Hi, Well aftter cleaning the unit with mass airflow sensor spray, the problem still persists. After doing that I did turn on the key and could hear the actuator when I pressed the button. I tried driving it slowly fin orward and reverse and pressed the button several times while moving as you suggested and the light remained flashing. Now I have ordered a replacement unit and I'd like to know if the transmission must be in neutral to remove the actuator as I tried to remove it a few months ago and it would not come out. Thank you for all of your help and I hope replacing the actuator is the fix.
I hope that is the problem too my friend. Yes, having the vehicle in Neutral will relieve pressure on the drive train so that, theoretically, there should be no bind on the system. You could even put the transfer case in neutral as well. Let me know how it works out
Hi, Thank you so much for the reply. I thought I’d share what happened that made me search for a fix to what was happening. To go back a bit, I was leaking gear oil where the unit attached to the transfer case. I bought seals and was unable to get the unit off of the case no matter what I did so I took it to a shop and they replaced the seals. That was about 10 months ago. Now to yesterday where I was turning in a culdesac and it felt like a wheel had broken loose. I noticed the Diff light was illuminated. I couldn’t see or feel anything loose by shaking the front tires and I was about 20 miles from home. I did another test by making a U turn and there was resistance in movement when I pushed on the gas pedal and the front wheels squealed while I did this… the sensation was like the wheels were pointing in opposite directions, but when I got out to check with the wheels turned, they were not out of alignment with each other. So I drove the vehicle home and there was an audible him and a buzz vibration I felt in the wheel. About 1/4 mile before my driveway there is a 90 degree turn and when I made that turn there was the feeling that something broke loose and the steering wheel had considerable wobble as I drove, very slowly. Turning into my driveway made the vehicle very unhappy as it didn’t want to move, but I went into the driveway and again checked for anything that had broken and there was no indication. I hope that this is all caused by the solenoid hunting for a position. I’m going to try cleaning the component while in place at first, but I have a feeling the shop didn’t install the new seals correctly so I’ll be purchasing a new seal kit and hope that the cleaning buys me a little time. Thank you again for the video and for such a quick response to my question. If you have any other information to add I would greatly appreciate it. Sincerely, John
Hey John, I’ll admit, that doesn’t sound good. I don’t think the shop’s work caused your issue, but I guess it’s possible. There is a rod that goes back and forth between the actuator and the T-case. If they didn’t put the rod into the correct position when they reinstalled the actuator, that would cause some problems. HOWEVER, I don’t think you could drive 10 months without any symptoms. It would have showed up right away. From my research, a lot of shops don’t install the seal correctly (honestly, it’s a HORRIBLE design - I’ve actually thought about installing the seal in backwards to see what would happen and if that would keep the spring from dislocating when reinstalling the actuator). However, this will only cause a leak into the actuator, which will cause the sensors to foul, but I’ve never heard of it causing the t-case to lock on its own. They might have messed up the timing inside the actuator, but again, this should have showed up right away. So, while it sounds like the seal did fail, I really don’t think this is your problem. The symptoms you described when turning in the culdesac sound exactly like the t-case was locked (diff-lock on). You stated that the diff-lock light was illuminated, which would indicate that this was the case. This is not to sound insulting, but is there ANY WAY you could have accidently pressed the diff-lock button as you entered that culdesac (or something [wallet or phone] on the lower console that depressed the button maybe?). I have accidently pressed the diff-lock button while trying to turn on or off my seat warmers while driving. If your diff-lock was on, it would have resulted in the exact symptoms you described. When you noticed the diff-lock light illuminated, were you able to turn it off? You might also try copy and pasting the description of what occured in a GX Facebook group - I’m a part of several - and ask the members if they have any ideas. GXOR is a good one. They are a wealth of info. You could also try the GX forum on IH8MUD.com.
Hi, I did check the switch and pushed it several times to check. It had no effect and the light remains illuminated regardless. Now when I start the vehicle the light is flashing.
Ok, so, you may have two issues occuring at the same time. If the seal has failed again and transfer case oil has begun to seep back into the actuator, then it could indeed be interfering with the sensors ability to detect the position of the locking rod, therby resulting in a flashing light. However, the flashing light does not mean that the actuator is not working. To check this, turn your key to the “On” position but do not turn on the GX. Standing outside the GX, with the door open, reach in and press the diff-lock button and then crouch down under the vehicle and listen to the actuator. You may hear a “beeping” sound but you should also hear a “whirring” sound - I don’t know how else to describe it. You can hear the sound here, in my “quick fix” actuator video at 4:03 - th-cam.com/video/YvCowYLmrLo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=VPf1NGYWK1Kgbx6F&t=243 If you press your diff-lock button and hear that sound, even if the light is still blinking, your actuator is working. We still want to get that oil out of there and replace the seal so the sensors can work properly, but it is good to know it is working. IF you do not hear the “whirring” sound, then either your actuator/t-case is malfunctioning OR (let’s hope this is the case) there is too much tension on the t-case for the actuator to disengage. When you are trying to turn off your diff-lock, you cannot be in a turn and helps to be going slow - usually. It’s best to do this on dirt but can be done on pavement or your driveway. Make sure the GX is lined up straight so that the wheels are not turned at all. Press the diff-lock button and back up slowly and straight to the end of your driveway, 20-40 ft. If it is still flashing, put it in Drive and drive foward slowly. If it is still flashing, try Reverse, then Drive again, hoping that this will allow the actuator to disengage. If this doesn’t work, you may need to consult a technician from a reputable shop to evaluate your t-case and actuator OR buy a used one from a salvage yard. In either case, if the actuator will not disengage and the GX is still displaying the symptoms you described in the culdesac and on the road, it should not be driven.
Bahahahaha! Fish net! Never really considered how the weld burn holes in my sweatshirt looked. Thanks for pointing it out. Seriously though, thanks for stopping by the channel and leaving a comment! Adventure on!
![GX470 Complete Actuator Repair | Fixing the Blinking Diff Light [A GX470 Story]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/_znj_sHM2oY/mqdefault.jpg)
All the fancy stuff of new cars....makes me appreciate the old school samurai
Indeed!
I really appreciate the NP205 on my 71 K20
Haha, yes, nice and simple 😉
The Gx is pretty bare and it’s nice having a diff lock
great video ❤
Thanks bro!
Hi,
Well aftter cleaning the unit with mass airflow sensor spray, the problem still persists. After doing that I did turn on the key and could hear the actuator when I pressed the button. I tried driving it slowly fin orward and reverse and pressed the button several times while moving as you suggested and the light remained flashing. Now I have ordered a replacement unit and I'd like to know if the transmission must be in neutral to remove the actuator as I tried to remove it a few months ago and it would not come out. Thank you for all of your help and I hope replacing the actuator is the fix.
I hope that is the problem too my friend. Yes, having the vehicle in Neutral will relieve pressure on the drive train so that, theoretically, there should be no bind on the system. You could even put the transfer case in neutral as well. Let me know how it works out
Hi,
Thank you so much for the reply. I thought I’d share what happened that made me search for a fix to what was happening. To go back a bit, I was leaking gear oil where the unit attached to the transfer case. I bought seals and was unable to get the unit off of the case no matter what I did so I took it to a shop and they replaced the seals. That was about 10 months ago.
Now to yesterday where I was turning in a culdesac and it felt like a wheel had broken loose. I noticed the Diff light was illuminated. I couldn’t see or feel anything loose by shaking the front tires and I was about 20 miles from home. I did another test by making a U turn and there was resistance in movement when I pushed on the gas pedal and the front wheels squealed while I did this… the sensation was like the wheels were pointing in opposite directions, but when I got out to check with the wheels turned, they were not out of alignment with each other. So I drove the vehicle home and there was an audible him and a buzz vibration I felt in the wheel. About 1/4 mile before my driveway there is a 90 degree turn and when I made that turn there was the feeling that something broke loose and the steering wheel had considerable wobble as I drove, very slowly. Turning into my driveway made the vehicle very unhappy as it didn’t want to move, but I went into the driveway and again checked for anything that had broken and there was no indication. I hope that this is all caused by the solenoid hunting for a position. I’m going to try cleaning the component while in place at first, but I have a feeling the shop didn’t install the new seals correctly so I’ll be purchasing a new seal kit and hope that the cleaning buys me a little time.
Thank you again for the video and for such a quick response to my question. If you have any other information to add I would greatly appreciate it.
Sincerely,
John
Hey John, I’ll admit, that doesn’t sound good. I don’t think the shop’s work caused your issue, but I guess it’s possible. There is a rod that goes back and forth between the actuator and the T-case. If they didn’t put the rod into the correct position when they reinstalled the actuator, that would cause some problems. HOWEVER, I don’t think you could drive 10 months without any symptoms. It would have showed up right away. From my research, a lot of shops don’t install the seal correctly (honestly, it’s a HORRIBLE design - I’ve actually thought about installing the seal in backwards to see what would happen and if that would keep the spring from dislocating when reinstalling the actuator). However, this will only cause a leak into the actuator, which will cause the sensors to foul, but I’ve never heard of it causing the t-case to lock on its own. They might have messed up the timing inside the actuator, but again, this should have showed up right away.
So, while it sounds like the seal did fail, I really don’t think this is your problem. The symptoms you described when turning in the culdesac sound exactly like the t-case was locked (diff-lock on). You stated that the diff-lock light was illuminated, which would indicate that this was the case. This is not to sound insulting, but is there ANY WAY you could have accidently pressed the diff-lock button as you entered that culdesac (or something [wallet or phone] on the lower console that depressed the button maybe?). I have accidently pressed the diff-lock button while trying to turn on or off my seat warmers while driving. If your diff-lock was on, it would have resulted in the exact symptoms you described. When you noticed the diff-lock light illuminated, were you able to turn it off?
You might also try copy and pasting the description of what occured in a GX Facebook group - I’m a part of several - and ask the members if they have any ideas. GXOR is a good one. They are a wealth of info. You could also try the GX forum on IH8MUD.com.
Thanks
You’re welcome!
Hi,
I did check the switch and pushed it several times to check. It had no effect and the light remains illuminated regardless. Now when I start the vehicle the light is flashing.
Ok, so, you may have two issues occuring at the same time. If the seal has failed again and transfer case oil has begun to seep back into the actuator, then it could indeed be interfering with the sensors ability to detect the position of the locking rod, therby resulting in a flashing light. However, the flashing light does not mean that the actuator is not working. To check this, turn your key to the “On” position but do not turn on the GX. Standing outside the GX, with the door open, reach in and press the diff-lock button and then crouch down under the vehicle and listen to the actuator. You may hear a “beeping” sound but you should also hear a “whirring” sound - I don’t know how else to describe it. You can hear the sound here, in my “quick fix” actuator video at 4:03 - th-cam.com/video/YvCowYLmrLo/w-d-xo.htmlsi=VPf1NGYWK1Kgbx6F&t=243 If you press your diff-lock button and hear that sound, even if the light is still blinking, your actuator is working. We still want to get that oil out of there and replace the seal so the sensors can work properly, but it is good to know it is working. IF you do not hear the “whirring” sound, then either your actuator/t-case is malfunctioning OR (let’s hope this is the case) there is too much tension on the t-case for the actuator to disengage.
When you are trying to turn off your diff-lock, you cannot be in a turn and helps to be going slow - usually. It’s best to do this on dirt but can be done on pavement or your driveway. Make sure the GX is lined up straight so that the wheels are not turned at all. Press the diff-lock button and back up slowly and straight to the end of your driveway, 20-40 ft. If it is still flashing, put it in Drive and drive foward slowly. If it is still flashing, try Reverse, then Drive again, hoping that this will allow the actuator to disengage. If this doesn’t work, you may need to consult a technician from a reputable shop to evaluate your t-case and actuator OR buy a used one from a salvage yard. In either case, if the actuator will not disengage and the GX is still displaying the symptoms you described in the culdesac and on the road, it should not be driven.
Nice fish net sleeves. Allows arm to still get dirty and not reveal too much. lol.
Bahahahaha! Fish net! Never really considered how the weld burn holes in my sweatshirt looked. Thanks for pointing it out. Seriously though, thanks for stopping by the channel and leaving a comment! Adventure on!