1sennafan

Newbie Owner Question on 1989 4runner.
The problem is the W56 transmission is stuck in 4th gear. Also the transfer case is stuck in 4WD, it will shift between 4hi and 4lo and neutral but it won?t go into 2hi.
This isnt common I assume because I have searched for hours and find nothing about this problem.
Does the transmission need to be in neutral to shift from 2WD to 4WD and back to 2WD?
Is this an easy fix or does it mean replacing the transmission or transfer case or both?
Any help or advise anyone can give is greatly appreciated!

4Crawler

iTrader: (3)

Might just be driveline binding from the 4WD operation, at least with the t-case shifting. Try rolling the truck along in a straight line or see if you can lift the tires off the ground to relieve the stress. Binding occurs in a part-time 4WD system when 4WD is used on a high traction surface.

frombozeman

I had the same thing happen to me. I shifted into 4th taking a hill on the hwy and that was the last shift ever for the ol W56. I took it to a transmission shop and they said it needed a full rebuild to the tune of $1800. I picked up a used w56 on craigslist for $250 and got out of the situation that way. The good news is that you can transport it in 4WD low, so it's not completely disabled. Sorry to hear of the loss---I know how it feels though.

1sennafan

Problem Solved! I drained the tranny and less than a quart of grey sludge came out with gear chunks included!