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Trick To Turning Shift Shaft On Transfer Case?

miscrap

By miscrap
in Ask A GM Technician

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miscrap Enthusiast

miscrap

Posted
Posted

Hi. I got the Service 4WD warning on my '05 Tahoe Z71. No lights on the selector. Couldn't get out of 2HI. Had the code read at AAMCO, was C0327. Researching online pointed to the encoder motor sensor. Found instructions with pictures online about how to replace it. It was going great, I made the mistake of telling myself it was too easy. BAM! When I went to put the encoder motor with the new sensor back on, the notch on the shaft didn't match up with the gear on the motor (which I had marked with a Sharpie, and was where it was when I took it off). In my original research, I had read that this might happen, and the "cure" was to turn the shift shaft on the transfer case with a crescent wrench to match the gear . Several problems... there are no flats on the shaft, just the notch. I'm afraid of damaging the spline. No room to turn the wrench (unless I use a really short crescent wrench). I can turn it a short way, then it springs back. The notch on the shaft is currently pointing straight down. The notch on the gear is more like at 11 o'clock. It was suggested to me to put the trans in neutral and jack up the rear tires. Didn't help. The shaft seems hard to turn and I'm afraid to force it. Does it only turn one way? I don't want to force it the wrong way.

Right now the truck is up on ramps with no drive shaft and no encoder motor. This is my daily driver. Please help so I can get back on the road.

 

I found this video on youtube. The guy was cruising along on this repair (without taking off the driveshaft) then at the 7:30 mark a black screen goes on saying they ran into a problem. Same problem I had. Next scene they have it turned, never said how they did it.

 

 

govtech Enthusiast

govtech

Posted
Posted

use pliers with some clamping force---vise grips ..

 

dont crush it but get firm and turn it ,,,

 

you are over coming the detent ball and the shift itself ....rotate the driveshaft slightly as you are turning it to the next detent ..

 

once it goes ,you'll say " omg that was easy" lol

miscrap Enthusiast

miscrap

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Oh, and another question... once I get this put back together, and assuming it solves the problem, will the Service4WD light go out and the code go away, or am I going to have to take it somewhere to get the thing reset?

miscrap Enthusiast

miscrap

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I went out and bought the shortest vice grip I could find, a 5 incher. It gives me the clearance I need to turn the shaft. However, the notch is pointing straight down (6 o'clock position) and I need to get to around 11 o'clock. I can turn it to about 9 o'clock, but as soon as I take the vice grip off it snaps back to 6 o'clock. I can't get it to go past 9, even turning the rear driveshaft. Any ideas/suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated!

 

2011-10-07130747.jpg

 

2011-10-07130250.jpg

govtech Enthusiast

govtech

Posted
Posted

without being there i cant help ya much more ,sry bud

 

on a manual t case ,,4wd is all the way counter clock wise looking straight at the shaft

 

then 2wd ,neutral and the 4lo,

 

if you replaced the sensor and put it back together properly by lining up the gears with a marker ,,,it should fall back on the shaft

 

idk,

 

yes it will clear itself eventually

 

and the light will go out right away

miscrap Enthusiast

miscrap

Posted
  • Author
Posted
without being there i cant help ya much more ,sry bud

 

on a manual t case ,,4wd is all the way counter clock wise looking straight at the shaft

 

then 2wd ,neutral and the 4lo,

 

if you replaced the sensor and put it back together properly by lining up the gears with a marker ,,,it should fall back on the shaft

 

idk,

 

yes it will clear itself eventually

 

and the light will go out right away

 

 

thanks, govtech. i appreciate the help. i was thinking... what if i plug the motor in and push the selector buttons. won't that move the gear in the motor? i can keep trying until it's in the same position as the shaft.

pcontant Enthusiast

pcontant

Posted
Posted

Mike, I just did a similar job on my 2003 Sierra but was lucky in that I was able to put the transfer case in neutral before I started taking the encoder off. You mentioned that the shaft keeps on returning to its position when you turned it with the visegrips. Something to try is to make sure the transmission is in neutral and then try to turn the rear drive shaft with your hand at the same time to help shift the transfer case. That's my 5 cents worth.

 

Good luck and hope this works.

 

Pierre

miscrap Enthusiast

miscrap

Posted
  • Author
Posted
Mike, I just did a similar job on my 2003 Sierra but was lucky in that I was able to put the transfer case in neutral before I started taking the encoder off. You mentioned that the shaft keeps on returning to its position when you turned it with the visegrips. Something to try is to make sure the transmission is in neutral and then try to turn the rear drive shaft with your hand at the same time to help shift the transfer case. That's my 5 cents worth.

 

Good luck and hope this works.

 

Pierre

 

 

Thanks, Pierre. I've tried doing that the best I could by myself. Maybe I'll get a helper to turn the drive shaft a little faster.

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