gen 3 front ARB air locker

planning on doing FRONT arb air locker along with the ARB CKMA12 Air Compressor (heavy duty)
so i can air up tires if needed also.

a few questions:
1) anyone with gen 3 yet that has the front locker?
(i must have failed at the search)

2) i plan to put the compressor in the larger storage compartment in the bed but it would have to be mounted sideways unless i cut the bottom of the compartment out to make a deeper false bottom.
think that would be a problem?

3)i hear a lot of talk about how the locker is not a good idea on a ifs. i'm not doing anything crazy, mostly i just want it.
i won't be rock climbing or really beating on it.

4) seriously what model number arb locker for the front do we need!!!
do we have the 7.5" or 8" ifs and what gear ratio?

i'm guessing it's one of the top 3 choices here:
http://www.rocky-road.com/toyota-arb.html

5) not so much a question but just to inform u of any mods i have or will have by the time i order that may affect your answer.

have-16 TRD OR DCSB
have-267/75/16 tires
have-spidertrax 1.25 spacers
-2.0" lift front(new gen 3 billies at setting 2.0", stock oem springs) maybe that 5mm spacer on driver side if ppl think it's needed for the lean.
-either rear 1.5" block or wheelers 1.5 aal.
-spc uca
-diff drop kit if needed?
-front sway bar relocate if needed?

that's all i can think of right now.

any help at all would be great.

 

You wrote that you won't be rock crawling or beating on it. You state in your profile that you have an OR. Your OR has an electric brake booster and MTS.

You don't need a mechanical front locker. It's a waste of money, time, and effort. Unless you can take the front diff out yourself and have a shop bench work it, you are going to spend a lot of time and money to have a shop install it.

Also, I don't know if there is a front locker, yet.

Also, front engine IFS vehicles break mechanical lockers. That's why we have MTS

 

thanks for the quick info, basically your saying mts is most likely going to be good enough for me as long as i don't want to go to the extreme or have a ton of extra money to just throw around. and even if i do like i've read it can break stuff.

i sort of figured that MTS would most likely be good enough i just wanted to make sure and get advice, i'm usualy the type of person to go overboard.

thanks for the quick reply.

regarding question 2)

i still want the air compressor for at least tires so if anyone has any info or advice on that i'd love to hear it.

would like to put it in that rear bed compartment

 

If you plan to air down to off-road, then an installed compressor would be great. I have a portable and it's fine, but a permanently mounted unit would be more convenient.

There is a location under the hood that can hold a compressor (it's been done by several folks). It's at the corner of the firewall and passenger side fender where the ABS system is located on the non-TRD Off-Road trucks. Since you have a TRD OR, you have a space that's perfect (there's even mounting points that can be adapted). I'd look into that before going with the bed cubbies.

Based on your description, you do not need a front locker. MTS gives you a lot of the benefits without the drawbacks. It's not as good if you are in deep mud and a few other situations, but that doesn't sound like what you are going to encounter. MTS is great. I usually just leave it on when I'm off-road in low range and it only engages when needed (which won't be very often unless the trail is pretty rough).

 

Another vote for no front locker, it can break front cv axles when you really should just give up or find another route.

The tires are far too small to reach the limit of the stock offroad system. I'd say front lockers are when you've reached the limits of 33" or 35" real offroad tires like a Mickey Thompson.

I would personally want a new bumper with a winch so I could solo offroad/explore long before I had a front locker.

 

MTS has the power to lock and stop a wheel in 4lo.

I use a

$105 viair 88p portable compressor kit (12V, 120 psi, forup to 33" tires)

viair 88p. It's portable and plug directly to the battery. I would never install an air compressor under the hood. It's going to draw hot air and heat it more in the hot compressor. The head of the 88p already gets hot enough and blows hot air into the tires, making for a hot reading when filling up the tires. It always drops as the air cools and I can never get them perfect.

 

Only plus side to having the locker would be if you were on some tough trails and broke a CV.
I've wheeled with a guy that has a 4runner with front and back ARB. He broke a CV while on the trail, threw on the locker and could still get a front wheel to drive. But since you said you're not going to be doing anything rough don't bother.
Save your money.

No problem mounting the compressor sideways though. The ARB ones are made to be mounted however you want to.
You can adjust the bracket and turn it just so you know.

I'm considering the locker but that's really only for emergencies. You have to remember though with the locker you can't turn if its locked. Its only for when conditions are terrible.
I know a few of the videos I watch from an Aussie overlanding group have a few IFS vehicles with front lockers and no issues, one is an FJ Cruiser, 2 different hilux and a nissan navaro (basically frontier) Mind you same time they usually have a jeep out with them, not a rubicon so no locker, just with traction control systems it can get through all the same stuff the guys in the 79 series land cruisers are getting through with 35s and front and back locker.

You likely will not need it, and my wanting it for emergencies is only from seeing that 4runner lock up the front and still get power to the one CV that wasn't broken.

 

In my experience lockers and IFS do not play well together. Your axle shafts will hate life pretty quick with any serious wheeling. The nanny systems on the trucks are pretty damn good when you need them. Remember good flex is just as important to traction as traction aids. Does no good to be locked on both ends if you can't keep all 4 on the ground.

 

My air compressor location.

 

thanks everyone,
so far the

$350 arb ckma12 on-board air compressor high performance 12 volt for air locker differentials and tire inflation

arb ckma12 (50% duty cycle) is looking good then and will fit sideways in the bed storage location.

all really good info guys

yeh i've heard that about the cv axle problem too when doing more intense stuff.
if i did get it and need it it would be for basically just mud so that shouldn't be too hard on the cv axles. no extreme angles or flexing

and i plan on getting the demello baja front bumper
but
i haven't decided on the winch yet tho.

that's pretty cool i didn't know or think about that.

and yeah i've seen a lot of those videos!

 

also i talked to arb and there are 2 options for our front.

same part for gen3 as gen2 front diff arb says.

either the:
-RD111
Toyota 8' IFS 53mm Bearing 30 Spline.
gearing 3.91 & Up

or the:
-RD121
Toyota 8' IFS 53mm Bearing 30 Spline. gearing 3.73 & Down

just for the knowledge and possibility of getting the locker in the future,
what is the stock gearing in our front diff?

i'm guessing the same as the rear gearing

 

I think factory gearing on the 3rd gens is 3.91, so better idea would be the 3.91 and up.

 

found a thread that says our rear is 3.909,so i'm guessing the front is identical?

 

It would pretty unusual to have two different ratios. I'm sure it's been done (staggered tires?) but I've never heard of a stock vehicle with different front and rear diff ratios. Watch someone prove me wrong...

 

it makes sense to be the same, i'm with u on that.
either way i now know to get the 3.91 and up front locker.

still want to do it just not right away.
ill save $ by doing most of the work myself.
maybe one day when it's more of a toy then daily driver ill do a SAS along with the airlocker.

 

If you are doing a SAS, you might as well re-gear front and back to go along with your (presumably) larger tires. So at that point, you get to pick the ratio.

 

yep ur right about that, i've been looking into it.
either way it will be higher

this is all my long term goals. but i may do the locker early along with front and rear gears more in the 4.5 range and up.
have 32's now but next set will be 33-35's

it's a lot to learn about and plan out

 

Extreme competition rock crawlers will under-drive the rear so they can turn sharper. Kind of like a weak, full time dig unit

 

Details on mounting please

 

I had it done at Motobilt in Dothan AL, hose is routed to the cubby hole on the left side of the bed. Pm me any specific questions or pictures you'd like