5.7 drivetrain weaknesses w supercharger

This is a little random but I got the whip kit put on and decided to play w it a little. I don't beat my truck and it's only got about 100k on it one owner. So I left a stoplight in the rain in 4wd to see how it would act, no powerbrake just floor at green and it sorta spun all 4 after about 20 ft I heard a distinct drivetrain pop up front and it power steered left. Didn't feel like ring gear teeth and none of the shafts are flopping although I haven't pulled any boots back yet. So I'm assuming it's in the front diff b4 the CVs. So I'll have someone open that up I guess but I'm wondering what are the weak points in the tundras drivetrain. I mean I can't go back with oem cause itl probably happen again and I don't like not being able to use the full power being afraid of it happening again and I've never shopped for gears so I don't know how to attack this but has anyone maybe tried to crawl one or something and knows what should be beefed up so I don't end up with 3WD again

 

Many of us launch hard with superchargers and 4hi. Was it fully engaged etc? Drive train is pretty stout

 

Let us know what you find. A lot of us SC trucks regularly off-road and launch in 4wd on dry pavement. Someone recently had a similar issue as you, but the front diff hasn't fully engaged the ADD.

 

Also wondering if you engaged 4x4 at the stop light and then took off with no prior movement, or were you driving in 4x4 already for a decent distance and 4x4 light on the dash was already on solid before these escapades?

 

Oh ya I always make sure the light is lit firmly and usually rock it a bit rev back to drive to make sure it's all the way in when I go to 4. They all spun bcs of the rain but I have 12.5 wide 35s so all that traction intermittently up front as it hit different parts of the pavement as I moved pulsing the traction probably didn't help

 

And this is with the base tune and pulley. I've just never heard of any tundra diffs letting go like that. There has to be a weak point I. The front diff where the shafts is at its smallest or something. It was one big distinct pop

 

At 100k miles, you can’t expect parts not to break. No matter how stout the drivetrains are on these trucks, they aren’t bullet proof. And 100k miles is 100k miles regardless of how you look at it. But, launching in 4wd with full traction vs launching into a full spin and catching traction in the power band is a whole different story. Even cars built for drag will break in this scenario.

 

Ya in my head I was thinking I'm safe bcs I basically have a built in slipper to ease the stress being it can break free before breaking anything being wet. But that doesn't account for one or the other side intermittently grabbing and binding up while the other side may be spinning and that's a lot of stress. So I guess I'll just take it to my trans guy and open it up and report back w some pics perhaps. It's just a hard hit after a 8500$ kit plus install I wasn't expecting

 

Are you sure anything is actually wrong with it? I've had 4wd slam into gear hard when I didn't give it enough distance to engage.

Im with everyone else, having launched many times and 300k+ and never broken anything. Interested to hear the results, especially being in the rain where the truck can't get traction in the first place.

 

How much was install, just wondering thinking about supercharging. Not sure what's a good price for install.

 

I experienced something similar. I’m also S/C’d and have done plenty of 4H launches, with no problem. Except when there was a problem…

I didn’t realize 4H hadn’t completely engaged when giving it the beans. Grenaded the differential clutch sleeve

 

Did it do any more damage? Or did you just swap out a full used diff?

 

Fortunately, it was a much easier - and cheaper - fix. Removing the ADD actuator served as an observation window. To replace the sleeve required removing the right axle housing from the diff. Best part about it is the diff stays intact and mounted in the truck.

Edit:
No more damage was found. The diff housing has a small weep hole (essentially) to allow fluid in/out. There was no debris found in the diff, so I just replaced the fluid and it's been fine.

 

I don't know how to reply to each person w a highlited portion of their post so to sniv, ummm honestly I really am not sure. It pulls from the front still I can feel it but I mean I sat at the light and waited for the 4wd to stay lit and then got back in drive ao there was no tension while it engaged. But when I left I mean that was a loud hard thuddd. I assumed there's no way something is not broken. I mean that's actually a good point. Maybe I can get it in the air and strap it to the lift arms and barely tap the throttle and make sure they all rotate but I mean I know what it feels like lighting up the rears vs all 4 and then the pulling to the side like it was only 1WD up front I mean I figured I didn't need any more investigation.......
And to funnyguy. I had them source the full timing chain kit with it as it was due and both them buying and putting in the timing kit and I stalling the charger kit I brought was about $5G together. So mostly labor

 

Awesome, I was hoping that was the case and it didn't yeet through the actual ADD housing portion of the diff.

 

Wait. Am I understanding correctly when you said “you sat at the light and waited for the 4wd indicator (4H) to stay lit and then put it into drive?”

If that is the case, 4wd was not engaged properly. You cannot switch to 4H properly from a non moving position.

 

I switch the drive mode from drive at a stop to neutral, then reverse with the brake on but roll about a foot then back to drive to remove the tension from idle on the drive train so it can engage all the way. It's usually in and stays lit by the time I hit rev

 

The drive mode from 2H to 4Hi while in drive I mean. Then do all the rest

 

Like @snivilous stated the 4wd system is pretty robust. Since being supercharged I've had it up to some high speeds and launched quite a few times. I have a bit more power now and have done a few launches and high speed runs without issue. Like others have stated it probably wasn't fully engaged.

 

Keep in mind also that the front diff is an open differential so most of the time you'll only get one wheel spinning under slippery conditions which will be the wheel that has the least traction.

In regards to install cost, sorry for this bad news but the timing chain is not a 100k wear item like a timing belt. It’s supposed to be a lifetime component for the engine and typically doesn’t need to be changed as preventive maintenance. If the timing chain tensioner was bad and you’re going in to replace that then I suppose it’s worth doing. Tell me they changed the tensioner while they were in there as well, as that is a more likely failure point!

 

Well the chain is different than a belt in intervals but I kinda wanted a fresh hit it eith a shotgun up front type thing as in there were no problems but that kit came with the guides, chain, water pump, tensioner and everything u can do in there basically and I don't like rattles or leaks so I just wanted to get ahead of anything even if not really needed yet it restarted the clock on those components

 

I figured since the front bumper, grille etc was off that's as close as I was gunna get to easy access to that stuff so it's just that much easier to get all those things tackled as preventative maint

 

I never did a run in four wheel drive