Adding a locker, worth it?

Hi folks,
Since it's the holiday season I'm deciding to treat myself since I was a good boy. I'm looking at adding a rear locker to my 2wd prerunner.
I'm looking at Harrops e locker, over an arb. (Don't want to mess with adding air). I was wondering if anyone here has added one a can tell me how well they work.
I'm mostly going to use it for some fire/Forrest roads, like big bear ect... (I'm in southern ca, so no snow)
Also this is my DD is this a worthwhile upgrade? I do plan on keeping it until it no longer runs.

 

I don't know anything about the Harrops, so can't speak to that, but ARBs are generally considered one of the best. Adding air, if done right will also let you inflate your tires with the same compressor/tank, and maybe even run air tools, so there's added benefit there. Viair has a really cool on board air system (kit) for ~$200 that can do all that.

As for a locker on a 2wd, sure why not... The TRD pre-runners have them just to maximize the traction you can get with a 2wd. However, you might consider an LSD, too. Might cost a bit more in some cases, but there's no buttons or switches to install/mess with.

What else have you done to it, or plan to do with it? Tires? Suspension? What about recovery/emergency gear?

 

Have you considered the PreRunner/4WD conversion?

 

So far not much I have put on general grabber at2 tires, and recently installed bilstien 5100's. I have x bull recovery tracks along with some tow rope and shovel. Yea arb are great but I feel with the e locker there are less parts that can go wrong.

I have! But that is way beyond my knowledge. If I can get a shop to do it I would but don't know of any. It is something I might do in the future. The truck only has 134K miles on it, so I do have plenty of time to do it.

 

A locker makes a night/day difference in offroad capabilities on a 2wd, adding one to my Prerunner back in the day was the 2nd best thing I ever did to it (it was a lunchbox locker though, I don't really recommend those).

The 1st best thing I did was eventually upgrading to a 4x4, lol. But that was because I wanted to hit the even harder trails that only a 4x4 can practically and safely do. A locked 2wd is plenty capable though on easier/moderate trails in Socal.

 

A locker is good, but 4 wheel is better. I just converter a 03 prerunner the weekend before last. Started Friday and was driving Sunday in front wheel drive. The truck is way more useful as a 4x4 than a prerunner with an e locker. Even more useful as a front wheel drive than rear. I was the bone head that did not try airing down the tires but my e-locker could not save me.

 

It's way beyond my knowledge too, I did my research and bought all the parts and I'm just taking it one step at a time. YouTube helps too.

 

Conversion is not that hard. The actual mechanical stuff is easy, if you understand it.
Just research research.

PS: Glad I did mine. Locker doesn't really do much vs 4x4.

 

You can take the 4x4 swap one step at a time. like installing the 4x4 steer knuckles with the prerunner backing plates.

 

If you're going to go e-locker, IMO the "best" ones out there are the factory TRD ones. Those Harrop e-lockers seem rather expensive ($1700aus, ~$1300 us), plus you'd need to ship it form Aus. You can sometimes get an entire TRD axle for about a grand, and at that point, it's pretty much a bolt on conversion. If you just went with an ARB, that's like a grand-ish, plus a couple hundred for an air system.

There's a pretty popular mod for the TRD 4wds: grey wire mod. Where you can trick the truck into thinking it's in 4lo all the time, so you can engage the locker any time (like the pre-runners).

However, I have yet to encounter a time where I needed the locker and wasn't already in 4wd. I like to call this mod: "epic donut mode - engage!"

Unless you source all the parts yourself, and do the work yourself, I would say a 4x4 conversion isn't worth it. The labor cost for a shop to do it would be insane. Be way easier and cheaper to sell it and find a 4x4...

 

Oh like pressing out the spindles? I actually bought complete manual hub knuckles for simplicity.

 

I looked into this, but skeptical of adding a rear axle from who knows where.

 

Easiest and often cheapest route to better traction, sell the 2wd and buy a 4. THEN worry about lockers.

 

how are you planning to install the locker? i would say the 4x4 swap takes less mechanical "skill". and i think a better choice if you can source everything

 

Sand is a bitch even with 4wd lol. I'd never risk hitting dunes in a 2wd unless it was a fully equipped LT rig and I hit it with full speed. But even then if you have to stop for any reason in deep sand you're effed.

 

Have you thought about just getting a 4WD?

 

800 hp and paddle tires will get you out of most jams, lol...

 

There's also risk in installing an aftermarket locker, mostly due to the incompetence of the installer (the shop, I mean). You can F up a perfectly good diff if you don't install it correctly, which is a fairly exacting procedure. Also, iirc, toyota axles with oem e-lockers have a higher spline count (i.e. stronger). I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong, though.

Toyota axles are generally pretty bomb proof. But yes, there is always that risk when sourcing used parts.

But there's always risk any time we modify our trucks with parts they didn't have from the factory.

 

Thanks guys for the responses! I would like to keep the truck, it's perfect and has done everything it has been asked to do. I really can't see myself selling it to get another. I really never found the need for 4wd, just want to add a little more to my truck. I mostly just stay on forest and dirt roads, no sand dunes or rock crawling for me. There are a few places around me that install lockers so I won't do the work myself.

 

the 8.4 diff is stronger than the factory e locker diff.