Hi all
Have a problem with my 2004 lariat, i put it into 4x4 and everything works until im under hard acceleration. i hear a clunk and then im in 2 wheel drive. 4x4hi light stays on. it does this in 4x4 hi and low.
i've checked the front actuators, they seem to work fine, locked when 4x4 is on, free spinning when in 2wd
this was done on snow and freezing rain, not dry pavement.
vacuum test was done, have lots of vacuum at the hub actuators

thx in advance

 

Any suggestions? really need help with this one!

 

Unless the IWE (Actuators) are not fully engageing due to a bad IWE Solenoid letting the 4x4 partially lock in and caused spline ware I would say T.C. or Motor.

 

It could also be that your IWEs or hubs are damaged. There might be enough gear teeth to engage them in low torque situations, but when you hammer it they might be popping out. The only way to know for sure is to take it apart and inspect. Clean them out and apply plenty of fresh bearing grease when you assemble them.

 

I already had the actuators apart, passenger side seemed ok, drivers side i replaced the actuator and the hub, is there any way it could be a shift fork in the transfer case (read up on the 03'S having these issues) , i have used my 4x4 alot, hunting trups up north. but never mudding stuff, driving on snow and ice roads.
solenoid is the one with a rain cover on it.
ill try unpluging the vacuum hoses from the solenoid and see what happens.

 

These transfer cases are pretty tough, but they can go bad. Unplug the vacuum hose coming from the engine to the solenoid, and cap off the engine side. That should lock the front hubs to the half shafts no matter what position the switch is in. It won't hurt anything other than fuel economy to run that way.

 

still does it, might have to strap a camera under the truck and replecate, see if the drive shaft stops spinning when it pops out, guess that will let me know if its transfercase or front end.

 

So it pops out- does it go back in by itself if you stop the truck?

 

Figuered it out,
chained my truck to a backhoe, put it in 4x4, (on ice), sure enough, tranny was fine
back tires were spinning, front were at first and clunk, front stopped.
passenger side actuator wouldnt lock all the way.
so put in a new actuator and hub, 470 bucks
good news though, we get 40cm of snow starting tonight, let the fun begin
thx for all for the comments

Bill

 

$470????!!!! Wow, you could have fixed it yourself for much less than $100 if you are handy and have basic tools.


EDIT: Somehow I missed the "hub" part of that. Still could have fixed it for less than $200. Amazon sells a Raybestos hub for $112 and a Dorman IWE for less than $70.