Failure to shift from 4wd to 2wd and check ABS system light came on

I did some rough off roading a few weeks ago and ended up getting stuck in a deep puddle, I had plenty of issues to fix and i got around to it pretty quick. Replaced the dead starter, flushed the differentials and got the water out of the front one, completely tore the cabin apart to keep mold from growing and any smell starting. Then I had to replace the drivers side axle seal on the front diff before refilling it. All in all it took a week to fix it but the truck ran great afterwards. I thought I was finished with my troubles until this morning. I start my truck so I can head in to work and the dash lit up with “failure to shift from 4wd to 2wd” and “check ABS system”. I’ve been reading and I know there’s a various host of issues it could be but I’m thinking there’s water in the transfer case, maybe bad bearings for the ABS system or some host of sensors on the hubs or differentials. Not sure. Are there any other things I should look at to help narrow this down?

 

Easiest path is to Scan it. Abs failure will not allow transfer case shifting as it can’t ensure correct wheel speeds. Once you have a code your life will become much easier. ABS is a simple system with a bad rep

 

Thanks, sorry I made a secondary post after I got a code reader. Can’t remember the code it threw but it said there was an error with the transfer switch circuit, which led me to looking at the transfer case, and the actuator. The actuator had a hose vent that leads up to someplace I still can’t find, but had been disconnected. Opened up the actuator and out came pouring water and mud. Long story short, cleaned it, dried it, timed it, and threw it back on the transfer case, then changed the t-case oil and the code went away.

 

Glad to know you got it fixed. I freaked when my truck got an ABS light.

 

same here man! Although nothing compares to how I freaked out when the truck got stuck past the door panels in a deep puddle. I had water inside the truck up to the bottom of the seats. Took me about 80 hours but I tore apart the interior and cleaned it all off, then scrubbed the mud from the cabin and pulled/dried off the electrical connections. Pulled the door panels off and wiped off the speakers, and had to detail every inch of plastic on the dash. After that, I had a leak in my front diff because my breather got stuck shut and a hot diff into cold water, it sucked in mud from the axle seal. Flushed that, changed the rear diff fluid too as a precautionary measure, and my starter was fucked too so I had to buy a new one and put that in. After that it was the 4x4 shift error and that’s how that went. Saved myself a lot of money doing all the repairs and maintenance myself, and I consider my self an “entry level driveway mechanic” now haha! Next investment, a snorkel and a breather relocation kit!