F300 Feroza diff lockers!

[McLarryBob]

where can i get some for my feroza?
ARB and TJM dont seem to make any
Thanks

[Percy]

See thread
http://www.outerlimits4x4.com/phpBB2/ftopic127373.php

[dumbdunce]

outta luck eh Marty. oh well we'll slot some hilux axles under there, how hard can it be?

[monmendoza]

Was in the same predicament almost a year ago. I finally ended welding my front differential side gears "Fozzy Locker style". The rear of course is still stock LSD. So far my Roza have been in tough trails 5 times and so far so good. Its a little harder to drive in tight turns though but definitely has a much improved traction. I would do it again if faced with a new Feroza. :-)

Here is a picture of the weld:


Before you dismantle your side differential, mark it first.


Here are pictures of my rig.






Good luck with your lockers.

[ferozamaniac]

I have found some info that Lockright or Detroitlocker are going to create or are in the processes for creating a locker for LSD diffs like Ferozas. Can anybody check that?

[nebivedu]

detroit locker, but off the road this "wanna be LSD" is not much of a help. The original LSD from feroza is better.

But in Europe the K&S tuning has a 100% locker for feroza, but the price is 985 eur (that is 1900 AUD).

In our offroad club, we will try to get one of 100% locker (from K&S tuning) and we will test it. Then we will se, what will be next.

[MightyMouse]

Forget the Detroit lead - its as dead as.....

As nebivedu says K&S in germany do one - its not cheap and you have to send them a centre to modify. If your in Australia this all adds to the price I've been down this track.

They do not do a front locker even though at first they said they did - they got a bit confused......

I decided to replace the whole rear axle as it was cheaper and ended up significantly stronger than the Feroza one. No point locking a fragile axle IMO.

Front is more complex - its build your own and that's a large task ( see other threads ).

Anyway - to me its seems that as soon as money gets discussed 99.9% of Feroza owners change their mind. No matter what source lockers are expensive - and then there are all the other Feroza issues to resolve.

[ferozamaniac]

Maybe i was not clear on my previous post. The Detroit locker or Lock right are going to create a 100% locker for Feroza diffs that have an LSD on their rear diff (if can anybody verify this info). My mechanic has this info from other dealers here in Greece. Personally i would like to keep it stock my Feroza with stock diffs until someone will create a locker in a reachable price

[McLarryBob]

i have thought about welding the diff and ive asked a few mates and they say that if i weld the front diff ill probably snap the CV shafts

what do you think monmendoza?
have you snapped a CV shaft yet?

[MightyMouse]

You'll break the diff case, centre or outer cv long before you break a driveshaft.

The Salsbury style centre is inherently a weak design due to the large openings in the casting necessary to get the side gears etc in. The casting flexes and things go down hill from there. That''s another advantage of a front locker - uses a "windowless" design, and four pinion gears instead of two - that makes it heaps stronger.

Shock loads ( driving flat out AT obstacles ) seems to be the major killer. Ive got about six times the torque of a standard Feroza and the worst i've been able to do is tear the mounting lugs off the diff case and chip a tooth.

Weld away if you cant afford a locker, IMO its more about not throwing the car at obstacles. Be realistic and it'll most likely be ok.

[monmendoza]

i have thought about welding the diff and ive asked a few mates and they say that if i weld the front diff ill probably snap the CV shafts
what do you think monmendoza?
have you snapped a CV shaft yet?

So far so good. I think it would depend alot on your driving style. There are 4 of us in our Feroza club in the Philippines who have welded front differentials. None has broken one yet. As I said I have trailed mine 5 times. I would'nt recommend it though if you plan to use your Feroza for offroad racing or probably rock crawling. That would place to much stress on the differentials. But for general trailing, I guess its strong enough. BTW if you open a Feroza differentials, you will realize that it is bigger than a samurai and much stouter.

[MightyMouse]

BTW if you open a Feroza differentials, you will realize that it is bigger than a samurai and much stouter.

There are variations in zook diffs so from a strength perspective its not so clear cut.

Comparing like with like ( as much as possible ) there are very similar.

[monmendoza]

BTW if you open a Feroza differentials, you will realize that it is bigger than a samurai and much stouter.

There are variations in zook diffs so from a strength perspective its not so clear cut.
Comparing like with like ( as much as possible ) there are very similar.

I think I have to agree with you here MightyMouse. Both of them has a recommended maximum tire size of 31". I think there robustness would be about the same and would be very depended on the driving style .

I think the sammie's biggest advantage in the trail is its front wheel articulation compared to the Roza. The IFS of the Feroza has a real tendency to lift a tire. That is why I decided to weld my front differentials.
This way even if I lift a wheel, the other wheel still has traction. the Fozzy locked wheel though has its disadvantage. Its hard to turn when in a sharp curve.

[andoy]

I've done some difficult trails (long and short) with lifted front diff and welded (actually built up) side gears. The learnings are:

1. CV joint issue is more related to axle rod angle from torsion bar lifting than due to gear welding. Maximum side gear cavities should be weld built up except those that are in contact with the spider to strengthen it and prevent its breakage from the stress of the forced movement restriction (some body with minimal cavity filling broke his side gear during trail).
2. In my experience maximum angle should be that center of wheel hub is of equal height to center of lower u-control arm radius height to allow for better articulation and softer ride. The stock specs actually calls for the u-arm radius center to be 10mm lower than the wheel hub center. This means that the axle shaft is practically straight parallel to ground. You can further mitigate the angle of the shorter axle arm by having the differential housing mounted with more tilt towards that side through the use of washer/spacers between the housing and the differential carrier support.
3. It also helps to ease the stress on the upper u-control arm by putting a 1" spacer plate under it where the steering knuckles bolt to. Use high tensil longer bolts to allow for the spacer plate.
4. With this configuration max tire is 31"x10.5 with 1" trim off the plastic bumper end garnish to prevent scrubbing during turns.
5. You can still fit bigger tires but you'll next need body lift and you'll start having power issue.
6. I have seen photos of Ferozas with bigger that 32" tire on cranked up IFS but I doubt if the axle joints can take the stress from the extreme angle and tire weight. Somebody with more than ample milage on trails have tried this route and broken his joints more than once.

Out of all these, an interesting theory that has come to mind on IFS is that if you can extend the control arms and axle shaft, you will have additional wheel travel and ergo articulation; but that would be a very involved fabrication work but do-able I'd think.

Cheers! Happy Easter.

[MightyMouse]

Been there...... done that and it does give more travel.

As said its a lot of work, and needs to be done properly - wheels falling off due to poor workmanship wouldn't be fun.

A down point is that the wheelbase to track ratio becomes worse making stability even more of and issue. Mines around 300mm wider and will happily try to drive sideways with very little provocation. Fun if your expecting it ... interesting if your on "auto pilot".

[andoy]

Been there...... done that and it does give more travel.

As said its a lot of work, and needs to be done properly - wheels falling off due to poor workmanship wouldn't be fun.

A down point is that the wheelbase to track ratio becomes worse making stability even more of and issue. Mines around 300mm wider and will happily try to drive sideways with very little provocation. Fun if your expecting it ... interesting if your on "auto pilot".

Thanks and Easter cheers MM. The nice thing about having this forum is it gives us the benefit of "testing" ideas without unneccessary costs and frustrations.

My next intent really is to go into SAS. I have the DANA 30 but still waiting for the results from a couple of brave souls who're going ahead with it over here. My initial thought though is to use coils and Pajero rear end control arms (the one w/ byonet end for grater movement). Wad ya think?

PS. By the way, 300mm seems a lot, can you please share pics of how this looks? TIA