L/S. vs .Locking diff. ?

[Falls]

NOT really a 4Runner issue but I was looking at the Tacoma brochure. I noticed that the DC sport TRD has a locking rear diff. ( for use in 4lo only ) as where the TRD off road package has a limited slip which can be used in any mode at any time slippage occurs. I might have the packages backwards but you get the idea.

Would'nt having the limited slip actually be a more desireable feature over the locker ? reason being is that although we do like to off road , most of use drive 90% on road ( rain & snow , maybe a little mud ) since it can be used on a when it senses slippage basis and the locker can only be used in 4lo on off road. Granted if your driving off road in some real off road situations the locker would be the cats meow.

I figured w/locker you have 2 wheels driving/spinning say in a snow storm in 4wd hi , where as with a limited slip and spinning you would have 3 wheels driving/spinning.

From my understanding the locker is ele. switch activated,where the L/S is always there. Why would they ( Toyota ) do that. On my Tahoe , Chev. Pick up , F150 had rear lockers. Where actually when you started to spin it would engage like the limited slip would work , but you could actually hear it lock in and had about 1/2 turn of a tire spin before it would lock up.

Sorry for rambling , just been on my brain tonite of wwhich on would be more desireable to have in REAL world everyday driving. NOT rock crawling.

See where I'm going with this ???

 

[Thai]

Yes, on the streets, LSD is better. But, don't forget, most trucks and SUVs nowadays have traction control & stability control anyways. For pure street use, i would rather have TC & VSC than LSD.

Wait...i thought that TRD Off-road package came with rear locker. If that's not the case, then the Nissan NISMO package is waaaayyy better!

There are gear-based and clutch-based LSDs. Gear-based is better due to lower maintenance need and longer lasting. Example of gear-based LSD is Torsen LSD.

I do not understand your comments about 3 wheel driving with LSD vs. 2 wheel driving with locker.

GM "lockers" are clutch-based lockers. They are not as heavy-duty as the aftermarket ones (like ARB). ARB, Toyota's rear locker, Nissan NISMO, and some others are gear-based locker.

Locker is ONLY for off-roading. Well, some people like them when they tow their boat out of the water. However, when off-roading, there is nothing that beats a locker in most circumstances. In many competitions (at least here in TX), having a locker puts you in the expert category right away (regardless of driver's ability).

If i had a 4th gen, then i would get ARB rear locker and have the best of both worlds. ATRAC for on-road use. Lock the locker for off-road...yet still have ATRAC work on the front tires.

Another good combo is what my G-wagen and Jeep Rubicon have...ATRAC on-road and full set of F & R lockers off-road.

 

[Falls]

It does come with a rear locker, but its kind of confusing because the TRD sport has the L/S and the TRD off road has locker......or vice versa.

WOW your MB has front & rear locker......cool.

I've been happy with the Atrac both on & off road , but its no locker. Is there a certain rpm that makes the Atrac perform at its peak ?

After thinking about it I'm confused about what I said with the 2wd vs 3wd.....I'll have to rethink that one....lol

 

[JP4RNR]

I have an 06 2WD and I wanted to know in what situations should the limited slip differential (LSD) be engaged?

 

[Thai]

I have an 06 2WD and I wanted to know in what situations should the limited slip differential (LSD) be engaged?

Your 4runner has "automatic limited slip differential"...aka traction control over the rear axle...it is NOT really a LSD, but it "acts" like one via traction control. It is ON by default. It is only OFF when you push the button. You should leave it ON most of the time. The only time that you would want it to be off is when you want to spin your wheels to get out of something, like a mudhole or stuck in snow ditch.

 

[Thai]

I've been happy with the Atrac both on & off road , but its no locker. Is there a certain rpm that makes the Atrac perform at its peak ?

Steady & consistent pressure on the gas pedal will make ATRAC work it's best. From my experience in my '02 4runner, if you press the gas pedal past 3000-3500 rpms, ATRAC becomes less intrusive (aka works less = more wheel spin allow). If you don't apply enough gas, then ATRAC does not work well. Remember, for ATRAC to work, there MUST be wheelspin (and wheel speed differences between wheel with traction and wheel with no traction)...so you have to apply enough gas to create wheelspin. It all comes down to experience and experimenting.

 

[Falls]

Good info , thanks Thai.....cant wait to go out and experiment. Winter wheeling is fun for that.

This thing is a pretty cool truck......granted its no "G"........

 

[Uneek]

For Tacomas, only the TRD Off-Road has a rear locker. TRD Sport, X-Runner and certain SR5 packages has the LSD.

 

[ovrrdrive]

For what its worth, the guys on the taco forums have figured out which wire to cut in to and install a switch to engage the locker in 4hi as well.

I still wouldn't advise using it on the street of course, but in off-road 4hi situations I would think it would help a ton.

Lockers can be a handfull on the street when it rains or snows, and they also cause excessive tire wear as well.

 

[jacal]

Standard clutch lsd's are not that great. People (mechanics, hard core off-road junkies) have told me that if you don't regularily add a friction modifier you will quickly loose the ability to LS, and just end up with an open diff. Not 100% sure if that is true, but it is something I heard.


J

 

[Thai]

For what its worth, the guys on the taco forums have figured out which wire to cut in to and install a switch to engage the locker in 4hi as well.

Lockers can be a handfull on the street when it rains or snows, and they also cause excessive tire wear as well.

Tacoma's locked rear axle has been known to break (gears stripping?? or something like that, but not the axle shafts) under even mild stress...more than a few Tacoma owners are really piss that Toyota won't cover this problem. Some speculate that it's due to the current Tacoma's powerful V6 engine. (Toyota did NOT upgrade the rear axle when the new Tacoma/4runner/GX/Prado generation came out with the new powerful 4.0L V6 engine.) There has been a few cases of this same problem with the FJ Cruiser.

So, if i had a 4th gen 4runner, then i would not be envy of the rear locker on Taco's or FJs...i would rather get ARB locker, which is a stronger unit (aka stronger gears) than Toyota's.

 

[RonMAIDEN]

The locker mod is officially called the "grey wire" mod and it's simply just cutting the right wire and grounding it;you spend more time accessing the wires than doing the actual mod.