air noise from trans/transfer; shifter movement

[forestdan7]

10/85 FJ60, H42, non-rebuilt transfer

I've been trying to piece an answer together from old posts, but it's not working that well.

A couple thousand miles ago I noticed that my transmission and/or transfer had gotten a lot louder. 1st through 3rd are alright, but when I shift into 4th I get a sound like rushing wind.

Comes through the floorboard loud enough to drown out the cell phone, and when I've got the windows open, I can hear it even better. Not a whine, but a loud "sshhhhhhhh".

I've just recently noticed some pretty good movement in the shift lever. Taking off from stop in 1st, it moves a good inch backwards, then back forwards when I let off the gas. No lateral movement, though (motor mounts are new).

Any ideas? Worn bearings? Busted trans mount? Time for a 5-speed? This is starting to worry me. Thanks.

 

[forestdan7]

Nobody? No wild guesses?

The FSM's only troubleshooting help is "jumping out of gear." It's not that bad yet. I guess that's a good thing.

 

[iaintscared1969]

Bad mount on the tranny and I would guess the breather cap missing or clogged, on your whoosh noise the boot on the the shifter is torn...Maybe a combination of both. But only a shot in the dark since I can't hear it first hand. Check it out what can it hurt.

 

[forestdan7]

Thanks, iaintscared1969. I'm about to climb underneath and check the gear oil levels, and I'll take a look at the breather while I'm under there.

I check these levels all the time and they're always perfect. But I can't help but check them just in case. I'm afraid I'll strip the transfer fill plug sometime soon.

As for the boot, do you mean the one in the cab over the shifter, or one underneath that one, or something else under the truck?

Probably do need new mounts, too. The rear main has been leaking since I've had her.

 

[iaintscared1969]

The one that covers the collar on your shifter to the tranny, under the one in the cab. But my bet is that when the tranny is getting warmed up and the breather doesn't release the air has got to go somewhere.

 

[forestdan7]

Appreciate the feedback. This is still kind of a mystery, though.

Breather on the transfer case was functional, but I couldn't find one on the transmission.

The shifter collar boot is torn, and it was sitting up off the collar. I smashed it back together and put it back in place, but that didn't seem to make a difference in the noise. I'll replace it as soon as I can get the part ordered.

Trans gear oil looks good, but the transfer seems overfull (came running out pretty quick), and looked a lot dirtier than I think it should with 20,000 miles on it. I haven't been through any deep water.

Mounts don't look bad, but they certainly could be giving more motion than they should.

I'm saving for a H55 right now anyway. But how will I know when to pull over and get it towed before trashing my transfer case gears?

 

[Esther]

Hi Forestdan7, I have a bit of a problem too and unfortunatly, I do not have a solution to yours, but rather a question. When I checked my tranny fluid, it came gushing out like yours did and looked a little dirty with only 5000 miles on the juice. Did your tranny ever make an odd noise that sounded like an revving motor but not as loud? Mine is making the noise, but it is not constant. It comes and goes and only lasts about 5 seconds at most. has yours done this? If so, then we should follow this "gushing fluid" clue in order to figure this out.
John
PS, I lived in Ohio once, but loved Kentucky!

 

[forestdan7]

Mine sort of sounds like a revving motor, but mine is more constant. You can really hear it best in 4th gear.

It's now progressed to being hard to shift into 2nd when it's cold.

I wonder if somehow I got some water in there, but I don't know how, as I haven't done any deep crossings since I changed the gear oil.

Definitely check both your transmission and transfer, as one overfull and one low means that the seal between them is shot.

I think I'll drain mine again and fill with some heavier weight gear oil, like 85w-140. Might be a cheap fix. But I have a feeling I'm putting off the inevitable: a 5 speed, transfer case rebuild, and a new clutch. Sounds like a good investment in the end.

And thanks for saying that about my old Kentucky home. I sure love it too.