URGENT: Stuck in 4 Low

[pugsy]

HELP!!! My transfer case is stuck in 4 low. I tried taking off the shift motor and manually turning the pin back to 2 hi but it turns then snaps back to 4 low. None of the buttons work on the dash and nothing is lit - but the pin is pointing to 4 low. As of now, i can only go about 40 KM/h.
Anybody seen this before? How to get it back to 2 hi????
Thanks!

 

[Chew_12]

Do not drive on a dry street untill you have fixed this problem!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[bigorange440]

i would try backing up for a bit or jacking the front end up in the air....it sounds like it has binded up a bit from being in 4l too long....if u relase the pressure off the system u should be able to spin it back into 2h....hope this helps...

 

[IZwack]

My transfer case is stuck in 4 low. I tried taking off the shift motor and manually turning the pin back to 2 hi but it turns then snaps back to 4 low.

fascinating. do you mean that you're able to turn the rod with your hands back to 2HI but the moment you let go of the rod with ur hands/pliers, it snaps to 4LO?

 

[Vanquish502]

Make sure the trucks in neutral before trying to turn it manually, or it wont let you change it.

 

[jlxplorer]

yeah i would try backing up a few feet not to fast just let it idle back and u should hear it click a few times...how long has it been in 4 wheel drive?

 

[pugsy]

It was in 2 hi until i played around with the shift motor. When i first took off the motor, it pointed to 2 hi. But now that it's stuck in 4 low, the tranny won't shift. BUT, it's not actually in 4x4. I have snow on the ground here and when i stab the gas, only the back tires spin. I backed out of my driveway and nothing.
??? weird

 

[pugsy]

Okay, brought it to the dealer today and somehow they said they took off the shift motor and manually put into 2 hi. So i got in and pushed the 4x4 buttons just for fun before i left to make sure everything worked. I hit the 4x4 and i could here the shift motor working and the 4x4 light came on. I hit it again and it went out, but when i hit it again to turn it on...nothing. And now it's stuck back in 4 low again. It's like it defaults to 4 lo instead of 2 hi like it's supposed to.
The dealer said that I need a new 4x4 module that costs like $1,100. What's a 4x4 module? Is it the computer in the back by the jack?
Any thoughts???

 

[Chew_12]

So you got it to 2 wd....Then you put it back in 4 - lo? why????

 

[IZwack]

It's like it defaults to 4 lo instead of 2 hi like it's supposed to.

please answer my question of what you meant by "snap". What I had asked was, when you turn it back to 2HI with your hands, does it automatically go back to 4LO as soon as you let go of the shift rod?

 

[pugsy]

yep...that's right. As soon as i let it go, it snaps back to 4 low. I don't know how the dealer got it back to 2 hi.

 

[IZwack]

As soon as i let it go, it snaps back to 4 low. I don't know how the dealer got it back to 2 hi.

I have yet to open a first generation's transfer case but if its anything like the 2nd generation's BW4405, then the shift rod is probably surrounded by a torsional spring. this torsional spring is what you were probably fighting against. in other words, you might not actually be moving the shift fork even though the shift rod is rotated all the way to the other end of the spectrum. but why is the shift fork not moving? well one reason the shift fork might be stuck is because the vehicle is not in neutral. if there is still pressure applied to the gear that the shift fork is connected to, then the shift fork will probably not move. was the vehicle in neutral when you tried to rotate the shift rid with your hands? did you try rocking the vehicle an inch forward and back to get the pressure off of the shift fork and its associated gear?


below is an image of a 2nd generation's BW4405's shift rod with the torsional spring at one end. ignore the fact that there are two shift rods in the image.