Rear lockers on 2x4

I want to buy new lockers for my 2x4 prerunner so I can get myself out of some situations when I'm on the trail but was wondering which locker would be best and affordable to buy since I'm going to pay most of the money towards labor since I'm not good with differential work. It would be nice to manually lock the diff but was really wondering the price on a affordable locker

 

Good question. I would like to know what the best locker on the market is for this application on a budget.

 

You have a number of options, even for a 4x2.

First option is having someone install or ordering a complete center section and installing yourself. If you install a new center section yourself, it a matter of sliding out the axle shafts and unbolting the center section. Price wise, assuming that you're keeping the same gears, it would be cheaper to have a mechanic do the work mainly with the backlash settings.

Second is the type of locker. Since you're wanting a selectable locker, I assume you spend a fair amount of time on the road. I'd recommend against something like a Detroit as it'll sometimes act squirrelly on the road, especially with snow and ice. The cheap route would be to add a limited slip. For these, I prefer a Tru-Trac as its gear driven with nothing to wear out.

For a selectable locker, you can go either a OEM elocker or an ARB. The elocker could possible be found in a junkyard. Find one with your desired gear ratio and you have a selectable locker that you can install yourself. Just a guess but I can't imagine that it would be too difficult to wire it in.

 

Ive done a little research on the matter and to me it seems like the Tru Trac is the way to go.

 

I should add that after a little more research, adding an elocker would require modifying the rear axle housing.

 

This may seem like a dumb question but I don't know the answer. I have a 4 cylinder Tacoma. Do I have to buy or do anything special to put a locker on my ride??