T-case problems or something else?

96 Country AW4 242 3" RC lift


We have been driving around during the last few days with the 4 full-time on and off in the rain / freezing rain we were getting - noticed no problems. GF picked me up yesterday, I got in and drove about 20 feet and felt a vibe/grinding/slight rattling nose. I stopped, it got quiet. I put it back in drive and the truck would not move - felt like something was binding. Reverse, same thing. I gave it a bit of gas and it started to move with a big clunk and some scraping feeling - almost like frozen brakes releasing and scraping.

I stopped, looked around underneath and saw nothing obvious, got back in, put it in 2 hi and drove back and forth slowly. It was no longer binding but there was some uneven vibration and I could feel a rumbling under my feet and hear faint rattly scrapey noises. I couldn't stay where I was so I ended up doing some driving. Noises remained.

Pulled the front DS today to try to isolate it. I found that I could turn the diff yoke back and forth about 1-2" and could see that the pass front axle U joint is pretty bad - BUT - in 2 hi I still hear some faint unpleasant rattling grinding noises even when not moving while in gear. I put it in 4 part time, truck drives. 4 full time, truck does not go (as expected)
Put my finger in the T-case fill hole and could feel the chain moving back and forth when I rotated the t-case yoke - felt normal and no play of any kind in the yoke I could detect.

Are there some things I can do to determine if it's the T-case or Tranny making these sounds? Flexplate? I did not hear (or feel) any of them before yesterday. Should I be able to turn the dif yoke back and forth like that?

sounds like its from the tcase not the trans or i don't think you'd be moving at all.

check for excessive metal shavings in t-case?


reminds me of when my friends t-case chain went out. i think maybe linkage not engaging or chain is worn ????

can you tell if 4wd is actually working in part time? or is it just sending power to rear?

i'm not the most knowledgable on this subject so hopefully someone else chimes in. until then I'll do my best to help.

i don't think you should get that much play in diffs but i think that is another problem.

I did a fluid change - a touch old & brownish but no shavings or bits in what came out. Chain felt engaged and moved ok from what I could tell from the pinky through the fill hole check.

4x4 works both part time and full time but sounds like hell.

I think the movement at the diff yoke is due to the bad axel u-joints (doing them tonight) as I can see by watching the u-joints move while turning the yoke that the play is directly related.

The binding I am thinking is the u- joint, but the rattly grindey noise can't be connected (I hear it in D or R while not moving with the front DS removed.)

I thought I would check the flexplate bolts while under there - is it just the small bolts that come out to open that or the two large ones also?

Question - do you or the girlfriend pull the emergency brake up when you park? Is it just such an automatic thing that you don't even think about doing it? Look at the rear brakes if any part of your answer might be 'yes'. Freezing rain and parking brake in contact with the drum can tear parts up when you drive.

Jim www.yuccaman.com/jeep

We don't use the e-brake. (aftermarket cupholder is in the way)