4WD Engagement Issues

[Tanner1789]

I have read through many threads on this site regarding my issue but have not been able to apply it to my situation here. I have a 2002 SR5 Sport with 193K

My current situation is that when I press the 4wd button I dont hear the normal click of the 4wd system engaging, I have owned it for 5 years now and I know what the normal click sounds like and it doesn't make it. After not hearing the click, the indicator light will continue to blink regardless of any trick that I try to get the 4wd to fully engage. When I turn sharply the front end begins to bind up which leads me to believe that the truck is in 4wd, just not fully engaged.

So after this happened I brought it to my local mechanic who said that he "took the transfer case motor off, cleaned it up and lubed it up, and reinstalled it". After this the system worked flawlessly. I heard the click like normal and was able to engage and disengage the 4wd as needed. He also said "while he was under the truck he could hear the motor trying to move but it seemed to be stuck".

A week later I tried to engage the 4wd again and it went back to the same problem as before with the binding and blinking lights. I brought it back to him and he said a few light taps with a mallet on the transfer case motor did the trick. But he says that the Transfer case motor is the issue and will need to be replaced. Said and done it will be a $1700 job.

I have seen in other threads that the position switches could be the cause of this problem as well and was wondering if anyone who experienced a similar issue could add their input. I'm not sold on it being the transfer case motor quite yet because removing it the first time made it work just fine.

Any input would be greatly appreciated as I am hesitant to put $1700 into a truck with 193K on the clock.
Thanks in advance

 

[sab7896]

I actually went through a similar scenario this past weekend. My '01 would go into 4wd but the dash lights continued to blink and I could not get it out of 4wd. No amount of driving forward/backward or turning the wheels got it to pop out of 4wd and the lights never went solid indicating that it was in 4wd when in fact it was. After reading about the issues with the switches failing I checked mine and found one was not working. I ordered it through my local dealer and had it working the next day.

It takes less than 5 mins to remove the switches and check to see if they're working. You'll need a 27mm wrench/socket or a 1 1/16" (happens to be the same size as 27mm). There's 2 switches on top of the transfer case. Unplug them, remove them and test them with a multimeter. The switch has 2 prongs. Pressing the switch in completes the circuit. If you don't have a beep when checking continuity with the switch pressed in the switch is bad.

Note that the switches are identical other than the connector so pay attention to which one goes where when you pull them out.

Hopefully that's what your issue is and if so it'll cost less than $100.

 

[Tanner1789]

Thank you I'll check that out this weekend. Hopefully that will work here.