T-Case trouble

Today I tried to stick my 99 sport XJ 4.0 into 4Lo and well it didnt do it. I took the transmission out of N and into drive and something made this terrible grinding sound. Almost like trying to shift a manual tranny without pushing in the clutch. Haven't changed the T-Case fluid in a while and have no clue how to do it. is this the cause of the problem? It seems to go into 4hi fine but the part time light dosent come on. Help is appreciated.

Could be the fluid is extremely low.. There should be two plugs right on the back of the TC. For your year they should be Hex head. Can't recall the size but you can pick up a cheap set at Autozone for about 5 bucks. Remove the top plug and stick your finger in the hole, it should be right at the threads or just below. I'd go ahead and pull the lower plug and just put new fluid in there.

what type of fluid and how much of it?

On a '99 I believe it's just Dex III. On my '01 in the TC it calls for ATF+4(TC only Dex for AW4). The TC isn't too picky though. I've heard of guys running 10w30 synthetic, just don't run gear oil.

99_XJ_ said:

what type of fluid and how much of it?

Click to expand...

Before you drain it, check the level (top plug - should be just up to the bottom of the hole). If you are refilling with fresh ATF fluid, fill via the top hole until it just starts to dribble out the hole. That's "full".

So, you were in 4HI and it sounded fine... you shifted your Auto transmission to N and it sounded fine... you pulled the Tcase shifter to 4LO and it sounded fine... but when you shifted the transmission back to D you got a grinding noise? Is that what happened? Is it repeatable? If you were REALLY low on Tcase fluid I would suspect you'd have grinding at least in 4HI too.

With the engine at idle you should run through the motions again to make sure the problem persists.

Check the xfer case linkage adjustment. If it's slightly off that will result in what you are hearing. That's a lot more likely than low fluid, unless you ignore every drip coming out from under the heep.

Next time you try it, put it back in 4 hi, roll forward or back a little, put it in neutral, shift while slowly moving, then put the tranny back in gear. That used to work in my Dodge when the linkages were off due to body bending...

HtH

I never change my T-case range if the transmission is in drive or reverse , it will sound/act like trying to shift a manual transmission without dis-enguaging the clutch. That is between 4 low and 4 high or vice versa. What I am saying is, if the selector lever have to pass the 'N', I always have the transmission in park. Sometimes if the XJ is moving very slowly, I would shift if but only with the transmission in 'N' .

duke000088 said:

With the engine at idle you should run through the motions again to make sure the problem persists.

Click to expand...

I usually have to manhandle the T-case shifter to get it out of 2HI anyhow. Usually thifts to 4Hi easier if im moving forward. Still gotta play with it alot though to get it to shift. Same when putting it back to 2HI. sometimes it wont shift back to 2Hi when the lever in on 2 Hi it will still be in 4Hi and you gotta push the shifter back and forth from 4H to 2H several times. I let up on the gas during T-case shifting.

Ghostrider said:

Check the xfer case linkage adjustment. If it's slightly off that will result in what you are hearing. That's a lot more likely than low fluid, unless you ignore every drip coming out from under the heep.


HtH

Click to expand...

How would I know if its slightly off or not. Is it something i can fix myself in a moderate amount of time?

I don't know on the 99, but to adjust the tc case shifter for my 1990 231 you pull the shift bezel, put the shifter in 4lo with a 3mm (1/8") gauge between the rear shift gate and the lever. I lock it in place with a bungee cord.

Crawl underneath and loosen the linkage adjuster bolt, make sure the tc is fully in 4lo, then tighten the bolt and test it.