Locker

Has anyone installed lockers in an Sr5?

 

You can purchase a full 3rd member from ECGS to bolt in but you would have to drill the housing for the air line.

 

Stick shift FJs all had rear e-lockers if you can find a wrecked one that hasn’t already been pilfered. Should be an easy swap in.

 

I have been seriously considering it for months. I am going to Moab in Oct. and will make a final decision when I return home. The few times I have been off-roading, A-Trac has worked its magic. If I do install a locker, it will be an Easton E-locker.

 

It’s high on my “need but gotta save a while for it” list.

 

You would have to find the whole axle assembly off a 2010-2014 FJ and the wiring/computer .Probably easier to find a wrecked 4Runner with a locker and swap out the whole axle as there are alot more of them . The axle assembly is different from e-locker to non e-locker,not just the 3rd member.

I have E-lockers in both my 4Runners and my Tacoma I own now and they suck compared to the ARB's I had put in my last 5th Gen. The Toyota factory e-locker has to be engaged in 4LO and stopped and even then it's not exactly smooth every time locking and unlocking. The ARB air lockers can be engaged at any speed any gear.

Here is the install on my old 5th gen ....

 

Good info. Can’t believe everything you read on the innardnet!

 

cool thanks for the link! Did you have any issues with the regear. Were gears noisier or was it quiet? Any issues with durability on the ARB Locker?

 

No issues and it was fairly easy .The front clamshell swap is kind of a pain because of it's awkward shape/weight. I regeared with 4:56's at the same time and after proper break in they were quiet. Thanks to Chase at ECGS for setting them up and who I wouldn't hesitate to go with again.

I had them on for about 90k of the 106k miles when I sold it. The only problem I had was once the rear air line got cut on those super sharp silver heat shrouds on the right side of the bottom when In Ouray. Had to splice and then reroute the air line when I got home.
I wheeled Colorado and Utah every summer back then with the FJ summit guys as a couple of friends had FJ's. Plus lot's of good places to wheel when I lived in Texas like Barnwell and Hidden Falls.

The beauty of the ARB's as I said is they can be activated on the fly. Many times I would just bump the lockers on as needed in muddy, hilly trails without losing momentum and then back off when I had traction. Just let off the gas ,hit the air locker switch and it was instant.

 

Would you say a mere mortal install an ARB locker on a diff (when not re-gearing at the same time), or does it require taking out gears and specialty knowledge?

The air actuation initially sounds like a pain in the ass, but it does sound very nice to be able to activate it on the fly.

 

Have you guys considered a Detroit Locker setup?

I see that they are available from Filthy Motorsports. No air or electrical needed plus they will provide slip on high traction surfaces.

 

They are NOT available for 5th gens 8.2 rear diffs . I don't think Eatons are either ,only ARB or oem. https://www.drivetrainshop.com/Articles.asp?ID=277

edit: I looked on Eatons online catalog and it looks like they do have a new elocker for the 5th gens. No detroit but their elocker one.
4Runner 2010 - Current, Rear Beam 8.2" 30 spline, - NEW PN 14215-1*

$1,420 Eaton Toyota 8.2" ELocker4 Locking Differential - 14215-1

https://www.4wheelparts.com/p/eaton...locking-differential-14215-1/_/R-BHXC-14215-1

 

Ok, didn’t look that close. One thing that occurred to me after I posted was that a locker might screw up the ABS/ATRAC system. Not sure but it’s a thought.

I was spending some time on Filthy Motorsports website for another reason and saw the lockers.

One interesting note they had on the 5th gen web page was that the current ATRAC system was so effective that a locking diff wasn’t necessary for most conditions except possible extreme off road. That made me feel good owning an SR5.

 

I ran ARB Lockers on my last 5th gen for 5 years /80+k miles before I sold it and no abs problems . They were some pretty hard miles.

Where it's good to be geared/double locked and better then ATRAC is in mud , deep sand and snow . Especially when you can be in any gear, lock almost instantly and at any speed. Got out of some swamps I never thought I would get out of and shouldn't have been in. Sometimes there's no turning around . lol

Air Lockers give more control(fun) to the driver instead of the computers , which do quite well.

On the rocks rarely used lockers or you can break things. The ABS nannies are good on the rocks if needed.

 

I also went the ARB route when I re-geared to .488 it was right around $4500 for the regear and front and rear ARB lockers. I had to install the compressor but they had all the lines brought to where I wanted them and they also installed the ARB breather kit for me when they were in there.
Have I used it? Yes. As much as I thought? No.


You don’t have to worry about abs and all that because when they are locked everything is going the same speed and the car doesn’t know what has traction and what doesn’t. It just knows all wheels are spinning at the same speed and nothing requiring traction control and all that is needed. Turn off the lockers on the front and the atrac will still work.

It was an expensive investment but it has made what use to require a bit of work seem easy.

 

My reference to ABS troubles was with a Detroit type locker that has no air or electrical control. It’s a locker at all times but allows slippage.

It’s moot point since they apparently are not available for the 5th gen diffs. But it sounds good having a locker that doesn’t require air or electrical and works similar to a LSD without the clutch pack wear.
https://www.drivetrainshop.com/eaton_truetrac_s/139.htm

 

I have a Detroit TrueTrac on my 1990 and it provides a huge traction advantage without any wiring or air and much easier to live with than a Detroit Locker. My son who is a avid double locker rock crawler was blown away on its capabilities.
I might invest to put one up front as well.
The TrueTrac uses helical gears to lock up rather than clutches.

 

Yes, they sound good to me. The prices seemed reasonable too.

 

The only weak spot is they don’t work in reverse.

 

Interesting, so no burn outs in reverse.

 

The Detroit TruTrac uses helical gears that bind when one side spins faster for a much more smooth transition (better compromise street/trail) to a “locked” axle than the Detroit Locker but only works in one direction.
When a Detroit Locker slips, it can be with ratcheting but works in fwd&rev and is a brute and bulletproof. It is a awesome diff for HD wheeling and drag racing.
Trivia: in the case of early straight axle Toyotas, they use 8” carriers front AND rear and with a TruTrac you can just flip the helical gears end for end and make a rear diff become a front diff and vise-versa. The 1st and 2nd gen IFS trucks still used the 8” in rear. In my case I came across a front 1st gen 8” TruTrac on Craigslist being sold by a person who didn’t know what he had…..I got it for $40, flipped the helical gears and have a really nice rear diff in 2nd gen Goldie for cheap.