samhulk

Im still trying to figure this out. I just bought a 2002 auto tran, 4x4, supercrew for my 15 yr. old son as a project truck. The tranny would not engage. The previous owner assured me it was just a transfer case issue. After I start it, shift it out of "park", it will not shift back into "park" it makes a grinding noise. When I give it gas (in neutral), the speedometer and the rpm gauges indicate or move (show an increase) as if im moving down the road even when its only idling it shows that Im moving 10 or 15 mph. When I put it in "drive" the gauges indicate the same..., an increase in speed and rpm when I push the gas pedal.

The previous owner gave me this historical info: 1. It has been doing the same thing (not engaging" on previous occasions for about 2000-3000 miles on rare occasions, but always re-engaged. 2. He had to turn the truck off for the 4 wheel drive to engage (it would not engage while on the fly). 3. After it became undrivable or would not engage, (while it was sitting), the alternator went out. He would start it on some frequency, "just to hear the motor run". I Just replaced it yesterday.

I checked the tranny fluid it looks good and does not smell burned. I drained the the transfer case fluid (~2 qts.), It looks normal to me. I have had several opinions before I had a chance to gather all this info. Any help would be greatly appreciated....Sam

TheJMC

Does the truck move when you place it in Drive?

samhulk

Not at all, the only thing that moves is the speedometer indicator and the Rpm indicator.

DragonWolf

Could there be an issue in the column with the selector. I'm not very knowledgeable about the steering column, but it seems if the fluids in the tranny and transfer case look good, maybe it's time to check the other end of things. Just a thought.

samhulk

I will check that just to make sure. However, I am thinking that it has to be beyond the column otherwise I wouldnt get a reading on the speedometer or the rpm gauge. It certainly wont hurt to give it a good inspection. Thnks!

borjeb

The grinding is the park gear turning not letting it engage. Just like if you put it in park when you're actually doing 15. My 01 diesel did kinda the same thing. It was the gem module, which controls the TC as well as other things. It would run my battery dead over time and it would try to shift my TC and get it stuck between high and low resulting in not moving. Id check to make sure you're driveshaft isn't actually turning. If not take you're 4x4 shift motor off TC and shift it into 4hi with a wrench and drive it. Shouldn't have an issue. That's what I did and drove it 40,000 k before replacing gem

TheJMC

Agreed. With your foot on the brakes the drive shaft stops turning. That keeps the t-case output shaft from turning. The t-case output shaft should be locked to the t-case input shaft but because the t-case is stuck in neutral it is not connected. Thus it cannot stop the output shaft in the transmission from turning. With the output shaft turning it will grind going into Park. That is why I asked if the truck moved.

samhulk

I looked up some historical threads and found one from 8/2010 which had the same problem Im having. The only difference is the year model, his is a 1993, mine is a 2002. I have copied and pasted the thread below. Will someone please comment. I personally think my problem is solved:

CDGRN1 Wrote :
Looking for some advice on my 1993 Ford F150 4WD. Son was driving down the road and all the sudden it made a noise of some sort and quit accelerating forward. When we got it home I started the engine and put it in gear. Nothing noticeable was heard until I put it in park then I noticed the clicking sound of putting a vehicle in park while moving.
Can I assume the transmission is OK and the transfer case is the problem? Is there anyway to diagnose the problem without tearing it apart? Any advice would be appreciated.

DIRTCREW 51 wrote:
Raise the truck, go under the truck and try to turn the drive shaft, if it turns you broke some thing, possibly the transfer case, also check to see if it will drive in 4x4. It is unlikely the trans broke. If the trans goes you can usually still put it in gear and do something.
__________________
"Its a Ford. Nuff said. Everything else is just a glorified tonka toy"
"There is only one god and his name is Tony Iommi"

92 F150 302 4x4 Long bed Extended cab
91 Ranger 4x2 supercab 5spd 245cid

CDGRN1 Wrote:

You're right.
It is the transfer case. Thank you very much for replying it was a lot of help, however the truck has seen better days. I hate buying vehicles but your post convinced me to look elsewhere for another vehicle. My son won't even look at anything but Ford so it limits me for what I can get. God knows I don't want him driving my Volvo or anything else I own.
It is a '97 Ford Ranger extended cab 4X4 150,000 miles, two baseball sized dents, for $2700.00, fully serviced before I take possession.
I've had Chevys, Dodges and Fords and the Fords always seem to take the most abuse. Honestly we run the hell out of them with no remorse, there’s nothing that leaves my driveway to be driven by anyone else.
Keep posting to help people like me make good decisions.

borjeb

All I can say is not to assume it's the TC alone. I replaced mine, 800 bucks later it did the same thing. There is a good chance it is but id still take the shift motor off first for the 10 mins it takes to check. Good luck

samhulk

Borjeb, JmC, I absolutely appreciate your comments. I checked the driveshaft, I wanted to make sure the rear differential was not the problem (I think that is why Borjeb mentioned it in his thread), and it was not turning. I have a couple of questions with removing the Electric Shift Motor: 1) After I remove it and shift the t-case into 4 hi with a wrench do I leave it dangling and disconnected? I'm thinking I would have the same problems if I reconnected the elct shift motor. 2) How do you know if your placing it in 4 high using the wrench, is it marked somehow? 3) I am looking for a owners/repair manual, in the mean time...What and where is the G.E.M.?

I am by no means a mechanic, I am motivated by wanting to get my son a decent vehicle to drive. Thanks again for your help.