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96 K1500 Possible Transfer Case Problems


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I feel pretty certain that I know what the problem is but I just want some feedback from others before I carry this truck to get worked on they can't figure out the problem and I end up paying someone to chase a problem that isn't there. With that said here is what happened:

 

I pulled the truck into my gravel driveway and stopped the truck with the wheels turn full lock to the right. Turned the truck off and it sat there for approximately 20-30 minutes and then I went to leave. Up until this point, I have not noticed any issues with my driveline other than U-joints (which have been replaced) since I had the transmission rebuilt at 200,000 miles (Truck currently has 228,000 miles on it). When I put the truck in drive it begin to roll forward but something got it in a bind and it stopped so I gave it a little gas and it jerked/clunked forward (not real sure how to describe the noise). I stopped and put the transmission into reverse and it rolled backwards about 6 inches and got in a bind and stopped rolling again so I gave it a little gas and it made the same clunking/gear binding noise. I parked it right there and got in my other truck since I was in a hurry and left. Came back to mess with the truck a few days later and put it in drive and it rolled forward and clunked/jumped twice and I hadn't had the issue again until today. Drove over to a relatives house and pulled up into the driveway and stopped to back into a carport on the side of the driveway. Put the truck in reverse and it rolled about 6 inches and got in a bind and I had to basically rock the truck back in forth in drive and reverse to get it rolling again with out making the binding/grinding noises. Got it rolling forward after about 2-3 minutes of rocking it back and forth and problem went away so I drove it straight home and got my other truck and came back.

I think the problem is in the transfer case. Either loose chain or worn sprockets/gears but I just want to hear what you guys think before I carry it somewhere to have them work on it since I haven't figured out how to recreate the problem on demand and since it is intermittent. Thanks in advance for help/suggestions and if you think it may be something completely different causing the issue please let me know. Background on the truck: rebuilt transmission stronger than stock at 200k, new U-joints at 210k, new rear end bearings and differential inspection at 220k (no signs of wearing in differential).

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I assume that has a manual lever for 4x4..

 

Is the diff tagged, a g80 locker might be too tight.

 

the fronts do have some kinda brain, but only in 4x4 mode. (the delay to letting go of a lock)

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No, electronic shift. I don't believe it has G80 rear end, only because I have never had it lock on me. That doesn't mean it doesn't have it though, I just haven't checked the codes to see yet. Not near the truck at this time.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Update: I have taken the truck to a mechanic and he is convinced that the problem is not in the transfer case, although when I drove it in 4-wheel drive it made some God-awful noises. He seems to think that issue is front hub assembly. Short version of his reasoning is that there is some kind of trash or metal that is loose inside the bearing and at low speeds once the grease has been heated up that piece of trash falls in between some of the rollers and causes the bind. he says the reason it doesn't happen at high speeds is because there is enough centrifugal force to force the trash/metal to the outside of the housing and therefore is not in the way. He is replacing them now since he already has it on the lift and tore apart. Will update further once I've had time to drive the truck and try to recreate the issue.

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Update: I have taken the truck to a mechanic and he is convinced that the problem is not in the transfer case, although when I drove it in 4-wheel drive it made some God-awful noises. He seems to think that issue is front hub assembly. Short version of his reasoning is that there is some kind of trash or metal that is loose inside the bearing and at low speeds once the grease has been heated up that piece of trash falls in between some of the rollers and causes the bind. he says the reason it doesn't happen at high speeds is because there is enough centrifugal force to force the trash/metal to the outside of the housing and therefore is not in the way. He is replacing them now since he already has it on the lift and tore apart. Will update further once I've had time to drive the truck and try to recreate the issue.

That sounds like the same problemI'm I'm having with my truck it sounds like's cans smashingtime together when I put it in 4x4

 

Sent from my LG-H830 using Tapatalk

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That sounds like the same problemI'm I'm having with my truck it sounds like's cans smashingtime together when I put it in 4x4

 

Sent from my LG-H830 using Tapatalk

 

I'll update as soon as I get the truck back. I still haven't gotten it back yet so I'm assuming that the hub assemblies didn't take care of the problem.

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Update: So I got the truck back. Mechanic was unable to recreate the same conditions that I was describing so when he started going over the truck to try and find the issue he discovered that the one of the front hub assemblies were bad (which I knew they needed changing but was pretty sure they weren't the issue) so I told him to go ahead and change them. He told me that before I spend the money to rebuild/replace the transfer case he wanted me to drive the truck and see if the hub assemblies fixed the problem. I was prepared to replace both the hub assemblies and the transfer case from the start so I didn't have a problem doing that. Well, they didn't fix the problem. I drove the truck approximately 60 miles after picking it up and it started binding/jumping and grinding when I pulled into a parking lot. Have talked to the mechanic again and he is now convinced that the transfer case is the issue so I am carrying it back to him to rebuilt/replace the transfer case. It'll be about a week and a half before he can get to it but again, I'll update once I get it back again.

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  • 1 month later...

That sounds like the same problemI'm I'm having with my truck it sounds like's cans smashingtime together when I put it in 4x4

 

Sent from my LG-H830 using Tapatalk

 

Drenolov, did you ever get your truck sorted out?

 

Update: Unfortunately I haven't gotten mine fixed yet because the mechanic kept the truck for 2 months now and all he's done to it is take the skip plate under the T-case off and drain the fluid out. To put it in perspective the truck has sat in the same spot so long that the grass had died underneath it and had been dead long enough to rot away completely to just dirt. So, needless to say after driving by his shop for about 2-3 weeks constantly and seeing it sitting in the same spot everyday with different cars sitting around it outside his shop and him telling me that he's working on it and he'll get to it and that sort of thing, I have gone a picked it up and taken it somewhere else and they have ordered a new T-case and it will be installed by early next week. I'll follow up with another update if the T-case fixes my issues.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Update: So I went and drove the truck home from the mechanic that kept it for 2 months without doing anything with it and carried it to someone else and had them install a new remanufactured transfer case. Good news is the new t-case fixed the "bucking" issue, so far. The bad news is I still have a grinding noise coming from somewhere under the truck. The problem is the grinding noise comes and goes and it appears to only show up after medium to hard braking. This observation plus this youtube video:

 

 

 

is leading me to think that maybe my problem has been the emergency brake all along (Transfer case was shot though so I would have had to replace it sometime soon anyway).

 

Any thoughts on this theory???

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  • 2 weeks later...

Update: Well, I confirmed what the problem was last night, or better said the truck confirmed it for me. I had lifted the truck up on jack stands a couple days ago and spun the front and rear differentials (front locked in 4WD) to try and pinpoint the grinding noise that I heard. Didn't hear anything out of the ordinary so I knew the issue was in either the transmission or the transfer case. Last night while leaving the gas station I lost the transmission going down the highway so my problem is no longer unknown. Now time to fix a transmission again after it was rebuilt 30k miles ago. :bs:

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