Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Sean, sounds good. I'll have to see about the Toy's event. I don't have my last two chemo schedules yet... and I had great news last week. Doctor said my cancer is in remission. Still need to finish the crappy chemo treatments, but still. Good news!
Lance, you have lockers right? Are either of you guys familiar on the cost of putting something like ARB lockers put in the front and rear? I also seem to remember reading somewhere that it's not that good to have lockers for the fronts of IFS trucks for some reason. I'm assuming IFS means Independent Front Suspension? Correct me if I'm wrong because I've been doing a lot of assuming lately. :)
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Congratulations on the news of remission.
Installs of ARB's front and rear are pretty expensive.
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Lockers and gears usually run about 1000 in parts, another couple hundred in labor. these are general values. if you dont want to regear, you still need a locker, install kit, and a compressor. not cheap!
Lockers are not as recommended for the front of IFS vehicles because it can put a tremendous strain on the front axles, causing them to break.
a rear locker is a good idea, but i think if i were you i would wait a while until you need one. If you are going with other people (which you should be) the need lessons if someone can tug you through a rough spot or help you stack rocks.
i think it's worth learning the limits of your vehicle without a locker before spending money on one. you may find that it just isn't necessary. instead of a front locker, i have a winch. it has been far more useful than a front locker. the couple of times where a front locker might have worked, a winch did the trick.
i would recommend a rear locker, but only after you get that thing on some dirt!
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
These guys have it all right. For lockers like what Sean said, the ARB will be about 1000-1200 per axle plus (at minimum) a compressor (nother couple hundred) and if you want, an air tank so your compressor doesn't have to run as often.
Honestly you would probably be pretty well off with a limited slip like a Detroit TruTrac (has a 3x power split, so that the wheel with more traction will get 3x the power of the wheel that is slipping. If the wheel is completely in the air it will still get all the power because 3 times zero is still zero to the other wheel. But with creative use of brakes this can be worked around)
Detroit TruTrac is like $550 per axle in parts, then the labor to install them.
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Don't spend all that money to get limited slip but that's a whole other conversation
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Looks like everybody covered everything pretty well. The only thing I'd add is get out there and get some experience with your truck before spending the bucks on lockers. Try out the traction control (TRAC, or is it A-TRAC?) and see if it works well enough for the trails you want to run.
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
JD's traction control was pretty impressive on his 2004. Even when hanging a tire it would apply the right brake to keep him going. I thought it was a gimik but its pretty effective.
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
I just have the Center Lock button. Mine did not come w/ the ATRAC. Wonder if applying the ebrake manually or front brakes would help at all... I'll have to try it, unless someone's already tried and experienced any improvement at all? I know it'll apply pressure to both sides, but maybe it's enough to get the stuck wheel moving. :)
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Mark, your 4runner comes w/ atrac. all of em does now and it's by far a great system that works wonders. in my humble opinion I've really only needed to use my locker a few times (in scenarios where I put myself there so I knew I needed to use it). But for most practical applications I'd say the atrac system is robust enough to get you through some rough stuff.
:)
Re: Center diff lock question on V8 4Runner
Thanks Lance.... right when I was getting the hang of all this traction stuff, now I gotta look up ATRAC. :thumbup:
Never bothered to read ATRAC posts since I figured didn't apply to me. You sure about the ATRAC thing? I was under the impression it was an option. :headscratch: