I will not quit! Dreaded 4hi/4lo/diff lock flashing lights. Work done but problem still exists

Thanks Shifty. All that time spent under the "Beast" lately has revealed an aggressive oil pan gasket leak. I knew that it was leaking but it is now doing a fine job of coating everything behind the oil pan for about three feet with a nice petroleum sheen. It looks like a hell of a PITA to drop that pan as there appears to be a number of large items running across/under the pan. Ugh. All part of the ownership experience.

 

Think you could change it out yourself with a used one from a salvage yard or have you already looked at prices from them?

 

I thought my pan was leaking, it was saturated in oil and dripping all over. Turned out to be a sizeable leak from the driver side valve cover that was running down the oil dipstick tube. It looks like I had a camshaft seal leak on the same side, but ATP-205 appears to have nipped that in the bud.

Not saying it's your case, just what happened with me. I've had cardboard on the floor under the truck for the last year or so, no new drips since replacing the VC gaskets.

 

Unfortunately, I am not going to gamble on a used transfer case. The nearest salvage yard is over four hours away and I do not even know if any of the yards in the Miami area have cases. I'm letting my Sequoia go on the market as soon as this Christmas.

 

I replaced both valve cover gaskets several years ago. It was an interesting job but the OEM Toyota gasket sealer was amazing. No drips and it is all good. Before that, both sides were leaking badly. I spend time with a flashlight looking all over the engine and will give it the eagle eye on the valve covers next time I'm under there. Thanks for the tip.

 

It seems like my oil pan will never leak lol. And I hope it doesn't, looks like such a bitch to change out

 

So, what you're saying is, the pan is so intimidating, it's made you its bitch?

 

Its just in there so good. I see 2010 chevys leaking from the pan already, surprised mine isn't at all. Plus its all rusty so I have no option but to just leave it alone. Chevy oil pans are a breeze

 

That's one thing I did find disappointing about the 2UZ. I've worked on so many engines where swapping valve cover gaskets is a 2 minute ordeal; unbolt, slap in a new rubber gasket, reinstall cover, torque bolts. It kinda pisses me off when you need to break out FIPG and other sealants to do something not-high-pressure-bearing like a valve cover. IIRC, oil pan gasket is the same, requires FIPG or similar. May be wrong on that - haven't had to do mine and too lazy to look it up. I just don't understand why OEMs can't just rely on the rubber itself to carry the load, and want (or need) you to use extra sealants in the process. In the case of the valve cover gaskets, I really feel like that's a flaw of the 2UZ. You should be able to rely on rubber at those two right-angle bends on each cover. But meh. Can't complain, there's so much "right" with the platform, these little "dammit" things are overshadowed.

 

I am not sure if your's is the same as an 02, but I changed the 4WD ecu located in the passenger side lower dash. It was bad. Found one at a junkyard. Was blinking lights and doing nothing else.

 

Still better than an ecoboost. Ford uses plastic oil pans that can warp and FIPG.

Amazingly they recently switched to gaskets to fix their oil pan leak problem.

 

I know this threads a little old but has anyone else solved this issue? I have an 05 sequia sr5 with the exact issue. Mine literally started overnight. I have replaced both transfer case actuator and the front end actuator and sttill have nothing. 3 different shops have tried to diagnose to no avail. None of them even charged me anything.

 

A lot of people who spent the oodles of money to replace actuators with no joy have actually found the cause to be the 4WD ECU.

Some troubleshooting steps are here, but not sure it'll help with how far in you are.