Doubling down, when you’re clearly wrong. Nice.


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Think of it like this. The rear differential has an input shaft and two output shafts. Because it is a differential, the two output shafts (left and right) can turn at different speeds. If you lock your rear differential, it's still a diff, it's just temporarily locked.

Same thing with the center diff: it has an input shaft (from the engine/trans) and two output shafts (one to the front and one to the rear). Because it's a differential, the two output shafts can turn at different speeds. Locking a center differential doesn't change it into a transfer case, it's just temporarily locked.

A transfer case has an input shaft (again, from the engine) and two output shafts (again, to the front and rear). Because it is not a differential, the two output shafts must always turn at the same speed.

If the two output shafts can turn at different speeds, it's a differential. If they can't, it's a transfer case.

One more time. The Limited has a transfer case. The Aisin VF4BM. Inside the Aisin VF4BM, there is a differential, which allows the front and rear output shafts to turn at different speeds, thus avoiding drivetrain binding. This is full-time 4wd.

When the Limited transfer case is locked in 4hi or 4lo, it locks the differential in the transfer case, and front and rear output shafts turn at the same speed with no differentiation.

When the Limited transfer case is locked, it behaves exactly like the part-time transfer cases in the SR5 and TRD models.

i came in here for the lol's....

Before I owned a Isuzu Trooper. It was very similar to the limited in that it had a center diff. You pushed a button and it was in 4WD. When you were in snow you pushed another button and it had a 4LO gear too. I was simple to use but it was still very capable off road.

What I meant was the manual transfer case. Apparently I sparked some odd debate about whether there is a transfer case in a Limited.

What I was really getting at is the knob. I'm not a fan.

Center Differential Transfer Cases - YouTube

If anyone has 40 minutes to kill this is extremely informational and details the difference between transfer case (part time 4WD) and a center differential equipped transfer case (full time 4WD).

For us plebeians, the important thing is: YES the limited has a transfer case which has a second gear set (4Lo) to increase wheel torque for more serious off-roading/low traction environments.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned in this thread is that the center diff in the limited is a limited slip type. It's a Torsen type, which is gear operated.

I would like to see a limited slip in the rear differential as well.

A limited slip can send power to the tire that has traction. Contrast this with the traction control via braking we currently have. This brakes the wheel without traction. Using the brakes when you want to go forward is somewhat counterintuitive. It works, but you are wasting energy in the brakes. I'd rather send that energy to the tire with traction than dissipate it in the brakes.

There's pros and cons to both systems, to be sure. How about both?!? Put a limited slip in at least the center and rear and also have brake based traction control for when one wheel is off the ground.

Here's a link discussing LSD's. There's a lot more info out there about how these work, including videos on YouTube that explain them pretty well.

Best Limited Slip Differential For Off-Road – Ultimate Off-Roading

The center locker is nice, but dont use it in the snow when turning.. unless you like driving sideways up a hill

The limited needs an electronic rear locker like the trail. Maybe a front locker to, so it has 3. That way I can drive past you ****ers while using my air cooled seat and enjoying my leather-pleather fun time..

As for the dial, its easy to use. I think manual says no locking center after about 95 km/hr

I turn mine on on straight aways a few times a month just to keep stuff moving. Never use it in the dry on bends or otherwise.

Right? So funny how odd debates are sparked when a question is answered with a demonstrably inaccurate statement.

Hopefully you don't get shaft envy, because you get a turnable knob, just you don't get a knob and a shaft...

The manual case equipped models like my TRDP still have an electronic portion on the front axle (ADD).

Toyota is referring to it as a transfer case on parts.toyota.com

TRANSFER CASE & EXTENSION HOUSING. 2021 Toyota 4Runner | Toyota


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Yeah. It's a transfer case. Some transfer cases have a differential inside of them. Some don't. Not sure why this is a debate. It's like saying you either have an axle assembly or a differential. Some axles have differentials. Some don't.

Transfer case:


Differential (inside transfer case):

The center locker is nice, but dont use it in the snow when turning.. unless you like driving sideways up a hill

Which is exactly why I would like a center diff.