Center diff lock stuck "on" (1 Viewer)

[300chris]

Interesting "issue" with my '08 200. Out wheeling today, had CDL engaged and in 4 lo, shifted back to 4H no problem, but cant seem to get CDL unlocked, it keeps flashing. Tried going straight and backing up (as per recs in instructions on visor) also tried turning the vehcile off, to no avail. My guess is a position sensor for the CDL as it seems to be unlocked, but won't stop flashing. Anoyone else had this issue?

-Chris

 

[Billfish]

But first try a tight reversing turn on full lock to assure yourself centre diff is truley disengaged. If engaged I have found that coasting in neutral can help a sticky CD to unlock.


If satisfied that it is actually disengaged then try this. Turn car off. Remove the battery negative terminal(s). Push the ignition button. Re-attach the terminal(s). Restart the car. This reboots the system and wipes any fault loops. (I had to do this procedure today after a phantom 4Lo light came on and VSC light flashed. Tried turning off and starting again a and again without success before going the whole hog on the batteries (diesels have two). This weird unrelated error was someow tripped after I had just repaced the fuel filter. I had to manually pump-prime the diesel filter reservoir and crank the engine over for a while until sufficient fuel was pulled through to the injectors and the truck spulttered to life. Somehow the ECU decided I had a problem with the VSC?? Weird.

If, after trying the system reboot the CDL light continues to flash, then I'd say yes you have a loose or dodgie connection/terminal on the transfer case or similar. I think somebody here had a similar problem recently. JB Horne was it? Do a search.

 

[BTUMAN]

I have accidentally hit the button a few time getting in the truck and it flashes as it is not ready to go locked just sitting there running in park. I stop, put in park, turn truck off, wait 5 sec and turn back on and it clears.

 

[soslo]

Every now and then the switch gets bumped and I realize it when the truck is hard to turn. Costing is N seems to get it "unstuck"

 

[drexx]

My current situation is not too good, but thankfully, I've parked my VDJ-200 (with AB60F transmission and JF2A transfer case) in a secure place after a steep climb.

Nothing smells bad, nor are any mechanical parts overheated or something like that, so I guess that's ok.

My problem is that it's currently stuck in 4Lo with CDL light turned "on." It won't go forward nor reverse at all, nor shift back to 4Hi.

According to this resource as my repair manual, the problem maybe the "park/neutral position switch circuit" or the "Transmission control switch circuit" or maybe even the ECM. Since it's still under warrranty, I'm going to ask the Toyota dealer to send over a mechanic with the parts replacement, and hopefully it'll get fixed.

http://www.moranbahweather.com/toyota/repair2/html/frame_rm000000w7307zx.html

I really miss the simplicity and reliability of the system for the H2FA transfer case.

 

[OGBeno]

I really miss the simplicity and reliability of the system for the H2FA transfer case.

DOOOD!!! You got a VDJ as well huh? Lucky guy! Hope you are well and maybe you should pioneer the HF2A swap to the VDJ200.

 

[r3run33]

beno you moved to georgia??? I thought you lived in arizona or somewhere out there?? Do you still keep in contact with anyone from Japan? Interested in the Dakar prep they are doing with the 200 series/bio diesel.

 

[ClrwtrBeachBum]

Thank you for the advice. Our 2002 sat for about a year as we took care of some family health issues. I washed the cruiser inside and out and hit the center diff button. I had a hard time turning off the center diff lock. I will check it out later today and remove the negative battery wire to reset the faults.

Cheers!

 

[studawg]

Thank you for the advice. Our 2002 sat for about a year as we took care of some family health issues. I washed the cruiser inside and out and hit the center diff button. I had a hard time turning off the center diff lock. I will check it out later today and remove the negative battery wire to reset the faults.

Cheers!

I think it got bound up mostly because it was cold when you attempted to do it. The grease in the mechanism gets hard, especially if its been sitting for a wheel. I would warm it up by driving it around, then attempt to disengage. I had this problem recently, had to jack up opposite wheels of the cruiser to twist it a little then put a space heater right under neath the Tcase for a while. It disengaged immediately after that.

 

[tbisaacs]

This just happened to me. Shifted out of L4 just fine but CDL light just flashed. No amount of forward / reverse fixed it. Ended up pulling the negative battery cable and it finally disengaged.

 

[mudtracker]

Just reviving this thread to see if anyone confirmed what caused the CDL to get stuck on

I recently had my CDL get stuck "on" which also caused me to get stuck in 4Lo
I found turning off engine for a period i was able to disengage 4lo, however CDL remained engaged
Tried the battery disconnection
Tried rolling in neutral
It kept blinking on/off but I could feel it was definitely engaged
Temps were in 80's so not a temp issue

My my mechanic told me to do two circles in reverse like a figure 8 then put it back into "N" and let it roll (do not put in "D")
Luckily It finally disengaged when I reversed it with full steering wheel crank. I was on the trails so I didn't have space for the 2 circles.

I'm planning to take it to my mechanic to help troubleshoot (check connections, ECU, Actuator, etc), but wanted to see if others confirmed what caused theirs to stick.

I'm so glad it disengaged since i was over 500mi from home

 

[TeCKis300]

There can be several different causes. Based on my experience, it may be electrical contacts in the actuator.

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

You might try taking a hammer and gently tap on the actuator box. That might be enough to get some of the contacts to work again. If only for a period.