Anyone else break their transfer case?

[Mike E]

Went off roading with my Hummer club today and broke my transfer case. Wasn't doing anything extrememe (I'll post pics tomorrow) and I heard the snap! Barely made it home in 4high lock since thats the only position it would move in.

Has anyone else had this happen? did your dealer cover it under warranty? My friends in the club told me that its covered and not a problem.

Just wondering. I have a puddle of oil forming in my driveway! Man can you hear that chain grinding the case!

I am happy to say that the H3 performed WAY above what I expected and a couple of the guys with Alpha's were surprised as well. IT was a fun day!

[Hummer Guy]

wow...that sucks -- what exactly were you doing when you heard the snap? (Speed, t-case setting, obstacle, etc)

[Mike E]

I was going through a twist ditch or a Whoop dee as some call it and was climbing out and i heard the pop. Nothing extreme at all. About the same as the demo you would watch on the Hummer site for the H3.

[rkcrawl]

I am going to be real interested in hearing what failed in your case and how its handled by the dealer.

[Hummer23]

Originally Posted by rkcrawl

I am going to be real interested in hearing what failed in your case and how its handled by the dealer.

+1

[f5fstop]

Under warranty, the dealer should repair or replace. Those are pretty good BW transfer cases, but like anything else man made, some will slip through quality control.

What is the build date on your H3? I'm curious...

[H3 Hummer]

Originally Posted by f5fstop

Under warranty, the dealer should repair or replace. Those are pretty good BW transfer cases, but like anything else man made, some will slip through quality control.

What is the build date on your H3? I'm curious...

Yeah, I wonder if it was June.

[Mike E]

f5fstop, I replied to your Pm with my VIN so you can check it out. Let me know.

[NoMoGMPG]

If you could drive in 4hiLock, I don't think its the t/case. Probably a diff.

[f5fstop]

Could be a couple things, such as lockup shift collar, high/low shift fork, shift cam, that could lock it in 4-wheel hi/low and allow the vehicle to be driven, with a lot of noise.

[FutureBeachBum]

How do you determine the build date of your H3?

[Mike E]

Dealer just called. They said the entire front differential suffered a catastrophic failure to which it basically exploded. Which would explain the fluid spraying everywhere. They also said that the transfer case was leaking and they would reseal it. I should have it back tomorrow. He said the techs have never seen a differential this bad.

All being covered under warranty.

[f5fstop]

Oops, another front diff; this is not good. That makes three on this forum alone. Strange, yours was made in August too. Makes me glad I have one of the first ones made.

Did the dealer get some photos? Was it a ring gear failure like Neo's and Bebe's? I wonder if AAM was having some problems back July; such as hardening of the gear set? Just wondering, but could lapping compound left on the gear set cause this type of ring gear failure? Anyone know? They did have that early problem with the rear axles and lapping compound left on the gear set during assembly. Just thinking to myself, I have no info on this, but I'm getting more curious as time goes on.

[Mike E]

I'll call the dealer in the morning and see if I can get more info/pictures to post.

[NEOCON1]

this is the first i have heard of one leaking after failing . do you know if it was more than a striped ring gear .

[CO Hummer]

Dang........ There's a lot of this going around in H3 land.

[HummBebe]

f5fstop,

don't forget HIHUMMER andSewie too. This makes 5 .

[HIHUMMER]

Originally Posted by HummBebe

f5fstop,

don't forget HIHUMMER andSewie too. This makes 5 .

Was it ever determined if we all had June 05 build dates!?!?

[NoMoGMPG]

Originally Posted by f5fstop

Oops, another front diff; this is not good. That makes three on this forum alone. Strange, yours was made in August too. Makes me glad I have one of the first ones made.

Did the dealer get some photos? Was it a ring gear failure like Neo's and Bebe's? I wonder if AAM was having some problems back July; such as hardening of the gear set? Just wondering, but could lapping compound left on the gear set cause this type of ring gear failure? Anyone know? They did have that early problem with the rear axles and lapping compound left on the gear set during assembly. Just thinking to myself, I have no info on this, but I'm getting more curious as time goes on.

The lapping compound would not cause a fracturing of the gear, rather, it would lead to excessive backlash and a howling noise. The catastrophic failure is likely a manufacturing defect and American Axle is going to have alot of 'splainin to do, not to mention compensation to GM for warranty repairs.

[Sewie]

I never did get to see the actual damage to mine. But from the sounds of it, it wasn't nearly as bad. Just some small chips in the teeth from what I was told. I was actually able to drive it for about a week before I took it in. There was just a grinding noise whenever I let off the gas.

They originally noticed some wear on the t-case and rebuilt it. Then once it was put back together they noticed the front diff. Not sure if its all related.

And I purchased mine in early July '05 so it was probably a June build.