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Car Forum / Jeep / March 200501 TJ wheels locked up at 65 MPH
On Tuesday I brought my Jeep (01 Sahara) in for service. Standard stuff, change the transfer case fluid, check the breaks, oil change, and adjust the 4x4 lever. (Previously if you pulled back to the 4x4 high location it would be in neutral.. you had to be in the middle of the position to be in 4x4 high..) After picking up the jeep I drove around (all different speeds) for 15-20 miles. No out of place noises nothing. Yesterday after lunch I was driving on the freeway (it had been raining, but luckily had stopped). Just turned on the cruise control to 65 MPH.. and suddenly "_BANG_", "screeetch".. Something broke at 65 MPH and the wheels locked up! 65-0 in about 10-15 seconds.. dead in the middle of the freeway with on coming traffic going 65-80 MPH! Luckily I avoided getting rear-ended and was able to get highway patrol there within a few minutes. When loading the jeep onto the flatbed we put the transmission and transfer case into neutral. The rear tires "lurched" and turned.. the front fires wouldn't turn at all. Had the jeep towed back to the dealership (15 or so miles away).. ($500+! dealership picked up the invoice on that...) I'm still waiting to hear what went wrong and whats broken..... but I was wondering, if anyone has any idea what the hell happened.... and what I need to look out for (damage wise). My suspicion right now is either all 4 tires locked up or only the front 2. If all 4 locked, then I suspect the transfer case blew up. If only the front 2 locked then the front differential blew up. If the transfer case blew, then could the front/rear differential, drive shaft, etc be damaged? (I already expect the tires to be flat spotted). If only the front differential blew up.. would there be any damage to anything other then the front axel? (Needless to say, it was damned scary going from 65-0 without being able to do anything about it.. highway patrol, highway helper, tow truck driver and jeep service guy were all amazed I didn't flip/roll it.. geez..) Thanx, Mark (First time I've posted here.. been reading the group for the last 4 years.. all sorts of great tips!) Wow, you were lucky. Too hard to guess at the damage. Too many things could have jammed but having the linkage adjusted and something like the t-case blowing up is too strange..... That almost sounds like you were in 4 high on dry roads and it grenaded the t-case. I have seen that happen, the t-case was literally in pieces with the front driveshaft blown right out. Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's > On Tuesday I brought my Jeep (01 Sahara) in for service. Standard > stuff, change the transfer case fluid, check the breaks, oil change, [quoted text clipped - 43 lines] > (First time I've posted here.. been reading the group for the last 4 > years.. all sorts of great tips!) > That almost sounds like you were in 4 high on dry roads and it grenaded > the t-case. I have seen that happen, the t-case was literally in pieces > with the front driveshaft blown right out. That had definatly cross my mind. The lever was definatly in 2 HI. Also I had taken many turns, nothing felt jittery or anything.. it's possible something minor broke and it flipped into 4x4 HI and then grenaded. It had been raining all day, but wasn't when this happened.. in some ways I think the slightly slick roads helped me... If it wasn't for a little bit of slidding, it may have flipped. I kind of am kicking myself now that I didn't look under the jeep at all when I dropped it off.. but the adrenaline was a bit much for me to be thinking about what actually happened.... (took 2+ hours for my hands to stop shaking!) Ok, I just got a call from the dealership. It turns out they had checked the fluid in the front differential and umm.. didn't exactly make sure there was enough left in there after they checked it. The front pinion bearing grenaded.. they said they're going to replace all of the bearing is the front axel. Is there anything else I need to look out for? (They said they checked everything else over, and only the front wheels locked up on it, the transfer case/rear end looks fine.) The front u-joints, axle bearings and seals and ring and pinion just all took a major 'hit'. So did the front output bearing and seal in the t-case. The twist when the pinion jammed up against the ring gear must have caused some severe stress if no damage showing.... I would be asking about a warranty period on it if they chose to use any of the old guts of the front end. My $0.02, Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's > Ok, I just got a call from the dealership. > [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > (They said they checked everything else over, and only the front wheels > locked up on it, the transfer case/rear end looks fine.) If we're are to believe them, that only the pinion bearings seized, then their races would have spun, making the housing toast, too. I wouldn't use one part of the whole front end. Of course Real Jeeps use unlocking hubs, and would have been free wheelin'. God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O mailto:LWHughes3rd@aol.com http://www.billhughes.com/ > The front u-joints, axle bearings and seals and ring and pinion just all > took a major 'hit'. [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 > 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's > It turns out they had checked the fluid in the front differential and > umm.. didn't exactly make sure there was enough left in there after > they checked it. Are they going to fix this free of charge? by their own admission they f.cked up. Call the shop back right away and talk to the boss, make sure you get him to put in writing that due to their carelessness you almost died when you diff blew while on the highway doing 60 mph. If he won't do this, talk to the owner and repeat all the conversation to him/her. If they still won't fix for free let them know you will be talking to a lawyer tomorrow morning after which you will be contacting the news media, your state vehicle safety board and other legal factions. Snow.. > Are they going to fix this free of charge? by their own admission they f.cked up. Ya.. they're covering the tow charge (about $500), all of the parts.. And I'm going to be damned sure I get something from them that said if I have any front end problems they'll deal with it. I'll take Mike's suggestion on what to talk to them about. --Mark > Wow, you were lucky. > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > the t-case. I have seen that happen, the t-case was literally in pieces > with the front driveshaft blown right out. That's what I was thinkin' too, he thought he was in 2WD, but was really in 4WD and the tcase couldn't take it anymore. Your sun and planetary gears let go: http://www.billhughes.com/BrokenCase01.jpg God Bless America, ßill O|||||||O mailto:LWHughes3rd@aol.com > On Tuesday I brought my Jeep (01 Sahara) in for service. Standard > stuff, change the transfer case fluid, check the breaks, oil change, [quoted text clipped - 43 lines] > (First time I've posted here.. been reading the group for the last 4 > years.. all sorts of great tips!) |
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