New Guy with a Question!

[TenMidgets]

Hi All,

Great forum and my first post. Hoping to learn a lot! I just purchased a '96 2DR Tahoe and think I may have a problem. My test drive went very smoothly at all speeds. But when I bought it a few days later some weird things started happening on the ride home...

Mostly at slower speeds (but it was also happening at higher speeds) it felt like a violent lurching was taking place. One of them was so bad that I literally thought someone hit me on the highway!

First I thought it was the transmission but my friend who owns a Tahoe drove it and could not reproduce the issue. He thought my 2WD/4WD button was slipping from one to the other while I was driving and that would cause a major lurch. Any ideas? I am obviously very disappointed since now I own the car and have no recourse since I bought it as is

Thanks

 

[Gzes]

Welcome. Good to see another 2dr owner. Now as for the problem does it happen when it's up shifting? Does it give like a kick? It sounds like its the shift solenoid pack. My exploder did the same and I had to get a new solenoid pack. Bout $500 parts and labor for me

 

[TenMidgets]

Thanks for the welcome. It seems to happen on downshift while I take my foot off the gas and coast or while in traffic. Never felt anything like it before so at first I was concerned about whether I was doing any damage while driving it, but a shift solenoid pack would be a good resolution. Any way I can diagnose further aside from bringing it to my mechanic?

Appreciate it.

 

[Beechwood]

Welcome.

I would check your driveshaft (rear) yoke. 99% of us have the problem (all to a differing degree).

The yoke that goes into the transfer case slips back and forth as you go from accel to decel or vice versa. It give a pretty hard clunk/squeak/thud or a combo of all three. Mine is worst when I take off from a stop. Google it and search the forums. The cheapest fix is to take the drive shaft off and coat the yoke with a special very thick grease. I used normal grease (mistake) and the problem went away for a few weeks before returning. The expensive fix is to buy the improved yoke which is nickel plated.

Also check your u-joints.

Good luck!

 

[Yukon96]

Welcome. I was cruising along one day recently, and, all of a sudden, I got the hurky jerk while coasting at about 45 mph. It happened several times. I had already removed the drive shaft previously, drilled and installed a grease fitting while off of the truck, so I could just add more grease later if needed without removing the drive shaft again. I filled it with heavy duty marine grease. That stopped the bump at stops and starts. As soon as I got home from work I checked the transfer case fluid, since that was the only fluid not checked or changed before I bought the truck. From the looks of all the road grime on it and around the plugs, it may have never been checked or change in 218,000 mikes. Turns out, it was very very low. Maybe a quart, if that, in it. I drained it and refilled with fluid to the top plug, and it hasn't reoccurred since. A few weeks now. Mine is manual,(floor shift), but technically could be the same issue for you. Good luck.

 

[TenMidgets]

Thanks for the info, wasn't aware of the drive shaft yoke issue. I am going to bring it in to my mechanic for further investigation.

One thing I've noticed is the buttons to toggle between 2WD and 4WD Hi/Low. The lights are finicky and the buttons don't really remain in place...could it be that the engaged button comes loose and shifts into 2WD to 4WD while in motion?

 

[Yukon96]

If that's the case, it would certainly be a relatively cheap fix to replace the switch assembly. Sounds like it needs replacing anyway.