Transfer in going in neutral? Help!

[jdigitty]

2006 4runner V6 sport

Everything was good working order used the 4wd H and low with the center lock last month. A few days ago I try to put it in 4h and nothing.


So i tap the transfer it goes in 4 hi then low, I leave it in 4hi and go drive when I shut it off and come back i get flashing 4wd and center light. Tap tap tap back in 4wd good to go right?.... NO


This is the crazy. I try to go 2wd and then back nothing happens. I get flashing light i was in neutral put in drive get a low hum hit the gas hum get louder go to reverse same thing. Then i put in park and sound like when don't come to a complete start and throw it in park. It's like it's in neutral or stuck in between gears.

The truck's 4wd has work fine used it at least every month. Last time i used was at Uwharri.

 

[Ruffian]

Sometimes things get kind of bound up. The trick I use is find a safe place where I can roll freely in neutral when I let off the brakes. I will use this method to go into 4 low and to get the transfer case unbound. The trick is patience! I've had to wait as long as a minute for things to sort themselves out. You don't have to be moving at a discernible speed, just barely rolling freely.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Sometimes things get kind of bound up. The trick I use is find a safe place where I can roll freely in neutral when I let off the brakes. I will use this method to go into 4 low and to get the transfer case unbound. The trick is patience! I've had to wait as long as a minute for things to sort themselves out. You don't have to be moving at a discernible speed, just barely rolling freely.

I have good luck with this as it is something I have done on a couple of customer's cars complaining about binding/stuck shifting, ect.

 

[TowMeOut]

Good News

Whew.....that's good news. Not that your truck got kind of "hung up" in neutral but that it's happened to other folks.

I destroyed my shift actuator a few days ago after spending several hours trying to unsuccessfully un-stick it from 4Lo. I shifted the rods manually and stuck jammed them in place with a zip tie.

I had the truck up on jackstands in the driveway trying to diagnose another issue and greasing the driveshafts. When I got done I got exactly the same hum/grind symptom trying to go into Park. I was pretty sure the Tcase has to have a "neutral" position between 2Hi and 4Hi but it should be a narrow window.

Right now I've got the busted case on there just as an oil seal so I can still drive it. Tomorrow I'll cram the shift rod in all the way (back into 2Hi) and figure out a better way to secure it until my new actuator comes in.

Wish me luck....I'm planning to plug in my new actuator and run it back and forth several times, taking a lot of photos and measurements for reference. I'm hoping I can get it into a "neutral" position (2hi, CD unlocked), dismantle the box (while taking a ton of photos and marking the gears), then reassemble it on the t-case using the old shift rods.

This sounds doable since there are a few threads now not so much about timing the t-case but at least carefully disassembling it, replacing seals, then putting it all back together (basically the same thing I'm doing).

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Whew.....that's good news. Not that your truck got kind of "hung up" in neutral but that it's happened to other folks.

I destroyed my shift actuator a few days ago after spending several hours trying to unsuccessfully un-stick it from 4Lo. I shifted the rods manually and stuck jammed them in place with a zip tie.

I had the truck up on jackstands in the driveway trying to diagnose another issue and greasing the driveshafts. When I got done I got exactly the same hum/grind symptom trying to go into Park. I was pretty sure the Tcase has to have a "neutral" position between 2Hi and 4Hi but it should be a narrow window.

Right now I've got the busted case on there just as an oil seal so I can still drive it. Tomorrow I'll cram the shift rod in all the way (back into 2Hi) and figure out a better way to secure it until my new actuator comes in.

Wish me luck....I'm planning to plug in my new actuator and run it back and forth several times, taking a lot of photos and measurements for reference. I'm hoping I can get it into a "neutral" position (2hi, CD unlocked), dismantle the box (while taking a ton of photos and marking the gears), then reassemble it on the t-case using the old shift rods.

This sounds doable since there are a few threads now not so much about timing the t-case but at least carefully disassembling it, replacing seals, then putting it all back together (basically the same thing I'm doing).

I wouldn't use the old shift rods, in fact I'd just swap the new transfer case over and call it a day.

With how much it sounds like you've been forcing the rods they may have bent/deflected some which might cause binding.

It's up to you.

 

[TowMeOut]

So far I haven't "forced" anything. Without the box in the way the rods move freely back and forth by hand. Actually, that's kind of the problem. Without the box in place there's plenty of room to put a ziptie around both rods and lock them in place (2Hi unlocked). Unfortunately, the actuator box is also the oil seal. Once I reinstalled the case there's not enough room around the 2-4 shifter rod to keep it held forward (2Hi location). I had the truck in the air on jackstands turning the driveshafts back and forth so I could grease them and changing the diff oil. Apparently, that was enough to work the 2-4 rod into "neutral".

In some of the drawings it looks like the t-case has detent balls that should kind of "lock" the rods into a particular mode but I'm not sure which ones. It's hard to tell by feel if I'm pushing/pulling the rod past a detent or just overcoming the friction of engaging/disengaging the gears.

I rolled under it this morning and pushed the rod forward maybe 1/4" with my fingers (no tools needed) and it clicked back into gear. I can definitely see how a slight error in the box timing is going to cause big problems. The diff lock rod has 16 teeth and the 2-4 rod only 10 (maybe 1" long). That short space constitutes 2Hi, 4Hi, and 4Lo.

 

[RonJR]

Manually shifted transfer cases have spring loaded detent balls that drop into indentations in the shift rods to make sure the shift rods stay put. I don't see anything like that in the drawings for the electronically shifted version, so I assume that the actuator mechanism is what holds the rods in the proper place for whatever range/function you select. Without the detents they should slide freely, for sure.

In the VF1A case on my '94 (manually shifted), the detent balls are quite strong, to the point you have to pry with a screwdriver to slide the rods manually with the shift lever removed. You'd know if your tcase had real detents.

 

[Jeopardy954]

Not to hijack, but has any aftermarket company come up with a manual-shift kit to replace the electronic actuator and not necessarily the whole T-case? Seems like plenty of people would want it.

 

[TowMeOut]

There are a few threads where some very skilled folks have done a 1-off manual setup. As mentioned already you'd need to do a number of things. 1st....the actuator has the oil seals so you'll need it to do that in addition to shifting. Since the case has no detents built in (maybe there's space inside but they're not installed?) the levers will also have to somehow "lock" into the proper position. Lastly...you're going to either have to manufacture some new shift rods or modify the OEM ones to connect to your shifter setup. That too is no trivial task.

For the number of units an outfit is likely to sell I think they'd have to charge a grand or more plus the labor involved in installation. I know I don't have that kind of cash......

It was a pain but my actuator is back together and it shifts beautifully. I set a reminder on my phone to nag me once a month to shift it into 4-Hi-Lo-Lock so I don't expect to have any more problems (I hope)....