2005 Stuck in four low

2005 TRD Sport 6 speed manual, 190k miles.
Shifted into 4 low today in dirt for the first time in forever. It shifted in fine, but would not come out.
No I didnt follow the owners maual for regular 4x4 exersise.
Yes I tried everything on the visor card.
Yes I went for and back 100 times
Yes I pushed the cluthch beyond the floor!

Basicly I tried it all. There is something wrong. I have power at the the dash fuse, but no power at the Tcase. I put a manual vac on the one vac line hoping that would dis engage but no luck. Any ideas where to look next? 4 lo light is on and only beeps when in 4 lo position, but when in 4 hi position it stops beeping but the lo light stays on.. I need my truck!

 

You checked for voltage at the t-case? This happened to a friend's Ford Exploder fairly often, and he remedied it by hitting the solenoid with a wrench. If the solenoid doesn't have voltage then I would start looking at a wiring diagram and take out a multi-meter. Sorry man.

 

I have tapped on the whole assembly already while switching the switch back and forth. Im looking at diagrams now. The 4wd ECU behind the glove box was beeping too...thats not normal!

 

Dash switch is good... anyone know what poles to put power direct to , to check the acuator?

 

Tap on your front diff ADD while its trying to switch.

 

You can physically shift it. Unbolt the actuator on the Tcase. Pull the shaft all the way out is 4lo. One click in is 4 hi. All the way in is 2hi. You can also unbolt (don't need to just an FYI) the front actuator and physically slide the ADD sleeve, and the same thing with the Elocker. I'll bet you a box of beer one of your actuators is bad, and my guess is that it's the one on the transfer case.

 

Did you turn off the truck while in 4x4? Leave the switch In 4 lo. Turn the truck off then open the key for 5 seconds then turn the truck.on and turn to 4hi them 2. Hope it helps

 

I will try a few more of these today. I am pretty sure the front diff is locked in also not just the t case. It may have to go to the dealer for diagnosis..

 

This happened to a buddy of mine a few weeks ago. He disconnected the battery for a few minutes then turned his truck back on and it switched back to 4H and then 2H.

 

Tried all kinds of things today. Ended up brining it to the dealer. It took them 2.5 hours to diag it. They claim both actuators are bad. And to start by replacing the ADD first in hopes the Tcase one will work after. They quoted me me about $1000 for the ADD, $400 for the Tcase actuator and about 12 hours labor. So somewhere north of $3000 to fix a big "maybe". Anyone have any other suggestions? This really sucks.

 

For that kind of money you could put in a manual shift T-case. http://www.inchwormgear.com/products/built-lefty-left-hand-drop-geared-transfer-case

I converted the factory Tcase to manual shift. If you are handy like that, it can be done for a couple hundred bucks and some head scratching. If you are not mechanically inclined, then pay the man who is. If you like to offroad, get a lefty installed for the same money the stealership wants. Another option is to source the parts yourself, buy a box of beer and a couple pizzas and invite some dudes over to help you install new actuators. I like Toyota of Dallas for parts- http://tps.toyotaofdallas.com/parts/index.cfm?siteid=214074


EDIT: did the dealership at least put it in 2HI so you can drive it? If not pop the Tcase actuator loose and manually shift it. It can be done and driving in less than five minutes.

 

I would be thinking about an FJ cruiser t-case (with a lever) if it got to this point. My last 05 had a brand new add actuator on it when I bought it a few years back. And one of the switches on t-case was bad so it never knew it was in 4 low and wouldn't allow the locker to engage. Guy traded it because the 4WD didn't work. Did you try manually actuating the t-case as described above? If not I hope your dealer was close or you got it towed. Sometimes I really miss manual hubs and especially lever-operated transfer cases.

 

I tried to maually shift the Tcase but could not make it work. Took the 3 12mil bolt out, and the assembly only will twist...you cannot pull it out of the Tcase. Also too the small plate off the side that is held on by 3 8mill bolts and tried to turn the gear and it will not turn....

 

Disconnect the battery for a few minutes and try it again.

 

it's a worm gear. The shaft has teeth on it like a rack and pinion kind of. Pop the motor out far enough so it's not touching the gear teeth and the actuator will slide on the shaft... then you can shift it. Let me see if I can find pics...

 

So are you saying to patially disassemble the the acuator? Or simply try to pry the accuator assembly away from the Tcase body?

 

Ya you have to take the black case loose to get the gear to let go. It's already broken, don't worry about hurting anything. I wish I still had mine to show you exactly how, but I tossed it. If I remember right you take the three 10mm head size bolts out of the black plastic piece, then inside is a clock spring, gear and contacts. Take all that off the metal side, and get the gear to come loose from the shaft, then it will slide on the shaft and allow you to shift it. It might be bound up a little, so make sure it's in neutral with the ebrake off, you might have to roll it an inch or two to get it to shift.

 

Well thats just it, im not exactly sure whats still good, and whats junk. I was going to pull that larger plastic cover off today, but thought I read somewhere that there is a coil or spring in there that will make a mess of things so I stayed away. Can this assembly be swapped out without dropping the tranny and tcase?

 

Yes. If you are gentle when you take it apart the clock spring will stick to the plastic side of things, making it easy to reassemble. Either way if you look at it for a couple minutes you can put it back together. You can figure out how to post on the internet you can fix it.

 

I work on motorcycles...... I hate working on cars.....HATE!