my first ooops

[Kalashnikov46]

a few weekends ago while doing my 3000 mile oil change, i decided to check my transfer case and diff fluids. i bought the truck 3 months ago ( yes ive put over 3000 miles on my vehicles each month), and changed the oil, but with winter, work, and school, i never got around to checking them. second oil change i replaced pads, and did a complete brake system flush, along with a radiator flush. on this 3rd one it dawned on me that i had forgotten them.

now back track to a month ago. its snowing and the streets are ice. i deliver pizzas at night and so i had the truck in 4 hi. im traveling down the road and it kicks out of 4 high into neutral and starts grinding. i pull onto a side street with it the tranny in neutral till it stops grinding, go to stick it in in 2 hi and it wont go. 4 hi is a no go either. it goes into 4 low. then im magically able to go all the way into 2 high again. i dont stick it into 4 wheel drive again for about 3 days. heading to a date and it does it again. almost was late to our movie. a few days after that im towing a broken down ford (imagine that) in about 2 feet of snow. i get to our shop door where its drifted up and right in the drift the truck decides it hates me . i pull the truck into the shop with a forklift and manage to do the neutral to 4 low to 2 hi tricky again. hadnt stuck it in four wheel drive since. hence why i never removed the lumber from the back, turns out they're excellent sandbags.

now fast forward to weekend before last (or whatever my join date was as that was the day). im doing that oil change. i check my diffs. low, but not unreasonable, can still touch fluid with my finger fully extended going up and down. i stick my finger in the transfer case. no oil. i even bend my finger and still cant touch any. i start filling. it took 4 quarts to fill it. i think it only holds 4 and a half.

now when it goes into and out of 4 wheel its perfectly smooth. but now and yeah i know it binds on dry pavement, but its binding up at only a quarter turn when i turn. before itd only bind at a full turn. is this normal. it bound up so bad i had to stick it revers to get it unbound to steer correct again. it just seems that its binding a little to much even if it is on pavement.

now time for bed. have to be and ready for class in 4 hours. lol

[James McClure]

The bind is normal, BUT, it is VERY common for the "U" joints in the front drive axel to go bad, and this will exagerate the bind big time. Look at the joints and see if you can see any "rust trace", a bright orange powder comming out of a joint cap. If you do, it's toast, replace them BOTH with the greasable ones from NAPA and get the tool to grease them. While your at it, check all the other "U" joints as they have a nasty tendancy to fail one after the other. As far as the transfer case goes, it be mine, I would find why it leaked dry, then fix that, then test operation and listen for nasty noises. If it works and is quiet, keep it full and drive it. Jim