Hi all, this is my first time posting.
I have an 06 dakota laramie, 4.7, 120k miles I've been tracing a sound that seems to be coming from the transfer case, I've replaced the front driveshaft, intermediate shafts of the front dif [separate issue I fixed] fluid in front and rear dif. The transfer case is a new process gears 244d 272 ratio I'm debating on whether i want to try and tackle this myself but have never torn apart a transfer case. Anyone know what this noise could be? I tried adding the vid in the attachments but it wouldnt let me but here's the link;

https://youtu.be/9lSAngfDRqU

 

i'm no mechanic, but it sounds to me like something is rubbing inside that shouldn't, like the chain on the housing itself. there also seems to be lots of play in the transfer case. i'm not talking about he input shaft, i mean the whole thing seems to be moving more then i would think it should be moving.

the noise is following the speed of rotation. If you are to open it up, check all your bushings and bearings, i would think that something is worn causing the chain to be out of place which is in turn causing this.

you mention that you repalced the front driveshaft, did you try removing it and re-installing it to see if the issue goes away? maybe something happened during re-assembly. mistakes can happen.

 

I'm currently in the process of taking the tc out cant get the pesky bolt on top. When I was turning the driveshaft by hand it made that sound too but it was easier to hear and I think you're right about the chain.
I do have a 1.5" [I think its 1.5 or 2] leveling kit on the front [put on about 4 years ago] when I jacked it up on 4 stands to try to listen to the sound there was a lot of movement in the front across the dif, which may be transferring down. About a month ago I replaced the upper control arm, lower ball joint cv axles, lower tie rod end [got alignment after] because they were worn not broken, about 150 miles later I hit a dip in the road and snapped the pass side intermediate shaft. Would that leveling kit be causing me all this trouble? Minus the probable worn tc chain.

 

These trucks are pretty hit or miss on lift kits, and the general culprit is more likely the CV axles being so short that their geometry is pretty limited. I put variable rate springs on the front, which resulted in just under an inch of lift (more or less leveled it out). Much better ride, but she really doesn't like CVs. 50xxx km on them and the drivers side is already making noise.

Yeah that TC is a bear to get out because of those top nuts. I used an obstruction wrench and a crowfoot on a 24 inch extension to get mine out. The actual rebuild of the TC is pretty straightforward once you get it out, just take your time. Also, my TC rear output bushing was wiped out, and it isn't listed anywhere as a part for our trucks. With the 1-piece driveshaft, that is GM part number 15665313.

 

[Erased accidental double post]

 

I know cvs werent the original topic but if the stock replacements are going to snap my intermediate shaft again or cause movement down to the tc and/or more issues is there a different cv I could use?

I ended up mostly stripping that top nut on the tc. I reallllly didnt want to drop the whole trans or lift the body [I was going to cut a hole in the floor and weld a patch in before that 😭😂😂] I unbolted the tail housing on the trans and took it off with the tc, worked out well bc I wanted to change the trans oil anyways doing a maintenance overhaul so I know when and what has been changed. I'm prob going to just take my tc somewhere for a rebuild estimated $500. I'll find a tc later down the road to play with apparently the 244d is a rare tc [or so I was told on the phone].

 

yeah, the 244 TC is an AWD TC, which is not used in many dakotas, but it was used in certain chevy/gm trucks, but those might have had a different bolt pattern to mate it to the transmission.

Good luck, i hope it's not much higher then your estimate that you were given.


as for the CV's, the only way to handle the issue with binding causing the intermetiate shaft to snap, would be to drop the front differential. that brings the CV's back to a more neutral position so they don't bind causing the shaft issues. much cheaper doing it this way then looking at other CV shafts.

 

Awesome I will look into a dif drop for future reference and tc is at the shop now will ask what they replaced when I get it back to complete the topic [I hate when topics dont give the final definite answer haha]