Transfer case

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

O

offroader101

10 Year
Joined
Oct 26, 2014
Threads
3
Messages
14
Hi, been searching and have found some decent info but just want others opinions.

I nearly broke my shoulder trying to shift into low range the other day, the transfer case lever is realllllly hard to move when cold, to the point where it doesn't want to move at all (yes I'm in neutral with no load on the drivetrain). Once warmed up it will move with a great bit of effort. This problem just sprung up out of nowhere by the way.

I'm going to be pulling the center console apart tomorrow and hopefully looking underneath and see if I can pinpoint the problem.

Any ideas? Thanks.
 
Sounds mechanical more than anything.
 
Hi, been searching and have found some decent info but just want others opinions.

I nearly broke my shoulder trying to shift into low range the other day, the transfer case lever is realllllly hard to move when cold, to the point where it doesn't want to move at all (yes I'm in neutral with no load on the drivetrain). Once warmed up it will move with a great bit of effort. This problem just sprung up out of nowhere by the way.

I'm going to be pulling the center console apart tomorrow and hopefully looking underneath and see if I can pinpoint the problem.

Any ideas? Thanks

Very recent experience on 2006 100 series called Sahara in Australia maybe called VX elsewhere with 5 speed auto transmission ....
The HI-N-LO shift lever passes through the console and is attached to a shaft in a housing bolted to the top of the gearbox. Corrosion between this shaft and housing occurs, especially with little use even if the area is clean. Lever operation became stiff and eventually impossible -- but it did take 10 years for this to develop! Removing the console covers is not difficult and at least gives some vision but working room is very, very restricted. In my case, I needed workshop help to lower the transmission to make room to get at this assembly and remove it. This is a very fiddly job! It was then cleaned up, lubricated and refiited and all is well. The attached diagram may help.
 

Attachments

Last edited:
Thanks for the information! I hope there's a way to do this without dropping the transmission and all that. I can't go out and look because the wife took the truck for the morning.
 
I did this today just as some PM. I can agree that access is very tight and you really can't do anything other than inspect and lube some of the linkages. To get to the key route of the problem you'd have to drop the transfer case or cut a hole in the floor. Two of the bolts for the retainer are accessible from the hole but the other two are hidden under the floor panel and there's no way in hell you'd get a wrench in there let alone any grease, etc.

Didn't get many pics but here's at least one.

20161206_142144.webp
 
This might give a better idea of what is accessible from the top:


Tcase.webp
 
landylover21 said:
I did this today just as some PM. I can agree that access is very tight and you really can't do anything other than inspect and lube some of the linkages. To get to the key route of the problem you'd have to drop the transfer case or cut a hole in the floor. Two of the bolts for the retainer are accessible from the hole but the other two are hidden under the floor panel and there's no way in hell you'd get a wrench in there let alone any grease, etc.

Didn't get many pics but here's at least one.

View attachment 1362583
Click to expand...
I am told this is a known problem at least in HDJ100R 'Cruisers with 5 speed auto trans (and in the similar LX470's). See diagram attached to my earlier post above. Other models may have different linkage arrangements between the shift lever and the actual transfer case. Landlover21 highlights the access difficulties. The first thing to try and do is to establish whether the problem is in the linkage and not something more serious and expensive (but unusual) inside the transfer case. For this reason, it is good first to try to lubricate the linkage with a penetrating oil such as CRC in a pressure pack with a wand or tube etc. I was unsuccessful with this approach with this linkage because it is difficult to get the oil to penetrate inside the problematic housing and shaft. It may be easier with LHD models in US or EUR because the layout is slightly different to my RHD vehicle. There are a rubber boots or seals around the ends of the shaft (see diagram) which must be pushed aside but even then I could not get the sufficient penetration. It may be possible to drill a hole in the housing and introduce oil through the hole but I did not try this. The next thing to try is to attempt to disconnect the rod which leads back from the shift lever to the actual transfer case, then try to move the shift lever, with the aim of clearly identifying that the problem lies in the shift lever linkage and not inside the transfer case. This disconnection might be possible with very slender fingers from under the car but in my case this was done after the workshop had unbolted the cross-member supporting the rear of the transmission/transfer case assembly and lowered it a few inches onto a post using a suitable jack. This made the necessary working room and enabled confirmation that the 'stickiness' was indeed in the lever-and-shaft assembly described above and not in the transfer case. With that established and with working room now available, the offending components were removed, cleaned up and lubricated and refitted -- still a fiddly job but made possible by lowering the transmission. The Preventative Maintenance advice was to "Use it or lose it!" meaning that the shift lever should be operated frequently, so that minor corrosion does not take hold and cause the shaft-and-housing described above to 'seize'. In my case (2006 HDJ100R), the problem did take 10 years to emerge and hopefully it will not recur for another 10 years! Hopefully, somebody somewhere has found an easier way to fix this problem and can tell us about it.
 
@LandyLover did you notice any difference in ease after you lubed up what you could?

@jLB wow that does look tight, well hopefully something will help even if it doesn't hit everything!

Thanks again guys for all the help, I didn't get to it today, wife took it from me again - this is becoming a usual thing I've noticed!
 
Hey @offroader101, to be honest I didn't have a problem before, this thread just made me paranoid so I figured I'd pull things apart and check in there just to be sure!

I'm a firm believer in using everything occasionally, like @IndroCruise said. I'll go and exercise my center and rear diff locks and shift into low range so things don't freeze up. Plus, I always use the parking brake, regardless of how sucky it is, even when adjusted properly!

Good luck with this and please let us know how it turns out!
 
The reason I had mine open, is because the transfer case lever in my 06 is considerably stiffer than the one in my son's 00. I shot some PB Blaster in what I could reach and spent some time working the lever back and forth. There seemed to be some mild improvement. I don't know if it was from the PB Blaster or the movement. I'll probably repeat this again in a week or two.


Edited to add:
After the PB Blaster treatment, I've been shifting between 4H and 4L about 10 times every time I get in or out of the vehicle. I still don't know for sure if it is from the PB Blaster, the movement or a combination of the two, but it is continuing to slowly get better. It's still not as slick or smooth as my son's, but it is now working with a single handed firm tug, where it used to take a two handed yank w/ both feet planted in the footwell. I suspect corrosion at the "lube points" in the PDF @IndroCruise posted are the source of the issue. From the top, I'm pretty sure I got PB Blaster into the right (passenger) lube point, but I doubt I was able to get any in the left (driver) side. I wonder If I can get to the left side from under the truck and/or some creative "spray straw" manipulation...​
 
Last edited:
Got some Seafoam DeepCreep and lubed up what I could, wife was taking the keys this morning and I told her sorry, take the Camry!

It seems better after working it back and forth then letting it sit for a few hours. I'm gonna leave the console apart while it's in the garage and see how it is tomorrow.
 
rusty_tlc said:
Just operating the lever may fix the problem. If you don't use low range often things will tend to get gummed up.
Click to expand...

I tried that approach first and decided to try a slightly different approach before I gave myself a hernia.
 
Well, wife took the truck today but I worked a little more on lubing up the transfer case. Things seem to be getting better, it's been cold here and first thing this morning I put the trans in neutral and pulled the lever back expecting it to be a neck breaker and it engaged low range. Not as easy as before but it still engaged and that's all that matters! :bounce:
 
I ordered a 2 meter (cut to length) "spray straw" from these guys:

Tube: SpraySnake - Spray Can Extension Tube - Replacement Spray Tube

to see if I can make any progress on lubing the driver side without dropping the transmission/transfer case, but I am pretty happy with the results from spraying what you can get to from the top, and moving the lever around.
 
Just did this operation on my friend's 02 a few days ago. I used SeaFoam Deep Creep penetrating oil and fed the straw through the hole and hit the visible areas of the linkage and then felt around with my fingers and the straw till I felt for the rubber washer and top of the lever retainer closer to the driver that couldn't be seen. Was a pain in the ass but managed to get in there! Sprayed that liberally and worked it a few times throughout the day. I told him to work at it over the next few days.

Got a call from him this morning, turns out that pretty much took care of it. It's 28 degrees and he said the lever moves just as easily as it does when it is warm. He said it got better as time went by and the penetrant was able to do its job.

Keep in mind, his was pretty much frozen to the point where it would move only if you used a winch to pull it back even when warm. Worth a shot at trying before you drop the transfer case.

Edit: added a pic to try to help explain what I did. That's looking towards the driver's side. You can just make out the other hump for the retainer in the upper part of the picture. I just fed the straw in and felt for it and sprayed some lubricant and then lifted the straw and sprayed some more in that general area.

View attachment 1365110

20161211_184839.webp
 
Last edited:
I am going to try to do this now and see how it goes, I was just spraying blindly when it came to the hidden part of the linkage. My center console is still torn apart and the wife is getting tired of it! Will keep you guys updated!!!
 
So, you guys rock! After a few days of working it back and forth and then targeting the hidden part of the bracket with the spray straw. I was able to free up the lever! Smoother than butter and now I'll be conscious enough to make sure I move it back and forth once and awhile!

Most importantly, my wife is happy that her center console is back together. Funny how she keeps calling the Hundy "hers" when I bought it for myself ;)

Thanks again!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom