Sport Lockers

My ‘15 DCLB sport has taken me more places than I would have imagined but I want to start planning for a rear locker and gears. Who’s done it? What do you recommend? Air? Electronic?

 

Interested to hear about this too, same truck. I was looking at 4.88s with harrop e-lockers.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/rear-diff-locker-for-2wd-tacoma-sport.583409/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/locker-in-the-rear.542774/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/installing-a-rear-locker.487347/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/converting-rear-axle-to-e-locker.462951/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/rear-locker-recommendations.408900/

 

Air lockers suck. ARB has had serious manufacturing issues and has tons of lockers leaking out of the bonded seals. I'll never install an air locker in any vehicle ever again after dealing with the piece of shit air locker in my rear axle. Pisses oil all over the place, I can lose a quart of oil going up a technical hill.

 

Thank you but but That thread is useless. I know my options but I’m looking for someone that has done it. I’m looking at Harrop and arb. Harrop seems like the better option but I like the idea of an onboard compressor for multiple uses.

 

Will be doing Harrop front and rear with 4.56 gears in the next 5-6 months. Didn’t really consider ARB because of those seal issues and I really like the simplicity of the electric lockers.

 

Go with a Detroit locker !!!!

 

My truck is also a daily driver if that makes a difference.

 

My 02 DC Pre Runner is a daily driver and has a Detroit locker

 

I’d personally run a mechanical LSD. It’ll be more useful daily unless you really need to be fully locked for some reason.

 

I’d prefer to be fully locked. I like to hit the trails as much as possible. Does the Detroit give you any issues on pavement? How long have you had it?

 

Ive had detroit in Jeeps. Just a lotta clicking here and there during turns. Works as advertised.

 

You may have already seen this but its a great presentation

https://youtu.be/x40WGUtdaLI

 

Wow, I've never heard anyone say the ARB lockers had issues. In fact, quite the opposite. Everyone I've seen talk about them say they are virtually bullet proof. And that's been my experience too. I have close to 70k miles on my ARBs and they kick ass.

In any event, I have a 2009 Sport and like you, mine took me places I couldn't even imagine. But after about 8 years, I wanted more. Truth be told, my deciding factor to get lockers was out of the necessity to regear. I had just bought new BFG KO2 34/10.5/17 tires and the truck was a pig on the highway. It was bad. So I looked into regearing. Since the labor for adding a locker is the exact same as simply regearing, I decided to use that as an opportunity to get lockers. It didn't hurt that ARB was offering a free compressor with the purchase of a locker at that time.

I landed on 4.56 gears and an ARB locker in both the front and rear diffs. Without a doubt, it was unquestionably the best modification I've ever made to the truck. The truck can tackle pretty much anything as long as it's not high centered or on its roof. If I have ONE wheel with traction, I'm moving. Period. Stuck has been pretty much erased from my vocabulary. In some ways, it's almost cheating and makes me a less skilled offroader. I can take an absolute shit line and spin, hit the magic button, and walk right up it.

Here's a quick video of me going up a really high smooth ledge with the lockers engaged. It's tough not to spin since that spot is super smooth and really dusty (at that time). The lockers make it look like it's so easy I shouldn't even be talking about it...

 

Sounds more like a piss poor installation job. Frankly never heard of one leaking. My front and rear are solid. Do you have any links to these series manufacturing issues?

 

Not trying to start a fight....but you could search for literally ANY product followed by [insert problem here] and get hits on Google. Especially when your portfolio spans decades, 50+ vehicles, and your products are meant to be abused in terribly unkind situations.

Fact remains that ARB is the most solid choice with more Tacoma owners running ARB than any other style aftermarket locker.

 

And most hits on googl are installation related. Not all, but most.

I think the key is all systems have strength and weaknesses - tradeoffs. I don't necessarily like having a compressor on board but I love having a compressor on board. Air lines, wires, mechanical linkages.....take your pick. Air locker systems are certainly more complex and have more possible failure modes even though the locker itself is simple.

 

Also, in case anyone is thinking it...you can't put an LSD in the front diff. I can't remember why but originally, that was my plan and after a lot of research, there was a specific reason why that wouldn't work. My thought was that totally locking up the front can be problematic for CV breaking reasons (just when steering). So the idea was that using an LSD would prevent that AND it would kick in ONLY when needed. Good plan, but hard reality was that it wouldn't work. It's been a while so I'm fuzzy on the details of why. Just figured I'd add that in case anyone else knows the specifics and it can help someone here.

 

The bonded seal is on the inside of the locker and isn't touched during installation, those components are assembled at ARB.

I'm not here to do peoples research for them. If you want to know about leaking bonded seals call ECGS or contact wheeleveryweekend. They did a pole a week or so ago after they noticed they had a lot of contacts/customers had leaking air lockers and half of the folks that responded to the pole said they had theirs had been leaking at some point. It wasn't specified what the source of the leak was, but regardless of the source, it doesn't change the fact that air lockers are a ticking-pain in the ass-time bomb.