Opened NP231 and now I can't steer

[loki_racer]

I'll do my best to describe the situation. My NP231 was rebuilt and had a SYE installed. The guy that did the install didn't cut down the shift rod so it wouldn't shift in to 4wd.

Today I removed the rear driveshaft. Removed the SYE housing from the transfer case. I cut the rod down so roughly one inch was exposed. Reinstalled the SYE housing and the rear driveshaft.

I pulled the XJ off the lift, and it drove fine in a straight line. However, it will not turn.

If I lift the front end off the ground, it will turn fine.

With the tcase in N and transmission in N, and the front end off the ground, I can not spin either of the front wheels forward, only in reverse. Maybe I didn't try hard enough, but I thought I should be able to freely spin the front wheels.

I'm fairly sure I have the shift level adjusted correctly. With the jeep in R or D, and the tcase in N, I can roll the jeep forward and backwards, which I assume means the tcase is in neutral.

With the little amount of steering that I could do, I never heard the locker unload.

Any ideas?

 

[xjtrailrider]

Are you sure you didn't cut the shift rod too short?

 

[jeepgeek2002]

so.. you didnt do the work yourself.. let some dude f'd up your sye.
and some how its not letting you turn? eh?
disconnect the front shaft .. drive it.. does it turn?

 

[stumpXJ]

Id have to say the two are unrelated and its a coincidence unless you arent telling us something. Based on the info you gave us, there is no physical way that the SYE work would have anything to do with the steering.

I do remember before my PS pump went out the steering would 'lock' up occasional, and I had to forcibly wrench the steering wheel left or right while the engine was running, and something would 'break loose' and the PS pump would start working normally. I assure you it had nothing to do with the SYE though.

Thats too weird man, I am gonna have to say the two things are unrelated.

 

[jeepgeek2002]

right now im stomping my toe.. Stump do you feel the upper cut?

 

[stumpXJ]

Punch Out!

 

[xjtrailrider]

I don't so much think he is saying the steering is messed up but more that his rig is in 4wd and it is not wanting to turn on pavement.

I'm "ASSuming" here as there isn't much to go on.

 

[loki_racer]

Ok. So I guess I learned something new. You can't "steer" on dry roads in 4wd. I have never driven on pavement with 4wd, so wasn't aware what it felt like.

The tcase is the issue. It won't exit 4wd.

See video for explination: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cW0zt7Dvcc

I tried reversing and driving forward 20 feet or so to see if that would release the 4wd. No luck. When I pulled the SYE housing off, is there something I could have jacked up inside to stop 2Hi from working? 2Hi was working before I opened the housing. When I leave 4Hi and enter 2Hi the part-time light goes off.

 

[jelrod]

No need to shut the engine off to shift the t-case. Just sayin.

 

[jeepgeek2002]

you put the transmission in N then you shift into 2wd or whatever you want.
if you unhook the lever you can take wrench and pull it back or go forward it would do the same as the lever. in some cases if you can use a wrench to push it in 2wd it might be an issue with the lever hitting the stop before it can change gears.

look at the tech tip half way through this video:
http://www.advanceadapters.com/products/new-process-231j-sye/

 

[loki_racer]

I don't think it's an issue of linkage. I might be wrong, but from my video you can see it is shifting in to 4hi, N and 4lo with no problems. It just seems that it won't disengage from 4wd.

I have disconnected the linkage and used pliers to shift through all 4 positions and it shifts just fine. But all 4 wheels are still engaged.

2Hi worked before I cut the shift rod down.

All I did was remove the rear driveshaft, remove the SYE housing, cut the shift rod down, reattach the SYE housing, reinstall rear drive shaft, connect the shift linkage.

I don't know if I could have messed up something inside the tcase when I did the steps above, which is really the main question at this point. Could something have gotten messed up (the oil pickup tube, this or that widget) inside the case when I was removing the rear yoke, the sye housing, and or cutting the shift rod.

 

[jeepgeek2002]

why did you cut the shift rod down?

 

[jeepgeek2002]

which fork did you cut? now that i think of it

 

[xjtrailrider]

If the shift rod is too short now it may have fallen out of the bushings and jamb against the housing.....or you may have a loose/broken shift fork.

This is hard to diagnose on the net without hands on the case

 

[loki_racer]

why did you cut the shift rod down?

Some SYE's require it. Without cutting it down it's impossible to shift out of 2hi.

which fork did you cut? now that i think of it

I didn't cut any forks.

If the shift rod is too short now it may have fallen out of the bushings and jamb against the housing.....or you may have a loose/broken shift fork.

This is hard to diagnose on the net without hands on the case

I agree, but it's all I've got right now. If I cut it too short, would I still be able to shift it through all four settings with pliers? It's clearly shifting 4hi, N and 4 Lo. The shift in to 2Hi feels like it's happening, the Part-Time light on the dash turns off.

It was in 2Hi when I cut it. I wrapped the rod with 1" tape and cut it down to where there was a sliver of rod exposed from under the tape. I read that 0.9" should be left, so I have to have more than that.

 

[loki_racer]

After a call to Rides of Conover (by the way Brandon and Scott are straight up the pimpin'est guys I know), they told me the shift rod is likely snagging on the inside of the SYE housing. I didn't bevel the rod when I ground it down, so what they were saying made sense.

I popped the SYE housing off again. Low and behold, the shift rod, even when the shifter is in 2wd, the rod is in 4wd. Check the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVOxrhu-yHc

The rod slides so well that if I push it to 2wd, roll the Jeep out of the shop, start it, put it in drive and accelerate, shift rod floats backwards engaging 4wd.

I guess I have two options. I'm considering finding a bolt that is hollow (will hold a spring) that fits in the SYE housing. The spring would simply push the mode rode forward when I move to 2wd and hold it there. The other option is cracking the case open. I guess it can be done without pulling the entire thing out of the Jeep, but I'm not sure at this point.

#48 in this image is what I need. Anyone sell them?

 

[jeepgeek2002]

48 or 49?

 

[jeepgeek2002]

i wonder if the mode fork comes with the spring?
http://www.jeep4x4center.com/mode-shift-fork-4338920.html

 

[loki_racer]

#48 - I just need the spring. Haha.

$75. Forget that. I just need the spring. I'm tempted to call the clown that put the rebuild kit in and tell him "Hey, you know those 'spare parts' you had after 'completing' my rebuild. Ya, I need those."

 

[jeepgeek2002]

so he left the spring out?