How bad did I break it?

good info and good guess on what we’re were doing. I was in fact trying to create some traction by going switching from reverse to drive, although not in crazy rapid succession.

also was rocking the truck and pulling from the front.

hope you guys guessing at the CV axle Weak point have it right, but won’t know for about another hour or so.
Meeting with a local recovery group that’s local here in Utah. If you’re ever in the area I recommend saving Utah OffRoad Recovery as a good resource. UORR. haven’t gotten out yet, but from my interaction with the group so far they seem to know their business and do it well.

 

Will Update with Pictures and more info when we’re out.

the truck yesterday seemed drivable. Who knows what condition it’s settled into overnight. Will be checking the oil (in case it was leaking from the oil pan) but based on the evidence from yesterday I don’t believe it was that.

the big question will be if I can isolate it into 2WD.
I tried switching it to 2WD yesterday but don’t think I was successful. (Couldn’t get the 4x4 indicator on the dash to get out of the blinking mode)

 

I want to say CV axle.
But not being able to get it out of 4wd has me concerned. It should come out of 4wd with a busted CV. Maybe with all that happened, you were doing something right.

if you bust the CV in the right place, it can damage the axle seal in the diff.
This would be best case for you.

 

Interested to see what happened because my first thought is that if these trucks are that fragile I may be selling mine. I would never expect one of these trucks or any midsize truck to have an issue like this trying yo get unstuck in the snow.

 

Agreed. And symptoms and this armchair diagnosis seem to fit. I bet it's a broken CV axle .

 

Another vote for a CV, always start at the weakest link and work up from there.

 

Yours makes the 3rd failure I have read about if it is the ADD. Both were rocking D to R rapidly, one on snow one in mud. Failure happened when it caught traction

 

CV...Its the weak link...like a collarbone...easy to break. Also fairly easy to fix.
Tow it, dont drive. Not so much for the expectation of more damage, but as a safety precaution to the general public.

 

Any update @BlueFox18 ??

 

Update:

Met up with the Utah Off-road Recovery Club guys and gal. We ended up taking a bad-ass international Scout and a Jeep Gladiator back up the trail to where I left the taco parked last night.

was able to crawl underneath it and see that, indeed, both front CVs are blown.
I’m hopeful still that that’s all that’s busted but I’m not 100% confident or convinced. Something more liquid was definitely leaking when it all blew up.

took both trucks to get us all out of there. The snow was packed down and tires deflated even to 8PSI had a hard time keeping traction. Ended up blowing the bead on a tire in the last 200 yards and had to Hi-lift the front end to get it re seated. The onboard air came in handy though.

Anyway that was the worst of it. Once we had all 3 trucks hooked up in sequence it was pretty easy going. Once we got to the staging area, was able to have it towed to the shop I’ll have the repairs made at. Have to wait till Monday for the full butchers bill.

will update with photos later

 

Fingers crossed for you OP, this is one thing that is always in my mind when we're out and about in the middle of nowhere. I'm glad you both got out easily enough and have help that can get back in there and get your truck out!





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The question in my mind is that if it is a CV axle or a diff that failed, why is there no report of loud nasty noises when trying to drive in 4wd? Also, he implied the problem affects both wheels. I realize he reported oil leaking from the diff area, but could this be a transfer case or transfer case actuator issue? Need more info.

 

Holy crap man! Well if you're going to break something no sense in doing it half assed! .




I'm glad she's out and on her way to being fixed.

 

Glad you got out. Hope the bill isn’t too bad.

 

Wow, both CVs? I’ve not heard of that happening. It seems especially weird in low traction snow and mud. I’ve beat the crap out of my trucks and cars in similar conditions and never broke any drivetrain components.

I’m happy you got it out. What an adventure.

 

Possibly during the time the two CV’s grenaded the axle seals decided to walk away as well.
But yes, still hard to say nothing happened to the diff quite yet since both weak links went at the same time.

OP, glad you got your truck out. Keep us posted

 

Fingers crossed for sure!!

Did you notice a burning smell, or did you hear any noises from the dif after?

 

Was the front end spinning still when you were going from drive to reverse? I’m no mechanic but how do both go at the same time? Like what circumstances would make that possible so I don’t ever do it lol.

 

Switching.from reverse to drive quickly, trying to rock a vehicle to get it unstuck, can allow bad things to happen.

 

If you lose a CV that's it, one is all it takes and the dif doesn't work. It is possible some thing in the diff broke hence the ADD not shifting. Hate to say it but you have to try real hard to break stuff like that.