls both hi and lo engagement?

So, nobody knows if its possible to repair motor cooper contact that lift of their position and does'nt touch anymore? If I replace only actuator, how can I synchronize all gears from actuator and TF case?

The mechanic who force motor to engage 4hi with 12v was wrong and put it in 4lo... Just realize it when driving and drove about 8 miles in this position, he told me that it was hard to change for 4hi after. Now contacts are burned. Is it possible that he broke something in TF because 4lo driving?

I have also just recently experienced an actuator gone bad. However, I found a leak from the actuator before shifting problems occurred and I didn't have any lights flashing. My T4R is an 04 V-8 AWD so my actuator gets me to 4wd low and locks the center diff. Trany/shifting issues are well above my pay grade so took to a shop.

1) shop confirmed leak was from actuator
A) told me I needed to replace actuator for 2600!!!!
B) I said no...you can replace only the Oring to fix the leak
C) They talked to foreman and he confirmed to the service writer this can be done for 1500 (only gaskets and Oring plus lots of labor)
2) after pulling actuator to replace Orings and gasket
A) shift rods were loose
B) needed to replace actuator
C) glad I found a 20% off coupon

Moral of my story and help to fellow runner users!!!!
A) Put T4R into 4wdL, lock center diff, and drive on dirt monthly!!!!
B) Let T4r warm up before shifting into 4wdL if possible
-this is what I didn't do pulling a neighbors stuck car out of snow this winter
-Expensive OOPS as I didn't follow either of my reccomendations
C) As others have said: USE IT OR LOSE IT

I hope this helps some not have to endure the $$$$$$$ I had to spend that could possibly have been prevented.

I feel your pain and am putting bi-weekly reminders in my phone.

(2003 V6, SR5, 4x4) Great news! 4lo started working on it's own a few days ago! About 5 months ago I changed the transfer case fluid to no avail. This week I finally got around to changing the diff fluids. That shouldn't matter but I thought I would mention it.

Temperature finally got above 90 degrees here in DFW. Drove around town all day in 4hi. When I got home I hopelessly set it to 4lo and it clicked right in! Tried it several times since then and it engaged every time!

My theory is that the warm temperatures loosened up whatever gunk was preventing the clutch sleeve from sliding into place.

Excuse my ignorance, as I'm just entering the market for a 4Runner.

If 4lo has failed, what is the tell tale sign? Switching to 4lo and the vehicle will not move? Or does one look for a switch to light up on the dashboard?

I test drove a 2008 4R SE with 85k miles a few days ago at an indy dealership; I tried shifting from 4hi to 2hi, then I tried shifting to 4lo. He basically scared me and prohibited me from driving the car in 4lo, saying it would damage the transmission unless I was on driving on mud or snow or rocks. I was able to turn the dial into 4lo, but didn't put the vehicle in motion in 4lo. Otherwise I drove it in 4hi the entire time.

I went home and did a background check on Toyota.com, and sure enough 1 month ago prior owner brought the 4R into a dealership with complaint of the vehicle not engaging 4lo. Estimated repair costs was ~$3k which the prior owner declined. So I suspect this 2008 4R had a failing transfer case actuator, which this dealership knew and failed to disclose.

A few days later I test drove a 2011 4R Limited CPO with 67k miles; dial was on H4L, I tried shifting to L4L in neutral, and heard a mild "clunk." I suppose this was normal since the 4WD system light flashed on and off. I then tried dialing to H4F, where the dashboard's 4WD light remained on, so I wasn't able to drive it in H4F... I was only able to drive it in H4L where the truck got ~8mpg! This Toyota salesman didn't know what H4F was....

Did both vehicles have failing transfer case actuators? Thoughts appreciated, thanks!

I don't know about then '11, but on the '08 SE you should have heard a click, then see the 4lo light stay on solid. It wouldn't have hurt the truck to drive in 4lo on the pavement for a bit as long as you didn't lock the center diff.

Heck of a first post on my part, but I'm about to lose my mind. I just bought my 08 SR5 4x4 on Monday evening from a local non-Toyota dealer. When driving home, I flipped it into 4H and the lights were blinking but I didn't give it much thought, just figured I was doing something wrong.

Well after fiddling more on the way to work this morning, then looking up a few threads on the issue, more fiddling (driving slow, coasting, accelerating, neutral, reverse, etc.), my truck won't shift into 4 wheel.

I have a call in with the dealership, but they don't open until 9 so I'm sitting here worrying msyelf to death over it. One of the reasons I bought the dang thing was for 4wheeling fun, and I sure as heck can't put 2k into it right now.

Since it was so recent, how much recourse do I have against the dealer? I'm going to try the simpler things mentioned in this thread, and leave taking the actuator apart as a last resort. God this sucks.

2003 Limited V8

My problem seems a little different than what I have read on here. When I move my dial to 4low, nothing happens at all. No lights blinking, no clunk, nothing. Before I start worrying about the actuator, I wonder if it could be the switch or wiring.

Any Ideas?

No ideas but similar circumstances. I just encountered the same issue with my 2008 Limited V8. Took it to the dealership and they just said that the switch signal was making it to the transfer case. Recommendation was new transfer case for $4,300 and then the light might start working... Didn't directly address the no blinking & beeping 4LO light on the dash or no illumination on the dial.

Once things warm up I might open up the dash to wiggle things around and test the wiring harness for my own edification.

Found on Rock Auto for my V8 the AISIN replacement for $504

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I forgot to update this thread.

I had a stereo installed and when the dude did it, he forgot to plug the switch back in. That simple! Had me scared as hell that I was going to be paying big $
for a fix.