‘17 Lariat
My IWEs have failed and I drove on them too long before I got the vacuum leak fixed and I guess they’re trashed. I’m having trouble locating OE replacements that will arrive in a timely manner. Can I just remove the old IWE actuators and drive it without 4wd functionality until I get the new lockers in?

 

If you kept driving on them with the grinding sound you very well ground off the splines on the drive hubs also.

 

Im thinking the actuator itself failed in a different way than it normally does. It still holds a vacuum and it’s not a metal grinding and popping, it is more of a hum like a wheel bearing, but I’ve definitely isolated the issue to the actuators (unless it’s an issue in the driveline) because a new check valve greatly reduced the sound. My 4wd still works but I think it’s too far past just leaving it he IWE engaged. When I drive with it engaged I get a lot of driveline noise that is not there when 4wd is engaged but actuators are held disengaged with a manual vacuum.

I’m wondering if I can just pull the actuators off and put the hub back together so I can prevent further wear on my driveline/hub and confirm that the IWE is the only issue. It appears that the actuator is only attached to the back of the hub and the only contact would be when the coupler is engaged.

 

why not just disconnect the IWE solenoid and allow them to engage, you won't be in 4WD just the IWE's will be engaged.

 

Ive tried this. My issue is that the hum doesn’t completely go away and then I’m left with a lot of noises from the driveline. Whirs and slack and a rotational sound and I’m worried it’s doing more harm than good leaving it in 4wd. I think the IWE might be stuck partially engaged. I’ve tried leaving a vacuum pump attached to the IWE line and driving in 4wd and there’s no sounds from the driveline, so I’m thinking something failed in the IWE even though it still holds a vacuum.

 

This has caused me a lot of stress thinking it might be a wheel or pinion bearing. Sound would go away in 4wd and come back when coasting. Same in 2H but with IWE engaged plus a lot of whirring and driveline noise. All of this persisted after a new check valve made a big difference in the sound and everything checked out when tested for vacuum.

This morning it was below freezing for the first time since this started. On my 45 minute drive in the truck was completely quiet and smooth. As I pulled in the noise was barely starting to show up. I think this points towards a tricky vacuum leak and can steer me away from worrying about bearings.