Q: What are signs my transfer case is going bad?
My truck was making a whirling sound. It sounded like it was coming from my front driver side, near the tire. It was mostly when I turned the wheel. I live in the mountains so I mean just on a winding road, not when I turned a corner. And mostly at higher speeds, like 50 or so. There was a little bit of jerking, but very minor, also at the higher speeds, with my foot off the gas. I have never taken the truck 4-wheeling, or off roading in an fashion. It is strictly a car I drive to work, school, errands, vacations, etc. No hard driving. I'm very gentle with the truck. I rarely put her up past the number 3 in rpm's. I took her to the shop and the guy told me it's the transfer case, and it would cost me over 500 to repair, and he was giving me a good deal. What I've read online is that it would make a loud sound, and have trouble going between gears. I never had a loud sound, and never trouble in shifting the gears. Please help!!
My car has 142000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.
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Hi there. Typically when a transfer case fails it will start making a grinding noise and can even cause some jerking while driving. It can also cause some instability when driving at higher speeds. From what you are explaining, it sounds like you have a failing hub bearing. This will typically cause this noise before a transfer case would. It can also be a differential problem, but even that is not as common as a bearing. I usually get the vehicle in the air and spin the wheel and listen for the noise. I also check the brakes to make sure that they are fine. If you are thinking of having this noise inspected, consider YourMechanic, as a certified mechanic can come to your location to diagnose and repair this problem.
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