Ah ok that’s the difference. My 4Lo actuator didn’t have a microswitch in it, but the CDL did. It’s a 2013 so it’s the TC made by Borg-Warner which specs 75W LF unicorn tears too
Transfer Case Tuneup and Fix
- Thread starter TeCKis300
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@xssfox glorious autismo. hat tip!
This is a brilliant discovery. There should be enough wrecked Tacos out there (just given volume) to make these findable. I did a full uninstall and rehab on my switch, and it works like a charm again, but a full RnR would have been much easier. They come out, you just have to not use gorilla paws.
btw, before reassembling ours, I took a bunch of close up pictures of the microswitch as I thought I might need to 3d print a replacement in the future. I haven't created a model for it but I suspect a fairly standard switch could be used provided that it makes when the metal guide runs across it both forwards and backwards. I think its linked elsewhere, but the datasheet also contains probably enough dimensions as well to build a replacement. I was actually just considering trying a roller style switch.
www.dropbox.com
Dropbox
Brosario. Whoa. I looked for that for ages! I am low skill (now verified). At one point I was just going to try to order a thousand of these and give them away to make Cruiser friends and gain Land influence.btw, before reassembling ours, I took a bunch of close up pictures of the microswitch as I thought I might need to 3d print a replacement in the future. I haven't created a model for it but I suspect a fairly standard switch could be used provided that it makes when the metal guide runs across it both forwards and backwards. I think its linked elsewhere, but the datasheet also contains probably enough dimensions as well to build a replacement. I was actually just considering trying a roller style switch.
Dropbox
FYI if the hair-thin copper contacts fail, the plastics won't help much. I have a thread with pictures on here somewhere where I dissect this thing. Much fragile.
Well done, again.
Thank you very much for sharing the tutorial and pictures. I successfully repaired my 2008 LX570 this afternoon.
I simply cleaned it and reinstalled it without modifying the metal contacts. I think as long as the contact is good, there should be no problem.
One thing which you need to be careful is the small switches. They are very dirty inside and require patient cleaning. After cleaning, their resistance returned to normal.
I simply cleaned it and reinstalled it without modifying the metal contacts. I think as long as the contact is good, there should be no problem.
One thing which you need to be careful is the small switches. They are very dirty inside and require patient cleaning. After cleaning, their resistance returned to normal.
Before cleaning, the switch wouldn't turn on when held up by hand.
CDL position before install the motor:
H4/L4 position before install motor:
After reinstalling it, it's amazing. It used to take 5-10 seconds to turn on, and sometimes it would get stuck. Now it turns on in 1-2 seconds.
CDL position before install the motor:
H4/L4 position before install motor:
After reinstalling it, it's amazing. It used to take 5-10 seconds to turn on, and sometimes it would get stuck. Now it turns on in 1-2 seconds.
This is the way. Nice work.
Ahh the dreaded flashing CDL light strikes again. Anyone know/guess the size of the breather hose? Last time I had to chop off the end since it was hard and cracked, but the line had so little slack that it's all used up. I would like to find a barb splice fitting and some hose to give myself some more breathing (ha, see what I did there?) room.
A suggestion here, which makes sense given the high-heat location: Transfer Case Tuneup and Fix - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/transfer-case-tuneup-and-fix.1215394/post-14387535
...also, search this 19pg thread for 'hose,' and you'll find a ton of references; possibly one to ID/OD as well.
Yes, installing a barb connector and additional line was the plan, as stated in my post. I did search this thread for 'hose' and there are no mentions of size. I checked the Tundras.com site and it might be 4mm or so. I'll get some from whatever autoparts store and will report back when I get around to fixing this.
I don't remember the size. But I do remember it was a common one. If you take the current hose to any auto parts store they can match it.
FWIW, I had cleaned up my cdl actuator in the past but I was getting a flashing light still. I tried all the forward, reverse, but it pressing it a bunch type tricks but nothing would keep my light solid.
I tore it apart again today and bench tested the motor (pass), checked switch continuity (pass) and verified the clocking. What I did ensure this go around was that the 9th tooth lined up with the hole on the case (where the sprocket rides) and it seemed to fix it. I have heard to push it all the way in and there was some discolored grease on the shaft where the sprocket previously sat so I was skeptical of this being the issue but I had nothing to lose.
I positioned the rod so the 9th tooth sat centered on the hole and it seemed to fix it. It should be noted, this was NOT pushed all the way in, so who knows but I wanted to throw this out there
I tore it apart again today and bench tested the motor (pass), checked switch continuity (pass) and verified the clocking. What I did ensure this go around was that the 9th tooth lined up with the hole on the case (where the sprocket rides) and it seemed to fix it. I have heard to push it all the way in and there was some discolored grease on the shaft where the sprocket previously sat so I was skeptical of this being the issue but I had nothing to lose.
I positioned the rod so the 9th tooth sat centered on the hole and it seemed to fix it. It should be noted, this was NOT pushed all the way in, so who knows but I wanted to throw this out there
Any luck with this? My brother just broke one of these on his truck and I figure I need extras for myself.btw, before reassembling ours, I took a bunch of close up pictures of the microswitch as I thought I might need to 3d print a replacement in the future. I haven't created a model for it but I suspect a fairly standard switch could be used provided that it makes when the metal guide runs across it both forwards and backwards. I think its linked elsewhere, but the datasheet also contains probably enough dimensions as well to build a replacement. I was actually just considering trying a roller style switch.
Dropbox
First off, thank you to all the folks who posted in this thread previously, your comments were a huge help!
I recently installed the Aisin parts for the CDL and Hi/Lo actuators. For those of you that haven't yet completed the repair a couple of notes that really helped were to 1.) Lift the vehicle so that it is stable on jack stands prior to starting the process so that all four tires are clear of the ground, 2.) Once on the stands, put the vehicle in Neutral, 3.) Disassemble the actuators on the vehicle - The CDL(Top) actuator gears will come apart - don't worry about it (more info later). The bottom actuator gears will come apart - don't worry about it (more info later). 4.) Extending the rods (away from the transfer case) engages/locks the CDL (top) or the engages Low Range (bottom). 5.) Do not use a cable tie to hold the gear inside the CDL actuator when reinstalling. Instead, just use a piece of string tied around the gear and the case. I ruined two gaskets (thin rubber) when I pulled a cut cable tie (sharp) over through the case. The string will accomplish the same thing and not ruin the gasket when extracted. 6.) Like a dummy, I didn't take a picture of the inside of the newly disassembled Aisin actuator - it may have been clocked correctly too so careful when disassembling the new part and take pictures of the gears in relationship to the case. 7.) Be sure and zip tie the breather to the actuator prior to to reassembling damage covers/skid plates.
With the Aisin parts, reinstallation was easy for me if the actuator rods were fully inserted into the transfer case and the gears clocked correctly. The only way to know if the rods are fully inserted is to rotate the drive shaft (or tires if you have a helper that is not under the vehicle) while trying to insert the actuator rod. You can't hurt anything, so play with it a bit. Press in on the rod as you turn the wheels/drive shaft manually. You will feel the rod actuator rod reach full depth. If you are not sure, pull the rod out and push while rotating the wheels/drive shaft. After you've done it a time or two you will be confident when the rod has bottomed out in the transfer case.
For the CDL (top) gear clocking, I suggest two reference points. In the photo of the CDL actuator , you will see a line bisecting a notch in the gear and a raised line on the inside of the actuator cover. There is also a line that generally references a perpendicular correlation between the gear and the actuator motor. Based on other's posts, I used the perpendicular relationship as the basis for my clocking and only noticed the notch correspondence later after I resolved the Hi/Low actuator.
For the Hi/low ( bottom) clocking, I again used a notch on the gear (after several tries based on clocking suggestions in other posts). I lined the notch on the gears with the metal track pressed into the actuator cover that extends to what I appears to me to be a switch. I unsuccessfully tried installing the gear with it rotated further counter clockwise which resulted in over rotation and binding the actuator gear and rod - don't do that.
It makes sense to me that the original manufacturing of these parts would have used easy reference points to clock the gears prior to assembly. Maybe the notches on the gears are those reference points.
The pictures above are of the parts that came out of my 200. The vent hose was cracked, but I didn't have the corrosion that many of you have had. The parts that I took off the 200 looked for the most part to be in similar condition to the new Aisin parts I reinstalled. The motors and switches seems to pass electrical tests and the motors were not bound. I have no idea what the problem was, but the actuators work now, engagement is swift with no flashing lights or beeps. You can do this! Best of luck!
I recently installed the Aisin parts for the CDL and Hi/Lo actuators. For those of you that haven't yet completed the repair a couple of notes that really helped were to 1.) Lift the vehicle so that it is stable on jack stands prior to starting the process so that all four tires are clear of the ground, 2.) Once on the stands, put the vehicle in Neutral, 3.) Disassemble the actuators on the vehicle - The CDL(Top) actuator gears will come apart - don't worry about it (more info later). The bottom actuator gears will come apart - don't worry about it (more info later). 4.) Extending the rods (away from the transfer case) engages/locks the CDL (top) or the engages Low Range (bottom). 5.) Do not use a cable tie to hold the gear inside the CDL actuator when reinstalling. Instead, just use a piece of string tied around the gear and the case. I ruined two gaskets (thin rubber) when I pulled a cut cable tie (sharp) over through the case. The string will accomplish the same thing and not ruin the gasket when extracted. 6.) Like a dummy, I didn't take a picture of the inside of the newly disassembled Aisin actuator - it may have been clocked correctly too so careful when disassembling the new part and take pictures of the gears in relationship to the case. 7.) Be sure and zip tie the breather to the actuator prior to to reassembling damage covers/skid plates.
With the Aisin parts, reinstallation was easy for me if the actuator rods were fully inserted into the transfer case and the gears clocked correctly. The only way to know if the rods are fully inserted is to rotate the drive shaft (or tires if you have a helper that is not under the vehicle) while trying to insert the actuator rod. You can't hurt anything, so play with it a bit. Press in on the rod as you turn the wheels/drive shaft manually. You will feel the rod actuator rod reach full depth. If you are not sure, pull the rod out and push while rotating the wheels/drive shaft. After you've done it a time or two you will be confident when the rod has bottomed out in the transfer case.
For the CDL (top) gear clocking, I suggest two reference points. In the photo of the CDL actuator , you will see a line bisecting a notch in the gear and a raised line on the inside of the actuator cover. There is also a line that generally references a perpendicular correlation between the gear and the actuator motor. Based on other's posts, I used the perpendicular relationship as the basis for my clocking and only noticed the notch correspondence later after I resolved the Hi/Low actuator.
For the Hi/low ( bottom) clocking, I again used a notch on the gear (after several tries based on clocking suggestions in other posts). I lined the notch on the gears with the metal track pressed into the actuator cover that extends to what I appears to me to be a switch. I unsuccessfully tried installing the gear with it rotated further counter clockwise which resulted in over rotation and binding the actuator gear and rod - don't do that.
It makes sense to me that the original manufacturing of these parts would have used easy reference points to clock the gears prior to assembly. Maybe the notches on the gears are those reference points.
The pictures above are of the parts that came out of my 200. The vent hose was cracked, but I didn't have the corrosion that many of you have had. The parts that I took off the 200 looked for the most part to be in similar condition to the new Aisin parts I reinstalled. The motors and switches seems to pass electrical tests and the motors were not bound. I have no idea what the problem was, but the actuators work now, engagement is swift with no flashing lights or beeps. You can do this! Best of luck!
Thanks for this most recent summary. I have a 2010 Tundra crewmax that I have on my two-post lift in the barn - so I have good access to the components and easy 4-wheel off-the-ground testing.
I had the top (4HI) motor rusted. After cleaning and lubricating, it performs quiet and strong. My initial symptoms were no movement of actuator, and 4HI blinking slowly for 5 sec (or so) and then rapid blinking. After cleaning motor and microswitch (disassembled and cleaned with contact cleaner - verified clean continuity), I struggled with the clocking of both top and bottom gear sets. The best I could get is full engagement of 4HI mechanically - that is, the TC locked the front drive shaft with the rear, and the ADD motor locked the front diff... Turning the main driveshaft spins all four wheels. However, the 4HI light in the dash continues to blink (albeit slowly, never going to the fast blink).
While repeatedly removing the top and bottom covers to tweak the clocking, I've yet to get it to improve beyond what I described. In fact, several times, when I tried to remove the top cover, it was under tension (even though selector was back to 2WD). In some instances the motor in the front diff would make a beeping sound, and other times it would be the 4HI or 4LO motor doing it. I'm trying to figure out the pattern, and what each symptom means - and how to address them.
Ultimately, I feel like I'm just not getting full engagement of the shafts to their correct position - or that the feedback loop is not completing the cycle to let the system know it's fully in 4HI (thus the dash light keeps blinking).
There is a video from Indonesia where the guy appears to clock the shaft at the halfway point (9 teeth instead of 18). I'm tempted to try this as everything else has come up short.
I've been incrementally increasing/decreasing the sprocket by a gear at a time trying to find the sweet spot, but no luck. I'm so incredibly frustrated. I bet I have 15 hours into this and am ready to give up!