I'm going to need some help identifying which transfer case I need for this jeep. It's a '99 model with a 2.5L 4-cylinder and a 5-speed.

This jeep belongs to a buddy of mine at work, his 16yo son drives it. When he first told me about the failure I was sure the kid tried to do a high speed 4wd engagement or something silly like that. As it turns out, it looks like one of the rear u-joint strap bolts (on the pinion yoke) fell out and was missing for quite sometime...long enough for rust to form in the bolt hole. I figure the driveshaft finally got loose and fell out at highway speed....then carnage followed....lol, worst I've seen in a longtime.





Picture of some of the hardware...lol



Front driveshaft...complete with rear brake line wrapped up around it...



Pics before I started taking [censored] apart







Rear yoke before I stipped the damaged straps off of it...



Tore up a lot of wiring too...

NV-231-J should be the t-case.

If it is the Rubicon model, it would be an NV-242 which is a 4:1 t-case.

How old didja say that kid is? I've seen my share fo front driveshafts come loose... never saw one do such damage.
In fact I owned a yj that my son had the front shaft come loose twice on. It just skidded along the hiway..
The big dent in the floor tells me the transfer case went first and the driveshaft was pulled out of the yoke..

But I ain't there looking at it either. Yeah I'd be looking at another one.. But I'd be doing a real close inspection of what is left too.

Big JIm <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

From the "what is left" point of view...

There is a need to look close at what is connected to what appears to be the central damage area to see what other pieces may have been impacted.

I can give you my experiences when an NV-4500 blew up and the resulting collateral damage.

If you are in position of having to replace a number of critical items, consider upgrades that will build a better rig.

But, if you have a young'n that is going to be heavy foot, make them part of the solution to a trail-worthy rig.

Soak them for the $$$$ necessary to upgrade...

Thanks guys, I have already identified it, it is a 231. The kid was 16; since I posted this last night I have had a chance to interview him personally. Apparently the rear driveshaft did NOT come out. In fact, it was still in place (attached to the rearend) when his dad came and got it off the side of the road. From what I can tell, based on his description of events, the chain inside the case must have jumped and busted the case housing (first), then he said it drove for about a mile before it started getting really noisy and went out with a fantastic bang. There will be no upgrades...they'll be doing good to be able to afford to get it back together stock, with used parts. The transmission was not damaged at all, as far as I can tell. The rear driveshaft seems to be ok, but the front one might need to be replaced. It also took out the brake line that runs to the rear axle, damaged the fuel lines and destroyed the main wiring harness...even caused damage to that clear up in the engine bay. It will be expensive to fix. I'm wondering if I can buy just the dual u-joint knuckle that goes on the front driveshaft? That piece is wore SLAP out.

The t-case will have a 21 spline input when it came with a 2.5l manual transmission, one off a 4.0l won't fit, it's 23 splines. Also, one off a 2.5l with an automatic will have 23 splines.

Repairing the front drivehaft will probably be the cheapest by replacing it with one from a wrecking yard. If he's lucky, he will find one in a pick-your-part type yard. He might be able to get the fuel & brake lines and wire harness, too.

Usually I would see such failures after the Jeep (YJ or TJ) hit an obstacle on the left front side, the axle control arm bracket/s (TJ) or spring (YJ) would bend allowing the front axle to come back enough to jam the driveshaft and crack the case off the transmission in the exact same manner as what happened to the one in the pics. The front driveshaft front yoke will be missing the plug for the splines, the shaft will usually be bent, too. The chain in that case is not broken. Usually they only will break/snap if the case were out of oil. If this is what happened, the front axle tube/s may be bent, the lower control arm brackets are available from Currie, if the tubes are still straight.

If it was an accident that caused it, they may wish to check their insurance, it may cover the damage.