No green 4WD light in Low Range

[eurasiaoverland]

Hi All

I just finally completed a major overhaul on my truck (took over a year) and drove it for the first time.

It's a 3RZ-FE with W59 (5 speed) transmission and a straight H-N-L transfer shifter.

If I press the 4WD button on the transfer shifter, I hear the actuator (I think) engaging, and the green 4WD light comes on in the instrument cluster. I was on concrete so drove a few metres in 4WD, turning the steering and could hear a clunk when I pressed the button to take it out of 4WD, which to me shows that it was already getting wind-up, and that 4WD was working correctly.

However, if I put the shifter forward into N or L, I get no green light.

In L I can feel that the truck is in low-range, and it drives. Again, I drove a few metres but the light never came on.

When I returned the shifter to H, I noticed the green 4WD light flash on for an instant, which makes me think that it was indeed in 4WD, but I have not tested this.

Can anyone suggest what the problem may be??

Two extra things:

1. I never drove the truck in 4WD before the overhaul (I did it pretty much as soon as I bought it)
2. I've had the shift actuator out and the clam gear apart, I might not have put it back together correctly (though I'm pretty sure I have, and it engages 4WD in H without a problem..).

Thanks,

EO

 

[TheDurk]

Hi All

I just finally completed a major overhaul on my truck (took over a year) and drove it for the first time.

It's a 3RZ-FE with W59 (5 speed) transmission and a straight H-N-L transfer shifter.

If I press the 4WD button on the transfer shifter, I hear the actuator (I think) engaging, and the green 4WD light comes on in the instrument cluster. I was on concrete so drove a few metres in 4WD, turning the steering and could hear a clunk when I pressed the button to take it out of 4WD, which to me shows that it was already getting wind-up, and that 4WD was working correctly.

However, if I put the shifter forward into N or L, I get no green light.

In L I can feel that the truck is in low-range, and it drives. Again, I drove a few metres but the light never came on.

When I returned the shifter to H, I noticed the green 4WD light flash on for an instant, which makes me think that it was indeed in 4WD, but I have not tested this.

Can anyone suggest what the problem may be??

Two extra things:

1. I never drove the truck in 4WD before the overhaul (I did it pretty much as soon as I bought it)
2. I've had the shift actuator out and the clam gear apart, I might not have put it back together correctly (though I'm pretty sure I have, and it engages 4WD in H without a problem..).

Thanks,

EO

Our 4Runners don't have the same configuration. I'm pretty sure all our 5-speeds came only with J-shifts. Do you have Automatic Disconnecting Differential(ADD) ? Are you able to tell if you have front engagement in 4L? Or maybe you are just in 2L?

I'm thinking you could have a bad position switch that is not engaging your ADD, and thus not causing the front diff to signal engagement to the dash light. But I have no access to your wiring diagram, so I can't suggest any troubleshooting other than pull and test all the position switches on the TC.

 

[eurasiaoverland]

Our 4Runners don't have the same configuration. I'm pretty sure all our 5-speeds came only with J-shifts. Do you have Automatic Disconnecting Differential(ADD) ? Are you able to tell if you have front engagement in 4L? Or maybe you are just in 2L?

I'm thinking you could have a bad position switch that is not engaging your ADD, and thus not causing the front diff to signal engagement to the dash light. But I have no access to your wiring diagram, so I can't suggest any troubleshooting other than pull and test all the position switches on the TC.

Thanks Durk

I think the first thing I need to do is drive it in 4L and 'feel' for transmission wind up as an indication that I have front drive. I live in the Netherlands and there is literally nowhere here that I know where I could get the truck in some mud and see which wheels spin.

Yes, I have an ADD. The truck is JDM and seems to have the same transfer box (according to ToyoDIY) as some of the Luxury / Limited type of V6 A/T (but not 5 speed) 4Runner.

The electronic actuator only locks the front drive hub in the transfer box, so since H4 engages correctly I think the actuator is fine (phew!). The H to L is still done by hand (and must also trigger the actuator to lock the front drive hub).

As the light comes on in H4, I don't think the problem is at the front diff. I'm pretty sure I also tested the front diff switch.

So I suspect one of the two indicator switches up on the transfer case next to the shifter base which are moved by the detents in the transfer shift fork shaft.

At best I have front engagement in 4L, and it's just a dodgy switch / connection...

Worse would be if there is a disconnect between the engagement of the transfer shift and the electronic actuator, but I guess this would most likely be a switch problem too...

As you say, I think I'll just have to pull the various switches (hope I can reach them without dropping the transmission)...

 

[TheDurk]

Exactly. If you can can confirm lack of front engagement in 4L, then position switch is likely culprit.

I strongly suspect this is the case.

If I had your wiring diagram, we would know which one it is, and we could test it without pulling it. If I were you, I'd invest a few Euros on TIS for a 2-day pass and get all my EWDs and as much of the Factory Service Manual as I had the patience to download.

 

[eurasiaoverland]

So I got to the garage today, tested both the switches.

In H they are both open

In N they are both closed

In L one is open only (can't remember which, think it is the more forward switch)

So both the switches work.

Now, back home, I look at the technical diagrams and see that when I rebuilt the transfer case I put the switches back in the wrong way round!

So hopefully, the computer was just confused by a wrong signal, and I'll have front engagement in low range!

What is TIS??

Thanks,

EO

 

[TheDurk]

So I got to the garage today, tested both the switches.

In H they are both open

In N they are both closed

In L one is open only (can't remember which, think it is the more forward switch)

So both the switches work.

Now, back home, I look at the technical diagrams and see that when I rebuilt the transfer case I put the switches back in the wrong way round!

So hopefully, the computer was just confused by a wrong signal, and I'll have front engagement in low range!

What is TIS??

Thanks,

EO

It's a Toyota site for downloading technical info. Unfortunately, I now see it covers only North American vehicles:

https://techinfo.toyota.com/techInfoPortal/appmanager/t3/ti?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=ti_home_page

Maybe there is something similar for your market.

On my rig, both are closed in Low, and only one in High, which is the one that controls the ADD. I assume both are open in N, but I have no idea. The Low only switch talks to the ECM (Engine Control Module) and the rear locker, if present. So yours definitely works differently, but having them in the correct holes sounds like a good thing to try.

EDIT: I found a link on TIS that might work for you, if not for this, in the future:

http://techdoc.toyota-europe.com/

 

[eurasiaoverland]

AFAIK there are no official Toyota FSMs in English for the JDM Hilux Surf, but I may be wrong. The gearbox is covered in the Tacoma FSM though.

Strange that the switch configuration seems to be totally different between the two transfers, but mine has to communicate to both an ADD actuator and an electric 4WD actuator, so it's plausible that the switch configurations are different. And the switches are controlled by the notches on the transfer shift fork shaft which cannot be put in the wrong way (think). So if the switches work, that's all OK.

Will report back once I have the switches in their correct holes.

 

[TheDurk]

AFAIK there are no official Toyota FSMs in English for the JDM Hilux Surf, but I may be wrong. The gearbox is covered in the Tacoma FSM though.

Strange that the switch configuration seems to be totally different between the two transfers, but mine has to communicate to both an ADD actuator and an electric 4WD actuator, so it's plausible that the switch configurations are different. And the switches are controlled by the notches on the transfer shift fork shaft which cannot be put in the wrong way (think). So if the switches work, that's all OK.

Will report back once I have the switches in their correct holes.

Ahh. I didn't realize you were JDM. Anyway, good luck.

 

[eurasiaoverland]

Swapped the two switches today, had to drop the transmission on the cross-member and reach down through the cutout in the floor to reach the switches. Tested them both and they are perfect.

All back together and I get low-range and the green dashboard light.

So the blue switch goes forward of the green one.

Thanks for your help and thoughts,

EO