Today I paid my buddy Al $200 to help me swap transfer case I got from kodiactruck. Hoping this would remove the horrible vibration I get when going at a decent speed (65-80mph).

Had to put 5w30 full synthetic motor oil in the np231c transfer case per what kodiactruck required. I used valvoline and it took 3qts.

this didn’t fix vibration. Next guess is torque converter and possibly trans from monster

Looks like before I purchase a new transmission and torque converter from Monster Transmission my buddy Al and I are going to do some quick troubleshooting to make sure I’m not just spending $3000 for no reason.

Our plan is to remove the front drive shaft and see if the noise/vibration goes away (I don’t think it will have any difference since the front axle isn’t locked and the transfer case is in 2H which means the front driveshaft isn’t even turning)

Next we remove the rear driveshaft and put the front one back in and see if the vibration goes away. (this will definitly help identify the rear axle or even the Tom Woods driveshaft as being part of the vibration. This also could tell me if the angle from driveshaft to rear axles isn’t good enough)

If the vibration doesn’t change after removing the driveshafts then it has to be the torque converter.  Currently I have the stage 3 hughes performance torque converter for 2300-2500 stall.  I would keep the same stall but possibly go with a different manufacturer

Okay, now Holidays are over its time for an update…  not much has happened. 

Al, helped me getting some heat working (needed a new blower motor and some switch).  He also helped me getting my washer fluid to pump some washer fluid on my window to clear off some mud (bad wiper delay module).

Vibration is a remaining issue.  He did locate a bad transmission mount (crazy to think the transmission place didn’t discover that since its only been in and out how many times?) but Al did the right thing a replaced it to hopefully help with some of the vibration.

He took off the front driveshaft and the vibration seemed to decrease but still noticeable (very noticeable when four wheel drive is engaged and running at low speeds).  So the thought is pinion angle is wrong which I brought up to Unlimited Offroad before when I noticed the vibration but they said it was first because of a rear brake caliper too tight on the rotor which warped it causing the vibration so they fixed that. Then they said it was transfer case or transmission (but don’t forget they said it was the motor mounts before which I never had issues before, only after new axles have been installed did vibration issues start occurring).

So to address the vibration I’m going to a different offroad shop. I’m trying my luck at Michigan Offroad Center in Lansing (about an hour drive for me)  we’ll see what they have to say on Monday.

Also Al noticed when Unlimited Offroad installed the exhaust they mounted a hanger to the body (WTH)..  so vibration noises carry from suspension to body. Stupid! So I need to schedule an appointment with Muffler Man to have it fixed.  Not to mention you can hear like a bolt or something rattling around inside the new muffler.

That’s where we are today

Just got back from a couple of offroad places in Lansing, MI

Michigan Offroad Center and AllPro in effort to help me figure out why I’m getting this horrible vibration.

Michigan Offroad Center (Brian) worked on my Blazer for about 3 hours troubleshooting and came to the conclusion, they don’t know either.  They did point out the front driveshaft is at an insane angle which is more than likely the cause and the only solution they can think of is lower engine and trans to make the front driveshaft work OR deal with it.

Rear driveshaft, they suggested adding some wedges to see if it makes it worse, then we could tell where the issue lies.

Again, great guys!  Very knowledgeable. Wish they could of helped me out but sometimes its just not possible.

AllPro is right down the street (Ken) and I figured before I start the hour drive back home I would check with him to see if he had any thoughts.  He suggested a SYE (Slip Yoke Eliminator) on the rear which would add some extra needed length to the driveshaft which may reduce the angle.  Also it would eliminate dirt and garbage getting caught up in the yoke.  I have been researching this a little and I think jbconversions has one for around $400 for the NP241c transfer case. Remember to include the cost of the new driveshaft with a change like this (you must either have a slip-yoke on the driveshaft or transfer case to allow for suspension cycling and differentiating lengths as that occurs). A SYE (or fixed yoke driveshaft) lets you run a longer driveshaft-or even a CV-joint-driveshaft for better driveshaft angles and less vibration and if it gets damaged you can remove the broken driveshaft and drive home in Front Wheel Drive (no loosing fluid).  So whats the downfall behind the SYE? With a slip-yoke on the back of a transfer case is that it will fall out of the back of the transfer case and you’ll lose your gear oil if you pull the rear driveshaft.

[attachment file=”67277″]
These kits will both go a long ways to reducing driveline vibes by alleviating the angles of the rear shaft. The stock slip yoke is also a source of clunking as it can bind when the angles get severe enough. Having the slip joint in the driveshaft eliminates this as well.

Cancelled “The Car Guys Garage” until I get vibration figured out.  It’s back at Unlimited Offroad since I didn’t have the vibration prior to them putting the new axles in.  They gotta fix what they installed.  I don’t have the money to have another business start fixing it.

So what’s the status???

1-16-2016, 9:00am: Dropped K5 off at Unlimited Offroad

1-19-2016, 1:24pm: Rcvd quote from Aaron that cost is do SYE, replace driveshaft is around $1700. They requested deposit to begin work

1-20-2016, Provided $1500 so they can order what they need to order.

Now awaiting a status..  The SYE kit ( Part #16-1207 – $445) with 1350 Flange is coming from

JB Conversions, Inc.
P.O. Box 2683
Sulphur, LA 70664-2683

and going to

3051 W Thompson Rd, Fenton, MI 48430

They are charging 4 hours for the install which includes:

1. dropping xfer case
2. taking case apart and putting the SYE kit in
3. removing xfer case drop
4. installing oil in xfer case
5. installing xfer case back in K5

Then they need to measure for new drive shaft from Tom Woods and put the order in.

Received a call last night from Unlimited Offroad (Aaron) and looks like JB Conversions doesn’t have all the parts to make a complete SYE kit for the K5. They are hoping to have them Friday but Monday at the latest.  Add 2 days for shipping and we are looking at Wednesday next week before Unlimited can do anything which means probably Thursday before they get to it.  I don’t see why they couldn’t complete it Thursday if they started in the morning then they need to measure for driveshaft length and get the order in with Tom Woods and that takes 2 days which means we are looking at roughly the following Wednesday.  Of course it seriously only takes about 10min to put the driveshaft in so they can test to see if the vibration is gone.

So next update should be next Wednesday (Feb.01, 2017) when they should have received the SYE kit from JB Conversions

So what’s the status???

1-16-2016, 9:00am: Dropped K5 off at Unlimited Offroad

1-19-2016, 1:24pm: Rcvd quote from Aaron that cost is do SYE, replace driveshaft is around $1700. They requested deposit to begin work

1-20-2016, Provided $1500 so they can order what they need to order.

Now awaiting a status..  The SYE kit ( Part #16-1207 – $445) with 1350 Flange is coming from

JB Conversions, Inc.
P.O. Box 2683
Sulphur, LA 70664-2683

and going to

3051 W Thompson Rd, Fenton, MI 48430

They are charging 4 hours for the install which includes:

1. dropping xfer case
2. taking case apart and putting the SYE kit in
3. removing xfer case drop
4. installing oil in xfer case
5. installing xfer case back in K5

Then they need to measure for new drive shaft from Tom Woods and put the order in.

Received an email from Unlimited today

I wanted to let you know what I found out from JB. They are still filling all their orders from last week. Ours will be shipping out from them tomorrow 2-1-17.  The ETA for the JB Conversions SYE is Monday 2-6-17

So a week delay in game.

Looks like a possible SYE install Monday (2/6) but realistically probably not until Tuesday (2/7) at the earliest.  They should be able to finish it same day but I’m not holding my breath.  If finished, they just need to re-install transfer case and take measurements from SYE to rear for new DriveShaft from Tom Woods.  If luck has its way this would be ordered by Monday (2/6) or Tuesday (2/7) close of business. Tom Woods usually knocks it out within 2-3 days, heading back to Unlimited which should be ready for install on Monday (2/13).. if any luck is involved it would arrive and be installed on Friday (2/24) but I’m a realistic.

Most importantly, let’s hope this fixes the vibration issues when driving anything faster than 50mph (really bad at 70-80mph) in 2wheel drive.  The worse vibration is when you put the transfer case in 4wd (either high or low) you get that front driveshaft spinning and you may loose a filling.  That needs to work smooth with no vibration at up to 50mph

Updated time…

As of yesterday the SYE kit from JB Conversions is installed but a guess a part won’t fit a xfer case with VSS so Unlimited Offroad needs to send the part back to JB Conversions to exchange it for the correct part.

Unlimited Offroad did order the driveshaft from Tom Woods and it should arrive no later than Wednesday next week.  Once they get the driveshaft and install it they are going to drive it and test to see if all vibrations are gone from the driveline (which I’m really hoping it is).

Yesterday the K5 headed on over to a Transmisson shop since the trans failed again.  This time trying a different trans shop that was highly recommended by the head tech (Joe) at Unlimited Offroad.  I suppose we’ll see.  On the fence using another local transmission shop versus ordering a trans from Monster Transmission but like Joe mentioned. Local guy is local and can fix it, test it and be good with it. Also offers a one year unlimited miles warranty.  Monster is in Florida and they just send the trans. You have to purchase an extended warranty which automatically feels a bit like you don’t trust your product enough to warranty it for very long.

Should have the K5 back next Friday.

Time for an update….

Talked to Joe at Unlimited yesterday and he gave me a status of how its going at the Transmission shop since he just got off the phone with them. Upon taking apart the transmission they found the new Hughes Performance torque converter came apart and messed up the pump which in turn sprayed trans fluid everywhere.  Not sure if you remember but at the very beginning the torque converter came apart the first time Frayley’s put the transmission in.  Come to find out, the wiring to the lockup was wrong causing the torque converters to explode basically.

So its a good sign they found this issue and is correcting it.  They are still building it but expect to have it back to Unlimited by Thursday or Friday this week which means a Monday pickup for me.

So this should be a lengthly update but seriously I’ve had a few so will try and keep this at the 30,000 foot view.  I got the Blazer back from Unlimited and before I even drove it off the lot I noticed an oil leak which I pointed out to the salesman Aaron Dixon which noted the leak.  We assumed it was left overs from the trans pump seal going and shooting trans fluid everywhere but you could see its engine oil not transmission oil.  I figured I’d spray/clean the underside and see if it continues to produce oil which it did.

Last Thursday I brought the Blazer back to Unlimited to correct the issues since the oil leak is a new development since it left there shop.

I talked to Aaron today and it appears the power steering pump is also leaking.

So high level, power steering pump is leaking, transfer case is leaking the synthetic 5w-30 Mobil engine oil and not sure if the engine is leaking any oil or if all the engine oil is possibly coming from the transfer case vent tube that is attached to the trans filler tube which lines up with the side of the engine that is showing signs of engine oil leaking.

Suggestion: PSC (http://www.pscmotorsports.com/vehicle-specific-products/gm-truck-steering?cat=246&limit=all)

Time will tell…

Ok, not a great update.

Good News

power steering fixed

Bad News

Leaking seal on Xfer case for gear selector

xfer case vent leaking oil

So moved to a SYE by JB conversions a bit ago to help eliminate vibrations in the driveline which worked. Bad news is before the SYE the air build up could slip out the slip yoke seal if build up happens.

[attachment file=”67290″]

Now it’s sealed tight so the vent is now an escape for the transfer case oil. Moved to ATF since it’s thinner than the Mobile Synthetic oil. An option was to put a thicker/wider vent tube or relocate the vent on the xfer case which is what we ended up doing. Moving the vent away from the chain hoping to still allow heat to escape and pressure out but keep oil in.

spacer had to be used by alternator since belt was being eaten.

will find out in about two weeks

Ok so we are now working.  Transfer case is no longer leaking.  Transmission was provided by one of Sammons contacts and it seems pretty good (just a little sluggish between shifts)..  Currently at Motor City Steel for an ignition upgrade and dyno tune on the Holly Terminator which they are certified to tune.

Hopefully next week I should be ready to go. Very excited to see what they can do