4L and CD issues in our new 2008 LC (3 Viewers)

[cjcarter25]

Hello everyone, new member and first post here. We recently purchased a 2008 LC as an off road rig/occasional street driver for my husband. We are longtime 4Runner owners and Toyota fans and are looking forward to a step up with the LC. Vehicle was a trade in with lots of aftermarket mods already completed, dealer did not seem to know what they had. PO had lots of upgrades done, but did not seem to actually off road it much, if at all.

I’d love your help/suggestions on some issues we are having with the 4L and CDL. Here’s the series of events…

1. When test driving the vehicle we noted it did not want to always want to engage in 4L. Sometimes when turning the switch to 4L (push in and turning knob) it would not engage, when it did engage it seemed to be sticky and not always want to go back down to 4H. At this point it worked intermittently. Center diff. was the same, worked sometimes but not always. Dash indicator light for 4L showed when it was engaged, same for CD.

1. (Chevy) Dealer tech worked on it and did not resolve issue, possibly made it worse. (We are aware of the common actuator problems and negotiated to deal with this on our own.) After the tech “worked on it” 4L will no longer engage at all, when turning the knob nothing happens, no indicator light on dash comes on. Green light in the 4H/4L switch/knob is illuminated. When you push the CD switch the dash light now blinks and it does not engage. When I press the switch again to turn CD off it continues to blink, if you try repeatedly it will show a “Check VSC System” alert in the dash.

Would appreciate your feedback on where we should start with getting this fixed. I’ve read about the common problems with the actuators and feel confident about doing the repairs, but wanted some expert advice before just buying expensive parts.

Thanks and looking forward to some adventures in our LC soon!

 

[onelittlestar]

new owner of a 2010 and experienced some of the same with my rig, particularly when the drivetrain is "cold". I played around with this on the beach, CD lock would continuously flash and would get stuck in 4lo prior to running at a higher rate of speed to get the fluid temps up. I tested this multiple times over a couple days with same results. When warm, no issue with engaging CDL or going between 4lo/4hi. I also noted I have a nice weep/leak on my front diff...yay

 

[cjcarter25]

new owner of a 2010 and experienced some of the same with my rig, particularly when the drivetrain is "cold". I played around with this on the beach, CD lock would continuously flash and would get stuck in 4lo prior to running at a higher rate of speed to get the fluid temps up. I tested this multiple times over a couple days with same results. When warm, no issue with engaging CDL or going between 4lo/4hi. I also noted I have a nice weep/leak on my front diff...yay

Good thought, I do remember reading another thread where they talked about letting it warm up and trying again. Taking it to go get inspected tomorrow so I'll give that a try.

 

[onelittlestar]

Good thought, I do remember reading another thread where they talked about letting it warm up and trying again. Taking it to go get inspected tomorrow so I'll give that a try.

I would go cycle through multiple times to get a feel for the truck, it is only about 15 yrs young I got stuck with a flashing CDL multiple times along with the VSC, to which I replied with a hitting the stop/start and running it through again....

 

[Tex68w]

I would be willing to bet that the CDL wasn't used very often if at all and that's what lead to the issue. Problem number two was letting a Chevy/GM tech touch the vehicle. Regardless, congrats on the new to you 200, it looks like a nicely optioned build and once this CDL issue is resolved and the truck is baselined, you should have a great travel/off-road rig for many years to come.

 

[cjcarter25]

I would be willing to bet that the CDL wasn't used very often if at all and that's what lead to the issue. Problem number two was letting a Chevy/GM tech touch the vehicle. Regardless, congrats on the new to you 200, it looks like a nicely optioned build and once this CDL issue is resolved and the truck is baselined, you should have a great travel/off-road rig for many years to come.

Thanks, and agree. It was not our preference but dealer was not acknowledging that there was a problem until the tech looked at it. In the end we figured we could get it worked out if they made the deal sweet enough. We've got our first trip planned to Red River in a few weeks so ready to get this sorted.

 

[1Maverick]

This is a good reminder to take my cruiser out this weekend for a little off-road to work the 4L

 

[ThRiLlGmYr]

I sometimes watch the TFL channel on You Tube and they have had problems getting Toyotas into 4 low a number of times. I just bought a 2013 LX and had the same problem. It did eventually go into 4 low, but I don't know if the problem was general Toyota being finicky or an actual mechanical problem.

 

[1Maverick]

I sometimes watch the TFL channel on You Tube and they have had problems getting Toyotas into 4 low a number of times. I just bought a 2013 LX and had the same problem. It did eventually go into 4 low, but I don't know if the problem was general Toyota being finicky or an actual mechanical problem.

I’ve had four 200’s and never recall having an issue engaging 4lo. However, I did use 4L several times a year and which might be the problem with older 200’s that never use it. I don’t understand the point of people buying something like a 200 and never take it off the pavement when they spend all that money for the capabilities to do so. Similar to G-wagon owners.

 

[ThRiLlGmYr]

I’ve had four 200’s and never recall having an issue engaging 4lo. However, I did use 4L several times a years and that might be the problem with older 200’s that never use it. I don’t understand the point of people buying something like a 200 and less never take it off the pavement when they spend all that money for the capabilities to do so. Similar to G-wagon owners.

I also watch The Car Care Nut Toyota Mechanic channel and he always talks about putting you part time 4WD in 4WD at least once a month. I guess maybe the same goes for full time center diffs and low ranges. I am going to test it this weekend and see if it needs to go to the dealer.

 

[Tex68w]

Yees, these things need to be exercised regularly. Actuate the CDL, transfer case, differential lockers, air compressors, etc. at least once every 4-6 weeks.

 

[ThRiLlGmYr]

Yees, these things need to be exercised regularly. Actuate the CDL, transfer case, differential lockers, air compressors, etc. at least once every 4-6 weeks.

I think my problem on the test drive was the car not being warmed up. We drove a quarter mile and then stopped and I tested it. I just grabbed breakfast and tested after driving around for about 20 minutes and it went straight into 4 low. Come to think of it, in at least one of those TFL videos he turned on the 4Runner and immediately shifted it into 4 low.

 

[cjcarter25]

I got the report from the Chevy tech who worked on it at the dealership. They reported that the switches on the dash were not reading the correct ohms and needed replacing. Thoughts on if these readings are correct, or could this just a symptom of something else within the CDL and 4L systems?

Trying to determine the best path forward to getting it back up and running. Thanks y'all

 

[TimCFJ40]

That seems like complete BS on the switches. Did the Chevy Tech take the switches out or disconnect anything while he was in there? That would explain why they do nothing now.

My 2008 has intermittent issues with Diff Lock and 4LO. If I use them when the truck is hot, they work great. If I exercise them regularly they seem to work better. So, if I were you, I'd do the following:
1) Verify the tech didn't break anything in the switches since the behavior changed since he touched them to check the resistance (which is complete BS in my experience)
2) If the switches are verified intact, take the truck out and drive it to get everything good and hot. Like over an hour at interstate speeds hot. Then try and engage 4LO/Diff Lock
3) If they work hot, try using them frequently (like once a week or more) until they work reliably. Then make sure to continue to exercise them regularly, like once a month to keep them from getting sticky.
4) If all else fails either replace the actuator, or service it as described in this thread: I may do mine if they stop responding to the regular exercise.

Transfer Case Tuneup and Fix

Transfer case actuator issues are not uncommon on the 200-series. Not much documented solutions other than exercising the mechanisms regularly. Here's my attempt to provide more information on where and what the actuator is, how to service the transfer case actuator motor, and potentially...

forum.ih8mud.com

Good Luck and enjoy your new toy!

 

[cjcarter25]

That seems like complete BS on the switches. Did the Chevy Tech take the switches out or disconnect anything while he was in there? That would explain why they do nothing now.

My 2008 has intermittent issues with Diff Lock and 4LO. If I use them when the truck is hot, they work great. If I exercise them regularly they seem to work better. So, if I were you, I'd do the following:
1) Verify the tech didn't break anything in the switches since the behavior changed since he touched them to check the resistance (which is complete BS in my experience)
2) If the switches are verified intact, take the truck out and drive it to get everything good and hot. Like over an hour at interstate speeds hot. Then try and engage 4LO/Diff Lock
3) If they work hot, try using them frequently (like once a week or more) until they work reliably. Then make sure to continue to exercise them regularly, like once a month to keep them from getting sticky.
4) If all else fails either replace the actuator, or service it as described in this thread: I may do mine if they stop responding to the regular exercise.

Transfer Case Tuneup and Fix

Transfer case actuator issues are not uncommon on the 200-series. Not much documented solutions other than exercising the mechanisms regularly. Here's my attempt to provide more information on where and what the actuator is, how to service the transfer case actuator motor, and potentially...

forum.ih8mud.com

Good Luck and enjoy your new toy!

Thank you! Yes, I’m calling BS on them pulling switches and testing, they don’t look like they’ve been touched at all. We haven’t had luck getting CDL or 4L to engage even when warm so looks like we will try servicing the actuators. From what we can tell PO never used 4L or CD so it’s likely been a very long time since engaged.

 

[highfructose]

For anyone experiencing similar issues:
My 2011 lx had sticky and goofy cdl and 4lo issues intermittently…I started driving through the front yard in 4lo w center diff locked once per week or so and the problems have almost completely abated. The only time it’ll cause issues now is if I introduce bind to the equation…I find that if I get the vehicle in neutral w foot off the brake, it’ll engage 4lo and center diff quick…if I make a turn in the yard and then try to disengage the 4lo and diff, it’ll often take longer and sometimes stick…if I ensure I’ve driven several feet straight (no turning) and then take my foot off the brake in neutral, it’ll quickly disengage the lock and go back into 4hi.

I assume the solenoid/actuator doesn’t like to “lock” or “unlock” into the teeth of whatever gears are in there if it’s “tight.” Neutral no brake and no bind from turning seems to give the solenoids/actuators enough slack to do their thing.

 

[mbennett22]

I had the exact situation you did when I bought mine in Dallas a few years back. They didn't want to negotiate after we drove 6 hrs to get there. The sales man said they would just take it to the auction and would get more than what we wanted to pay. I was frustrated and handed him the keys and went to get our girls to leave when my wife who is as stubborn as me lol, overheard the sales man say they aren't going to take it and high fived each other. My wife walked right into the managers office, a minute later there were 7 people in the office and they made us a deal. Took it over to Duggy's in Houston and they changed the fluids in the transfer case (was getting it baselined) and it started to work.

Now with that said we just got back from Colorado 2 weeks ago and this same thing happened to us on Hagerman Pass. I got stuck in 4L for half the pass, I kept trying to do that trick of driving forward and reverse with no luck but thankfully got it unstuck. With reading all the comments I know part of my problem to be not exercising 4L and CDL. Question is how would one know when it is just that time to replace an actuator?

 

[cjcarter25]

Thought I’d give an update with what we’ve found…

Main culprit of our problem ended up being quite small: the knob for the 4WD switch is stripped.

Hubby suspects the Chevy techs did this since he had been able to get it to engage occasionally before they touched it. He was taking a closer look and realized the knob pulled off quite easily and he was able to use his fingers to push and twist the little rod inside the knob to engage 4L. It now engages every time (when you twist the little rod), but I haven’t had any luck finding a replacement knob without buying the whole switch for over $100.

Once we engaged/disengaged 4L a few times the CD button also started working. Guess they just needed some loosening up and very grateful we didn’t start buying and swapping any parts before we realized what was going on with the switch.

Anyone have ideas for where we could buy a new knob (aside from a junkyard)? I haven’t yet found a part number aside from buying the whole switch.

 

[onelittlestar]

Epoxy and send it

 

[afgman786]

Yup I'd go with an epoxy locktite super glue or something and call it good