1999 Silverado Z71 Feels Like its Stuck in 4WD
 

Sometimes...not all the time...my truck is acting like the front wheels are binding/trying to get traction. This is usually in turns, but not all the time.

The indicator light shows 2WD...it shifts into both 4WD's fine...as well as auto...is there anything I can check to see if it is electronically in 4WD without telling me it is?

Any ideas are greatly appreciated.

have the alignment checked (toe and caster/camber)...what width tires are you using? this will cause this feeling too if they are too wide

Thanks for the response, I guess I should have been more specific.

This is new, only been happening in the last two days. It has made the whirring noise of being in 4WD on pavement a few times, and once it has made the sound that a manual-hub 4WD makes when the hubs are locked without the transfer case being engaged.

he is right check your tow/ camber and get an alighnment, im a machanic at a transmission shop in new england and we see this problem all the time. but if you do not fix the problem the binding in the front end will quickly take out your spider gears in the rear end, not a huge problem but it is if its your main transportation.

Serpentine Belt
 

An unexpected twist happened which allowed me to find the problem. I revved the truck at a stoplight jokingly at a friend who pulled up, and on the decel it made a whirring noise very briefly. I instantly thought serpentine belt...

I changed it this afternoon and so far so good.

I believe what was happening as the belt was slipping and not running the power steering consistently, which made it feel like the front end was binding. The change of load was also bogging the engine, I believe, which exacerbated the feeling of the front wheels taking power.

I think the reason it was happening in turns is because I would let off the gas, and that would allow the tensioner to relax a bit, thus allowing the belt to slip. The belt never did squeal, and besides being super-smooth, it was hardly stretched at all and not checked/worn anywhere. It has about 30,000 miles on it.

Thanks for the input, what a strange problem and symptoms.