I looked at where front driveshaft plugged into transfer case and it seemed to be seated in all the way.

I noticed your 2005 is 3.0d. Is that an M57 Diesel?

It can be hard to tell and they have been known to pop out - the spring clip that should hold the axle in the diff can fail to do so - not common but it has happened, often not long after an axle replacement.

Yep, my '05 3.0D is the second-generation M57, the M57TU or more correctly, the M57D30TÜ. 160kW and 500Nm. :thumbup:

actually all you have to do is loosen the transfer case bolts 9 out about 1 inch, pry out and shaft goes in fine.

The issue I was referring to (in BB_cuda's case) is a front axle popped out - not the front drive shaft.

The "metal-to-metal" sound and no drive in forward or reverse is a give-away.