Air Diff Lockers

[Rosco]

Hi All,

Was chasing some information regarding where to get an Air Diff Lock put on my New Hilux TD Dual Cab.

To my way of thinking it would be better served at the front where there is an Open Centre Diff hence giving me pretty much 3 driven wheels when engaged due to the LSD at the back. If its fitted to the back and a front wheel starts spinning I'm left with only 2 driven wheels at the back.

Am I on the right track ?

I have no experience with Diff Lockers so any advice would be appreciated.

PS: Bear, if you read this can you please Email or PM me your mobile number. I would like to talk to you regarding a certain surprise I got for Xmas !

[cleetus]

Its better to pull than push....so if you use a locker to get out of the $h!te its better in the back. If your trying to not to get stuck its better in the front.
One thing to remember is you will ALWAYS get stuck worse with lockers than without!

ps; personally I'd go the front if I had to choose

[Bones]

1 of your front wheels will turn in 4 wheel drive no matter what. i put my 1st locker in the back of my old lux, only because i didnt want to break cv's and in the front they make steering hard when engaged. i have both in my 80 and use the rear alot more than the front. personal preference, hilux ifs front diffs are pretty weak.

[SLAZMO]

There's a locking diff mechanism thats from the states and acts very similar to a LSD diff... its a plumb and walk away install and there are no electrics or buttons or air hoses to be reefed when bushing it.

Drives normally, but as soon as a wheel is DohDohDohDohed, the dif locks right up and the other wheel rotates, these would be slightly better than a ARB Air locker in regards to price and overall function... but for thr life of me i cant remember the name...

I was thinking of doing the jimny, but overall cost vs. im not keeping the little bugger came into it. :o

[cleetus]

lock-rite. No good in the front. Good in the back if you can put up with the noise. They ratchet when the wheels are turning the g/box( eg coasting around the corner) and engage( fully lock- no slip) when the g/box drives the wheels.

[mark101]

in my stepdads cruiser he has detroit lockers in front and rear
helps him on the line no wheel spin
when doin a str8 boghole the lock and when he turns out of it they disengage

[Benrose]

There's heaps of different lockers out there but i seem to think the Air-Locker's the way to go. I've got a rear one in the Jeep and it's been worth every cent. I use it heaps in 2wd on the beach and it goes nuts with donuts and sideways action on the dunes. It is absolutly awsome rock crawling though and lets you go so much slower and keep traction. I'm about to re-gear it to 4.56 and throw an air-locker in the front as after driving come twin locked rigs i was just stoked with the control you get.

The only reason i did the rear first though was because i modified the whole diff and had to change the center to go to 30 spline strengthened axels. Most people see to go front first especially if they have an LSD in the rear but in reality an LSD is useless as soon as you lift a wheel.

The main thing i like with air lockers is their 100% predictable, on the road you know their open but the moment you flick the switch you know their locked until you tell them to unlock. Lockrights and other cheap auto lockers are much harsher and you need to get used to driving with them. Detroits are meant to be more predictable as they lock under power and reverse so their open when you coast around corners. The Yanks seem to be nuts about detroits though and they wheel hard with them on big rubber.

The big downside with airlockers is theirs so many things which can fail. The Locker itself is usually pretty strong but in 12 months i've punctured the air line twice, cooked a compressor and broken a switch. Other things which can fail are the relay's and pressure switches but i still reacon their the best.

[Dror]

My old Chevy Blazer has a Detroit locker in the back which was fitted as a factory option. It is 31 years old and was still going strong the last time I drove the car which was a few years ago (it's one of those get around to it projects). It worked very well and always disengaged when you went around a corner without banging or chattering.
For my money I would be putting an air locker in the front as then there is no doubt about whether it is on or not. The self locking units might just decide to not disengage at the most inappropriate time.

Cheers, Dror

[Charlie]

1 of your front wheels will turn in 4 wheel drive no matter what. i put my 1st locker in the back of my old lux, only because i didnt want to break cv's and in the front they make steering hard when engaged. i have both in my 80 and use the rear alot more than the front. personal preference, hilux ifs front diffs are pretty weak.

There is a school of thought that a locker can reduce CV failures as your have a constant 50% power to each front wheel rather than the power changing as a wheel lifts then grabs again, mines on the back as gravity helps going downhill and uphill your locking the rear where most of the weight is.

[dantheman]

driving a comp Gu up the same track with the rear first locked then the front locked, it did it with ease in the rear but had more trouble with the front locked, from my time 4x4ing i would put it in the rear, and seeing as you have a new hilux it's ifs so the front wheels will be lifting heaps of the ground( downside to ifs) the new hilux's arn't really anything special of road . and i know i have one, and don't think a lsd won't single spin beacuse it will.

[cleetus]

don't think a lsd won't single spin beacuse it will. thats because its limited slip not no slip. Also a factory LSD won't last too long being tortured.
seeing as you have a new hilux it's ifs so the front wheels will be lifting heaps of the ground( downside to ifs)same can be said for having leaf spring rear.
There is a school of thought that a locker can reduce CV failuresThats the school were everyone fails! Seen plenty of cv's destroyed due to auto lockers. A good brain and a manual locker seems to save cv's.
Biggest thing to remember is its easier to pull and drag your weight up than to push and plough your way through.
Like I said beforeso if you use a locker to get out of the $h!te its better in the back. If your trying to not to get stuck its better in the front

[Rosco]

Thanks for the advice peoples, well appreciated

[dantheman]

so back to my point a n ew hilux is not really a great 4x4 for bush work, great car for getting around etc but if you wanna hit the real stuff get a coil patrol.

[SLAZMO]

detroit lockers there the ones!!!