Clicking noise when i 3rd and 4th gear and...

[gnarnold]

When in gear and I let off the gas it gets louder .mechanic told me it was transfer case it slows down when the car slows down .doesn't really make it when in neutral matter of fact it pretty much goes away when put in neutral .but not when clutch is pressed .this frickin car .man on man .it's like it senses when I have important stuff to do and throws a temper tantrum .I swear it's alive and hates me .

[Gottolovem]

Have you checked fluid levels? If not I would do so right away!!
Get another mechanic he has no idea what the transfer case is like in this particular vehicle! I'll bet he could not even point it out if you asked him to!
It's unique and nothing like most fluid carrying transfer cases.I doubt your noise is coming from where he thinks.
Check fluid levels if they're low i'll bet your pilot bearing or the bearing on the shaft it's self rides on is going out.

[gnarnold]

How to drive it to work and and stuff I'm on my way to get gear oil right now and I'm going to pump it in there so wish me luck it makes the noise in all gears except first .fifth being the loudest I got about another Mile left. Til I'm home

[Petros]

really worn out trans sometimes break a gear tooth off and cause that kind of thing, but it could be a CV joint (easy fix), or the throw out bearing, or the pilot bearing (both of these are much more work, pull the trans and replace these and the clutch). You might drain the gear oil out and see if there are any metal shavings or even peices of gear teeth in the oil, if so you will need a new trans soon. But occasionally with fresh 4 liters of gear oil you might be able to drive it for a long time yet. If your drained oil is clean, likely it is something outside the trans as noted above, and not a hazard to keep driving, and a much easier and cheaper fix.

[gnarnold]

Ok well I drained the gear oil and got about two quarts out of it .lowered the car and stood on the bumper .put new oil in and got about two quarts before it poured out.is that 8 turn screw /plug involved where do I find that

[ARCHINSTL]

It is the rearmost drain plug as in the illustration in the FSM. It must be turned out to allow fluid to flow from one chamber to the other - ditto with filling it.
Tom M.

[Gottolovem]

I'm driving so I can't really get a picture for you of the eight turn bolt.
From empty to full the transmission holds a gallon

[Petros]

did you open all the drain plugs? there are three.

where did you fill it from? there are also three fillers, but two are a real pain to access. I fill all of the three internal compartments, which are all joined internally, from the filler on the left side of the front diff housing (next to where the cv axle is plugged in). It fills slowly so you have to take your time, it is important you get all 4.1 quarts into it. I use a long filler hose and a fill it from the engine compartment, a lot easier than laying on your back with a hand pump.

If it was that low it may have caused damage to the input shaft, which gets oil starved because it is highest in the gear train and tends not to get as much lube when it is low. OTOH, you may not have gotten all of the gear oil out if you did not open all three drain plugs.

[gnarnold]

Well should I drain the oil I just put in it and keep it drain the other plugs and than refill it with same oil

[Gottolovem]

I would drain it and strain it unless it comes out really ugly and brown.
You may find debris in the fluid that will tell a story.

[Petros]

drain it, strain it as Gottolovem suggests. Than refill with half cheap ATF and the used gear oil. Drive it for a day gently but at hwy speeds (so it warms up), than drain it all out when it is still warm. Discard that oil, and refill with fresh high quality oil. That will clean out any sludge and metal shavings in side of it. Usually makes syncros and shifting work better.

Have you checked your CV joints? That is easy, you grab each one on either side of the joint and twist it in opposite directions. If you get any rotational play or slop, they are worn out (and could be the source of ticking ticking noise, particularly when turning). Note that is rotational play, not plunge or in the axial direction, it is supposed to have movement that way.

[gnarnold]

Well I drained and refilled before I found out about the other two plugs managed to get about 3 1/4 quarts in . I pulled out of the drive way and the noise although a little dampened , was still there . I will say that the overall engine assessment is that it started right up and just felt happier .shifts a lot easier .
BUT WHEN I LOOKED AT THE MAGNET ON THE BOTTOM DRAIN PLUG THERE WAS A. LITTLE PIECE OF METAL THE SIZE OF 6grains of sand stuck together. I have a very bad feeling in my stomach .for I have to go to work two jobs tomorrow . The mechanic said that he wanted to disable the 4wd and just use the front 2 wd. I need advice fast and the kind that preferably will not cost me money .thank you .

[Gottolovem]

Your mechanic is of no help to you. Please have him tell us just how he intends to "disable" the 4wd? Again he is ignorant
Your in a postion where you just need to drive it and hope for the best. Their should be a little bit of stuff on drainplug but not chunks.
I would start shopping for a replacement unit.
Where are you located jordash ca (ione)?

[gnarnold]

there for the day .dropping it off at the mechanics

[Petros]

the only time there is a load on the damage gears is when you can hear it ticking. so any gears or driving condition where you can not hear it will put the least load on it. If for example you can only hear it in 3rd gear when accelerating, DO NOT USE 3rd at all, skip it in the pattern, and drive easy on it.

disabling the transfer case will not help, all of the parts are still spinning arond in there, but when not in 4wd there is no load on them. So just do not use the 4wd if that is the problem (not likely based on your symptoms). There is no benefit to disabling the 4wd, it is just as well you never shift it into 4wd but always leave it in fwd.

OTHO, if the front out put shaft is causing it, than driving it in 4wd with take the loads off of the front drive train. There are forum members in fact that had the front drive train fail entirely and got home on the rear drive train in 4wd. The 4wd train has never failed in my memory on this forum, all the wear and tear is on the fwd train since that is where most of the driving is done. Perhaps your mechanic is used to having the transfer case on US made 4x4s, they are notorious for failing. That has never been a problem on the Tercel. He is not familar with this car and you should not take it to him, he might do something to make it worse.

In fact all of the internal parts of a trans are always engaged and rotating together, but only the load transfer is through the gears you have selected with the lever. so usually when you load up that gear train, you put stress on the damaged parts of that gear train,so skip those gears that make noise. But even when not in that gear, those parts are still running over each other. So lubrication is real important. And one of the reasons EVERYONE on this forum should check the gear oil levels first on any new purchase, and check them regularly after. Gear oil is way cheaper and easier than replacing the trans.

Drive it gently with it full of gear oil, and perhaps some lubricating additive, and avoid the gears or driving conditions where the noise is most loud. Further failure is likely, we just do not know how long. sometimes people drive may years with a ticking in the trans, sometimes they completely bundle up the next day. So start looking for another trans now, and go easy on it until you have the time and money to pull it apart.

Best not drive it at all if possible, if you have to than at least get the metal shavings out of it. Sometimes if only one part is damaged you can get by with just replacing those parts once the trans is removed. If it completely bundles up, all of it becomes scrap metal and a complete replacement is necessary.

good luck.