'89 Jeep XJ (4.0, AW-4, NP-242 T-case, 3.55 axles, 350,000 miles)
Today I helped my son move an 83 Volvo with four flat tires that was sitting off pavement so he could put up a "portable garage" around it he bought from Harbor Freight.
To move the car, I used 4-low because I knew I'd need to drag it a bit sideways.
When I made a sharp right turn on the dirt road to go around to get in front of the Volvo, I heard, as did my son thirty feet away, a loud clunk from the NP-242. I straightened the front wheels, rolled slow and tried to shift out of 4-low, but the transfer case seemed to still be engaged.
I pulled the lever back into 4-low and then continued to make the forward pull to re-spot the car. Afterwards it shifted back into 2-Hi normally.
This past winter, in Full Time, it made a whirring noise loud enough to be heard over the somewhat loud exhaust, but the lubricant level is fine. In 2 wheel there's no noise. In 4-Hi there's no noises and in 4-low there's never been noises before today.
I'm suspecting the chain is worn out and needs replaced or I swap the 242 from an 92 XJ I have sitting in the yard.
Thanks!
Budd