Actuator question

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TSAEB

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I'm trying to figure out an issue (stuck in 4hi or 4lo, no 2Hi) with my 00 5.7 Tahoe z71.

I removed my front actuator to inspect it. I noticed its fully extended even with my Tahoe off or unplugged. I swapped in a brand new one I had, and it did the same thing. Once it fully extended, it did not retract even when turning off the Tahoe or unplugging it. Is that normal?

I asked because every video I saw on testing the Actuator, the actuator was not extended until activated.
 

TSAEB

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Found out the harness is giving it constant ground. Once I unplugged it and touched it again with ground and 12 volt, the actuator functioned properly. Still trying to narrow down why the truck is stuck in 4HI/4LO.
 

Schurkey

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If the transfer case is "stuck" in 4WD, of course the actuator is going to be extended. (At least, when the key is on. If you have the Thermal actuator, I'd expect it to retract when the key is off. The newer, electric-motor actuator might stay engaged with the key "off".) The transfer case is telling the actuator that 4WD is desired.

Fix the transfer case, I bet the actuator works like it should.

I presume that this is an electrically-activated transfer case, not a shift-lever-on-the-floor style of operation.

I had an electrically-operated transfer case that had a faulty shift control mechanism. ("shift encoder", they called it.) The shop put in a GM Rebuilt transfer case, which failed out of the crate, and then they put in another GM Rebuilt which actually worked. But that was in a Trailblazer, not a GMT400.
 
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