Tranfer case shot?

[Jeremy Martin]

This weekend I put a new fuel pump on my 84 CJ. After the gasket sealer had time to set I took it for a spin around the neighborhood to check it out.
I didn't make it very far. When taking off from a stop the engine would rev a little like the clutch was slipping and then it would hit and I would have power to the rear wheels. It did this a couple of times and then nothing. I could let the clutch all the way out and not move. I locked the hubs, put it in 4 Hi and drive it home. I haven't had the chance to get under it to see if the driveshaft is spinning (incase it's the rear axle). Could the output shaft have broken?
The Transfer Case is a Dana 300 -15-2 SN#301263 and the other tag reads
309007-4
5364854
Anyone have any thoughts on what I should look at first?

 

[hole]

Do you still have 2 piece axles? If so, my guess is you've broken or stripped one out

 

[Jeremy Martin]

I just checked and the shaft spins, so now I am looking at the rear axle. I haven't looked to see what type it is, but I will find out where to look and try to check it out tomorrow. I am new to jeeps. If I have stripped one of them out is this a job that someone with a decent set of tools and some time can do at home?

 

[hole]

Absolutely can be done at home, theres a few threads on this site that go into some detail about the swap. I'm partial to Moser one piece, but I'm sure others have had good experiences with another brand too.

 

[hole]

I realized that I should be a bit more clear. The stock jeeps came with the weak 2 piece axle design you have now, most folks upgrade to 1 piece axles to alleviate the problem you are experiencing

 

[Hedgehog]

This might seem overly simple, but it has happened many times.

Is your Transfer Case fully in gear? Sometimes the Transfer Case lever can get bumped juts a little leaving the case just barely, but not really in gear. It catches a few times them is fully out of gear.

 

[JR74CJ5]

^ That was my first thought as well, especially since was running fine before you did fuel pump I assume?

If it was the axle etc, I assume you would be hearing some issues as you drove even in 4 wheel drive.

 

[Jeremy Martin]

This might seem overly simple, but it has happened many times.

Is your Transfer Case fully in gear? Sometimes the Transfer Case lever can get bumped juts a little leaving the case just barely, but not really in gear. It catches a few times them is fully out of gear.

Thanks guys, this was actually the first thing I checked. I have done that once or twice after playing around in the dirt.

I will search the site for the threads related now that I know what to search for. I really appreciate the help.

 

[Hedgehog]

Try this, put the CJ in 4wd High, turn your hubs OUT, then drive the Jeep. You will be driving in 4wd but with the hubs out, in effect you will be in 2wd high. This will test your rear drive train and the Transfer Case .

 

[Lumpy Grits]

OP-Are there any oil stains on the inside sidewalls of your rear tires?
That would/could/may be a case of impending failure.
Please stop drive'n the Jeep till fixed.
LG

 

[Jeremy Martin]

OP-Are there any oil stains on the inside sidewalls of your rear tires?
That would/could/may be a case of impending failure.
Please stop drive'n the Jeep till fixed.
LG

I don't have any oil stains on the inside of the tires yet. It is not my daily driver so it's just been sitting in the garage for the last couple of weeks. I will have some time to tear into it this weekend. I think the first thing I am going to do it take the diff cover off to make sure the ring and pinion are still in good shape. If they are, the tires will come off and I'll pull the axle shafts out to see if they are broken.
I still am not sure how I broke anything back there. It has the stock I6 and 32's, nothing too crazy. But, it is 30 years old so I guess parts wear out.
Thanks for the warning, I appreciate you and the others here who have been helping me out.

 

[Jeremy Martin]

Okay, so now I have the rear wheels off the ground. I put the jeep in gear, let out the clutch and both wheels spin.
I wanted to run some thoughts by everyone.
1. It's a miracle, it's fixed!
2. They are both spinning because I don't have any weight or drag on them and as soon as they hit the ground I will no go anywhere.
3. I have an open diff and one of the axle shafts is broken so it will get all of the power because it is the one that is spinning.
4. Ring and pinion? I don't think this is the problem any longer because the wheels spin when it's off the ground.

 

[Torxhead]

Since you have the rear off the ground, you could pull off the rear diff cover, spin each wheel by hand and watch to see if both of the inner parts of the axle spins along with the outer.

 

[CJim7]

Maybe I missed it in another post.....but is your rear axle a posi unit?
Im not sure what the characteristics are when they wear out....so excuse my ignorance if I'm off base here

But could worn out pads on the posi cause this? Or would it just effectively turn it into an open dif.....

 

[Torxhead]

Jim, worn out trac-loc clutches will not cause that issue. It would just make the diff perform like a standard differential.

 

[Jeremy Martin]

Since you have the rear off the ground, you could pull off the rear diff cover, spin each wheel by hand and watch to see if both of the inner parts of the axle spins along with the outer.

Fantastic, looks like this is my next plan of action. I planned on pulling the cover and this would also show me if one of the shafts were broken at the same time without pulling them both out. I have kids sports to attend the first half of the week so as soon as I get the chance I'll pull the cover and shoot a picture or two.

 

[Jeremy Martin]

Okay Gentlemen, I got the cover off. If I spin a tire with the Jeep in first gear, the planetary gears in the pumpkin spin accordingly. I was really hoping that I could spin each tire and the one that didn't move the gears was the broken axle. I didn't have any metal carnage in the oil so I am assuming that the ring and pinion are still okay. I am a little lost now. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Jeremy Martin]

I also ran a magnet through the old fluid from the diff to see if I had any pieces of metal in there. I didn't, so that's one positive.
Should I still pull the axles out to make sure they are not broken or look else where?

 

[Torxhead]

If you have both rear wheels in the air and spin one of them, The opposite wheel should spin in the opposite direction. If you had a locker and spin one wheel the opposite wheel will spin in the same direction. So when you spin a wheel, what does the other wheel do?

 

[hole]

Jeremy, I've re-read this thread and I havent seen it clearly mentioned if you still have one piece or stock two piece axles. If you have stock two piece, I'm still leaning towards one of them is stripped/ broken. With it in the air, apply the parking brake, start her up and let out the clutch in 1st or 2nd. ( Of course make sure its in 2wd high first) It might help to have another set of eyes so that someone can push in the clutch/shut it down quickly should the need arise. Dont worry about putting the cover and oil back in the diff, it wont be running long enough for this test. If your parking brake doesnt hold, then just apply the brakes carefully. Again another set of eyes and ears will help to see which axle is the culprit.