Got another problem with my 97 again this weekend. 140k miles on the truck, about 300 miles on a reman tranny install. Electric shift, (and I assume the Borg-Warner 4406 transfer case?)

Driving down the highway in 2H, I slowed to make a turn and heard a little clicking noise from 40mph down to 15mph. Sounded like a rear axle bearing to me...

Next corner, I slow down and no clicking. But after I turn the corner and hit the gas I've got nothing...no noise, just like it would've been shifted to neutral.
So I try 4H and hear the hubs engage but still no forward. Next, I try 4L...It did shift into 4L but she's got a lot more whine than it's had in 4L when I've used it before.

Now, it won't shift out of 4L regardless of where the selector switch is. Shifting between 2H and 4H , the hubs will lock/unlock but it's still in low range.


Will a bad transfer case motor cause high range to "let go" like that or is it more likely that something inside the case itself is lunched?
I don't think it'd be the switch or the GEM since the hubs still seem to be working fine.

Is there room to drop the transfer case without pulling the torsion bar crossmember?

 

the torsion bar crossmember must be dropped in order to drop the transfer case. its not that difficult, really. just jack up the truck, you can leave the wheels on. unscrew the two bolts on each side that allow you to adjust the height of the bars, and remove them and the adjuster nuts. on each side of the crossmember, there are three bolts to remove.

here was my secret to removing the stuck bars: the hole that the bar resides in the lower control arm goes through the whole lower control arm, meaning that you can pound the bars forward and out through the front. i took a 3' iron stake, held that onto the bar, and pounded them out through the front w/ a 4# sledge. the whole crossmember will be shoved back, and will drop out this way. yes, my truck was rusty too, this will work. pb blaster will help too. good luck!

 

Thanks for the info. That's kinda how I was looking at pulling the crossmember if I had too.

Anyone know if I can convert this thing over to a manual xfer case with the wiring that's in the truck? Is the GEM different or just wiring harness differences?
A local yard has both the manual and electric xfer cases and a couple of trucks I could use to rob the mechanical hardware.
Call me old fashioned, but I still prefer a lever on the floor to do the shifting.

 

I had a 2006 F250 that needed to be in neutral to shift out of 4 Low. It would shift in to it fine but to get back to 4 High or 2 you need to be in neutral.

 

not sure on converting to MSOF, but if there are good donor trucks locally, it would certainly be possible...

 

Will be hitting the junkyards in the next couple days to see what I can get for parts. No tags on the old transfer case anymore...might be a number stamped in it someplace but I can't find it either. Going by the shape of the casting (bolt hole locations and such) it's an electric shift 4406. Looking at the FSM, I think the manual shift conversion might be more than what I've got time for so I'll probably stick with electric shift. Bummer!


Erm, yup. Same with a 97. In neutral, on the brake and less than 4-5mph or the GEM won't let it shift.
But my case is definitely lunched internally. The shift functions still work fine, hubs lock/unlock and the shift motor is getting the signal to shift when I flip the switch, but the range selector is jammed up and won't come back out of low range. Plus it's got this real purty lookin silver ATF coming out of the drain plug! LOL Lotsa metal floating around in there.


This sure is cutting into my fishing time this summer! No truck to pull the boat to the lake!

 

yes, you have the Borg Warner 4406. (electronic) the manual is also labeled as the Borg Warner 4406, so be sure to specify to the junkyard EXACTLY what you want.

 

The local dealer and the yard gave me two choices for electric shift transfer cases for an F150...1356 or 4406. And according to both places, both are available in manual or electric. Comparing to the drawings in the FSM, it's gotta be the 4406. Besides that, I don't recall that the part-time 1356 was used in the new body style at all, just the older style.

Thanks for the help!