Need help troubleshooting

I was driving in the rain stepping on it to make the wheels spin and sliding. Stopped at a gas station to fill up and go home. And as I was leaving I heard and felt stuff going on in the rear. So I parked to check if my driveshaft fell out but it didn’t so I went to put it back into drive and it didn’t move at all. Put it in each gear and didn’t get any movement even in neutral. Got it towd home and look under the next morning and saw that broken. Lifted the rear and put it in gear and nothing moved not even the driveshaft. What else could cause it not to go in gear? Broken rear end? Broken transmission?

I'm unsure what that is from your picture...

Can you get a better of the broken linkage. That doesn't look familar to me. What's it next to? Perhaps get a picture showing more of the stuff around it.

What year make and model is your vehicle? If one in photo looks like a lowered GMT800 Tahoe chassis? Is that a leaf spring on right hand side of photo. I cannot tell what that stuff is.

Here's a few things to check...

1. transmission fluid (is it dark? smell burnt?) wouldn't necessarily be a clunk though.
2. Look at condition of fluid in rear diff. Can drain filter and put back in if it's fine. A stripped ring or pinion gear would create problems.
3. Did you try all the gears? If transmission went out some may still work, while others don't.
4. Check your transfer case. VERY unlikely it wouldn't move but if the fluid drained out might act weird.
5. Any engine codes?
6. Where does noise come from? I assume rear of vehicle?

Matthew Jeschke said:

I'm unsure what that is from your picture...

Can you get a better of the broken linkage. That doesn't look familar to me. What's it next to? Perhaps get a picture showing more of the stuff around it.

What year make and model is your vehicle? If one in photo looks like a lowered GMT800 Tahoe chassis? Is that a leaf spring on right hand side of photo. I cannot tell what that stuff is.

Here's a few things to check...

1. transmission fluid (is it dark? smell burnt?) wouldn't necessarily be a clunk though.
2. Look at condition of fluid in rear diff. Can drain filter and put back in if it's fine. A stripped ring or pinion gear would create problems.
3. Did you try all the gears? If transmission went out some may still work, while others don't.
4. Check your transfer case. VERY unlikely it wouldn't move but if the fluid drained out might act weird.
5. Any engine codes?
6. Where does noise come from? I assume rear of vehicle?

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First pic is passenger second driver. It’s a 2006 2wd. will check all the fluids when it’s Not so gloomy out. Put it in every gear but did not move at all driveshaft didn’t even spin only revved up. Haven’t checked for codes just yet. When it did break the noise came from the rear kinda like the diff area but has since stopped making noises.

I'm not familiar with the 2wd frame / suspension. However, that's a sway bar end link. You'll want to order a new one. Not sure if it's factory as your truck looks lowered??? Either way it's a piece of cake to replace so long as you get the right part. It would make a huge racket but wouldn't keep the truck from going into gear / moving.

It could stop making noise if the linkage completely brakes and falls down. It's pretty common for sway bars, and links to break.

So does your truck drive? I'm a bit confused, you had it towed because of the noise? and or it won't move under it's own power? The sway bar system wouldn't keep it from moving.

Matthew Jeschke said:

I'm not familiar with the 2wd frame / suspension. However, that's a sway bar end link. You'll want to order a new one. Not sure if it's factory as your truck looks lowered??? Either way it's a piece of cake to replace so long as you get the right part. It would make a huge racket but wouldn't keep the truck from going into gear / moving.

It could stop making noise if the linkage completely brakes and falls down. It's pretty common for sway bars, and links to break.

So does your truck drive? I'm a bit confused, you had it towed because of the noise? and or it won't move under it's own power? The sway bar system wouldn't keep it from moving.

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Does not move at all, in any gear, like if the breaks were pressed. I lifted the rear end up by the diff and put it in gear to see if it would move and it didn’t. The driveshaft did not spin at all either.

When you had the rear lifted up did you try spinning the tires by hand?

15burban said:

When you had the rear lifted up did you try spinning the tires by hand?

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Yes, they didn’t budge at all

What I understand... Engine revs, truck doesn't move. Need a few more details. I know you lifted up the rear end but not for sure exactly what all you tested there...

Here's a few questions.

1. Check to see if your shifter linkage is working. Place your cell phone camera on record on ground under the linkage as you operate it in truck. The linkage has a big black rubber boot on it... It's on the driver side of the transmission housing just above the service pan, and above the exhaust. Broken shifter linkage will result in no codes, always in park (at least in your case), the dash will show gear change, but it'll remain in park and behave as it's in park.

2. Did it roll when they put on tow truck or did they have to drag it up on flatbed?

3. Did you try to spin wheels in neutral? Or just in gear with rear diff raised? I assume both tires were off the ground when you tried to spin a tire? To fully check the rear end you need both tires off the ground. I think you know this... but wasn't sure by your post.

4. Any engine codes?

5. What kind of rear end does the truck have? G80, limited slip, or open diff? If open diff with both wheels off the ground the wheels should still spin by hand even in gear (with a properly functioning rear end). Take a picture of your options sticker in glove box. It shows what the rear diff is.

6. State of transmission fluid would be very helpful were you able to check the stick for smell / dark fluid?

Trying to help you isolate problem to rear diff or transmission. Won't be brakes if you select a gear and engine still revs freely.

1loehoe_tony said:

I was driving in the rain stepping on it to make the wheels spin and sliding. Stopped at a gas station to fill up and go home. And as I was leaving I heard and felt stuff going on in the rear. So I parked to check if my driveshaft fell out but it didn’t so I went to put it back into drive and it didn’t move at all. Put it in each gear and didn’t get any movement even in neutral. Got it towd home and look under the next morning and saw that broken. Lifted the rear and put it in gear and nothing moved not even the driveshaft. What else could cause it not to go in gear? Broken rear end? Broken transmission?

Click to expand...

Obviously a broken piece here, when these trucks are lowered its good to install an offset arm like this https://djmsuspension.com/product/2...r-sway-bar-end-links-for-lowered-suspensions/
When you put the truck in “gear” did you try to spin the wheels while it was in neutral?

The broken part in the pic is not at all related to why your vehicle won't move. The sway bar link is for nothing more than vehicle sway, side to side, like while cornering. You could likely have snapped your sway bar link while you were sliding around in the rain. It's at the incorrect angle to do its job properly. Your vehicle is lowered and that looks like a stock sway bar link. The sway bar should be parallel to the ground, not at an angle downward.

When you go from park to any gear, do you feel the trans shift?

When you step on the throttle in gear, does it feel like the vehicle wants to move at all, like lurches, jerks, etc? Or does it feel just like you're revving the engine in park/neutral?

When you move the shifter, does it just fall, or do you feel the detents of each gear?