Help with 2015 Silverado Transfer Case will not come out of Neutral

[RobRoy]

2015 Silverado 4WD Transfer case will not come out of neutral.

Neutral the transfer case and hauled from the Snowbelt to the fla. keys. Now the transfer case does not want to come out fo neutral and re-engage.

Trying to help a friend Im in Fla also but 500 miles away.

I myself have an older Chevrolet TrailBlazer that I use once in a while as a toad and it can be fussy getting in and out sometimes but this 2015 Silverado does not to place nice looking for ideas to re-engage the transfer case.

Thanks in advance

[twinboat]

Try this, start the engine and place the transmission in drive. Gets the gears turning.

Shut the engine off and quickly shift the transfer case out of neutral. While the gears are turning, they mesh better.

[G jeffers]

Get it rolling a little while applying pressure.

[TripleEEE]

Electric or manual transfer case?

[RobRoy]

Originally Posted by twinboat

Try this, start the engine and place the transmission in drive. Gets the gears turning.

Shut the engine off and quickly shift the transfer case out of neutral. While the gears are turning, they mesh better.

Thanks for the quik response TB, I will tell him to give it a try, he Says the "service 4wd" light is now on and it will do nothing.

I have a scanner with bi-direction controls to control the transfer case motor that might help out........ the only problem is it up north 1500 miles.

Thanks for your input

I told him look at the bright side ...could be worse ...... the transfer case could be engaged and not disengage at least at this point you can get back home with it ... LoL

Thanks again

[RobRoy]

Originally Posted by TripleEEE

Electric or manual transfer case?

Electric on the fly


Thanks for the quick response

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by RobRoy

Electric on the fly


Thanks for the quick response

"Electronic on the FLY"??????
Are you sure about that? There are some transfer cases that can be shifted on the fly from 4L to 4H and even 2H but, from NEUTRAL to in gear, ON THE FLY, well, I'd kinda have to see that in the manual. Not really saying you're wrong but, logically, to shift a transfer case that's NOT SYNCRO, (not very many are) from neutral to in gear, while moving is normally not recommended.

Yep, that transfer case in most of the later GM and Fords is electronically shifted and, due to that type of shifting, some of them even require the parking brake to be on, your foot on the brake pedal and the trans in either neutral or, park. Ours is an '11 GMC Sierra 1500 Extended Cab 4x4 and, I'm kind-a thinking that the transfer case in it, is more than likely, almost identical to the one in the '15 model year but, have no real verification of that. So far, in the thousands of miles we've towed it, no issues getting the T/C to shift back into gear after disconnecting from the coach. One thing that helps most transfer cases is USE! That is, USE them and or shift them, on a periodic basis to keep even the electronic shifting mechanisms free working.

Most of us that tow Jeep Wranglers, know that just about ALL of them can be real onry to shift when they're a new Jeep. But, as time goes on and, the T/C get's used on a frequent basis, either just for towing or, lots of time off road, those T/C shift mechanisms do a lot of freeing up and things become quite easy.
Scott

[moisheh]

Get your friend to send you the method he is using to get the transfer case into gear. Maybe he is just not doing it correctly. On our 09. The engine is off, key is on.. You put the tranny into neutral and hold the switch all the way to the left. It takes a few seconds but the N light goes out and the 2wd light comes on. If you make a mistake you have to turn off the ignition switch and start all over.

[RobRoy]

Originally Posted by FIRE UP

"Electronic on the FLY"??????
Are you sure about that? There are some transfer cases that can be shifted on the fly from 4L to 4H and even 2H but, from NEUTRAL to in gear, ON THE FLY, well, I'd kinda have to see that in the manual. Not really saying you're wrong but, logically, to shift a transfer case that's NOT SYNCRO, (not very many are) from neutral to in gear, while moving is normally not recommended.

Yep, that transfer case in most of the later GM and Fords is electronically shifted and, due to that type of shifting, some of them even require the parking brake to be on, your foot on the brake pedal and the trans in either neutral or, park. Ours is an '11 GMC Sierra 1500 Extended Cab 4x4 and, I'm kind-a thinking that the transfer case in it, is more than likely, almost identical to the one in the '15 model year but, have no real verification of that. So far, in the thousands of miles we've towed it, no issues getting the T/C to shift back into gear after disconnecting from the coach. One thing that helps most transfer cases is USE! That is, USE them and or shift them, on a periodic basis to keep even the electronic shifting mechanisms free working.

Most of us that tow Jeep Wranglers, know that just about ALL of them can be real onry to shift when they're a new Jeep. But, as time goes on and, the T/C get's used on a frequent basis, either just for towing or, lots of time off road, those T/C shift mechanisms do a lot of freeing up and things become quite easy.
Scott

Electronic and wont re-engage The service 4wd message is now on. Worked fine on test run 1500 miles ago both in and out of gear.

Followed instructions in the owners manual to the t......nothing


Thanks for your input

[RobRoy]

Originally Posted by moisheh

Get your friend to send you the method he is using to get the transfer case into gear. Maybe he is just not doing it correctly. On our 09. The engine is off, key is on.. You put the tranny into neutral and hold the switch all the way to the left. It takes a few seconds but the N light goes out and the 2wd light comes on. If you make a mistake you have to turn off the ignition switch and start all over.

Service 4wd message is on is on? ... keep in mind he is 500 miles from me.


I have 2 toads one is a modified TrailBlazer and it is electronic 4wd and yes you have to follow the procedure exactly or it won't play nice.

The owner of the 2015 Silverado were speaking of is with another friend and are both are in-depth car guys and he says they have followed the procedure in the manual exactly as specified and with no joy.


Thanks for the quick response

[TripleEEE]

Sounds to me like the transfer case shift motor has failed, especially now that the "service 4wd" light is now on.

Just for the heck of it, I would disconnect the battery for 5 minutes and reconnect. Then go through the procedure again.

We had a rash of shift motor failures on our fleet trucks a few years back.

[engine103]

I have 04 2500HD automatic 4x4 on the fly shifting. Once and only once did I have a problem with getting back into drive after it was being used as my TOAD and it was my fault. It will lock it's self out if the sequence for putting transmission back into road gear is not properly done and will time out. Per the Silverado manual, "Excessively shifting the transfer case into and out of the different modes may cause the transfer case to enter shift protection mode. This will protect the transfer case from possible damage and will only allow the transfer case to respond to one shift per 10 seconds. The transfer case will stay in this mode for up to three minutes."

[vettenuts]

There was a similar issue with the Colorado. It might be worth reading and trying the below from a GM bulletin:



The following diagnosis might be helpful if the vehicle exhibits the symptom(s) described in this PI.

Condition/Concern
Some customers may comment on a service 4wd message and the transfer case is stuck in neutral. This condition only occurs when the customer dinghy tows the vehicle or sets the vehicle up for dinghy towing and disconnects then reconnects the battery as outlined in the owner’s manual. Technician will find a c0398 stored in the TCCM (transfer case control module).

Recommendation/Instructions
Verify that the customer has dinghy towed the vehicle or set the vehicle up for dinghy towing as outlined in the owner’s manual and then disconnected the battery with the transfer case in neutral. If the vehicle has a c0398 after this type of procedure clear the diagnostic trouble code and return the vehicle to the customer with a copy of this pi. An owner’s manual supplement will be sent to owners to include steps 5.1 - 5.4. If a customer happens to call your dealership indicating that the transfer case is stuck in neutral after dinghy towing and cannot be shifted out of neutral accompanied with a service 4wd message in the DIC, the following sequence will restore transfer case shifting.

1. With the ignition in the RUN position and engine not running,
2. Open the hood and remove the 30 Amp TREC fuse in the under hood fuse block,
3. Reinstall the 30 amp fuse
4. Continue with "Shifting out of neutral" in the owner’s manual.

Note: Removing the TREC fuse with the key on may cause additional messages to appear on the DIC including service StabiliTrak. After the transfer case is shifted out of neutral turn the vehicle off, restart the vehicle and those messages should not reappear.

[TripleEEE]

That's great info for the OP to try, vettenuts.

Best of all, its free to try.