Powertrax Locker

[Lux_89]

Hey guys..

sussing out that powertrax locker, and i was just wondering if anyone know's of a decent dealer for these in brisbane. Missed out on last months group order, if he ended up getting anyone on his side.

Also anyone running these in hilux rear? Air locking the front but yeh, thought i may try this for the back. Seems to be the goa from the majority of web stuff that i have read.

Cheers, Chris

[Ben]

Can't help local dealers, but there's several online sites that ship for a decent price (just don't use rocky-road.com like I did). I'm running one in the front, and so far it's been brilliant, you can really feel the difference.

[Lux_89]

okay thanks m8. so really good hey? what did ya end up paying for yours?

[brad 93hilux]

Yeh i have one in the rear, and a airlokker in the front.

They (in my opinion) are awsome in the rear as when you are off road lock in and out as needed. In the rear they are geeat as all you have to worry bout is when to turn the front on/off....

I drive prob 90% of the tracks with just the rear lockker an only us the front for big ledges or big ruts...


The only down side is a little clicking and the occasional bang (which does no damage) but when you get used to it, its ok... Jst gotta weary of it in the wet around round abouts (general corners are fine when wet).

Check http://locktup4x4.com.au/catalog/a08e28 ... 94a24.aspx

These guys are great to deal with also...
Hope it helps
Brad.

[Lux_89]

Yeh. this helps very much.. hearing from a hilux owner is even better. Mine is dd for a while more so ill take all into consideration- the link you sent me to locktup, is it just the auto locker that you have on the page? Or the actual powertrax? I thought that the powertrax was a different unit, almost identicle but not quite. They recon the powertrax is alot quieter on road and a tad smoother.

Thanks.

[brad 93hilux]

yeh mine is the powertrax lock rite (same as one on the page but different brand)

If it is supposed to be quieter (maybe slightly different model) it will be even better-

Its every ones opinion on this subject, and has been argued about this heaps in the past about how good thay are, but this is mostly in comparison to the ARB lokker.

Bang for your buck..... They are awsome

To me i wouldnt put a airlokker in the rear, a auto lokker suits me better and in my opinion are far superior off road.

My 2cents
Brad

[Dee]

Hey lux89 I'm in the same po-zish at the moment, but for a sierra.

To me i wouldnt put a airlokker in the rear, a auto lokker suits me better and in my opinion are far superior off road.

My 2cents
Brad

I'd be interested in hearing your reasoning behind an auto locker being far supieror offroad to a selectable air-locker... !



anyeay, although im not looking into air-lockers, I'm basically tossing up betweet welding the rear = $0. OR Auto-locker $300-400?

I've never really thought about using an auto as i was never intersted in having the clacking/bangnig going on.
Also I've had a work-mate tell me he didnt like his due to the fact he did a fair bit of beach driving too, and at higher speeds when hitting the softer stuff the wheels would break 100% traction and diff would lock/unlock causing the rear to kick out which apparently got a bit scary at times.

Also liked the idea of having the rear 100% locked when offroad, no engaging/disengaging to worry about, (although i've been informed that its instentanious and momentum isnt lost...can anyone else confirm??)

So an auto now maybe an option if i can save a bit of on-road drivablity & tyre wear (even though the sierra only gets driven on road to & from trails)
This would only be as long as offroad traction is *VERY* similar to that of a constantly 100% lock diff when a wheel does lift or start to lose traction...
Can anyone else give any opinions?

[Lux_89]

cheers brad. yeh dee im not too sure, weld in a zoo, its lighter than a lux, but i prolly wouldnt weld mine. just for personal reasons, i just dont like welding diffs. im pretty sure im gonna get one hey. i will have the money soon so will be getting one hopefully b4 we go away for cruiser trip. its just one of them things im just gonna have to try i guess. if its no good, sell it go air locker. i def will airlock front due to the need of disengaugin alot.

[Ben]

okay thanks m8. so really good hey? what did ya end up paying for yours?

Think it was $3-400 (can't remember), and absolutely love it, if I leave the rear off you can really, really feel it working.

[brad 93hilux]

Hey lux89 I'm in the same po-zish at the moment, but for a sierra.

To me i wouldnt put a airlokker in the rear, a auto lokker suits me better and in my opinion are far superior off road.

My 2cents
Brad

I'd be interested in hearing your reasoning behind an auto locker being far supieror offroad to a selectable air-locker... !



anyeay, although im not looking into air-lockers, I'm basically tossing up betweet welding the rear = $0. OR Auto-locker $300-400?

I've never really thought about using an auto as i was never intersted in having the clacking/bangnig going on.
Also I've had a work-mate tell me he didnt like his due to the fact he did a fair bit of beach driving too, and at higher speeds when hitting the softer stuff the wheels would break 100% traction and diff would lock/unlock causing the rear to kick out which apparently got a bit scary at times.

Also liked the idea of having the rear 100% locked when offroad, no engaging/disengaging to worry about, (although i've been informed that its instentanious and momentum isnt lost...can anyone else confirm??)

So an auto now maybe an option if i can save a bit of on-road drivablity & tyre wear (even though the sierra only gets driven on road to & from trails)
This would only be as long as offroad traction is *VERY* similar to that of a constantly 100% lock diff when a wheel does lift or start to lose traction...
Can anyone else give any opinions?

My idea of it being superior is eg- when driving up a hill climb, instead of locking/unlocking due to turn around things it will (whilst not under too much load) unlock alowing you to turn and then relock itself.....

Its hard to explain till you have one and see..
Some people love them, some hate them.

Welding the rear is heaps worse, on road it loads up your axles HEAPS more when turning (instead of unlocking and clicking), and your turning circle can be a pain in the arse also....(as said above)
The welded rear is not so bad in the dirt as it can allow the tyres to slip which allows you to turn.

From my experience, i have never had a problem on sand...
Drives like normal and never knew it was there.
Have driven fraser with the boat on the back, and stockton in REALLY soft sand... No problems

To me, if you are after a cheap lokker, a auto lokker is great. Its good being off road and knowing your rear locks in/out when needed and all you have to worry bout is the front when to select it.

Also they are really easy to install and don't require any modification to anything, so you could put one in and try it...and if you don't like it, remove it ant no one would even know it was there...

Jst my opinion
Brad

[want33s]

Hey Chris, If you're after a lockright why not give Locktup a go, after all they gave you a set of gears!
If they prove too expensive talk to Sean at Lowrangeoffroad.

[bulldogy]

Lux we are trying to get a bit more info from people who have actually used them rather than sell you one that may be crap.

They are more expensive than the normal lockright average cost is $400 US + postage.

Dave

[fudly]

has anyone tried them in both the front and the back?? ive got a old 47 cruiser and i dont think i could talk the wife into lettin me spend the sorta cash it would take to out fit her with air lockas and since the auto lockas are roughly 1/3rd the price (if not better) i thought they might be a useable option

and if someones already done the hard yards could you tell me the expected life span and any required maintance thanks

[brad 93hilux]

yeh i had mine origionally in the front.
By its self with no lokker in the rear, they are not as good as it puts a huge amount of pressure through the front axles.

With a shimmed lsd in the rear it was ok in the front.

But i have guys in the 4x4 club that has them front and rear, and love them.

Personally, having lokkers front and rear is the best option (even if they are lockrites) as it evens the load out evenly on the axles and takes away alot of stress IMOP.

P.S. I now only use a air lokker in the front because i picked one up cheap in a reco centre, otherwise i would have lockrites F + R...

Brad

[brad 93hilux]

I took mine out a couple of months ago, i have had the lokker for approx 6 years in the front and rear, and it still looks like new.

Basically no wear, in 50,000kms.

Brad

[thehanko]

Im in a similar boat where air lockers are just too much coin.

If you were buying a auto locker for an ln106 hilux (assume the rear lsd is shagged), would you go front or rear first? or not at all until you can get both?

I dont do hard core stuff, mainly to get in and out of areas of interest for kayaking, but kayaking is always when raining or just rained so mud is common - last year we struggled with greasy hill climbs out of creeks etc etc.

I do alot of road k's so needs to drive well (if in the rear as front would not matter in 2wd)

how hard is it to find these things second hand?

Lux_89 we might be able to do a new group buy?

[thehanko]

powertrax for hilux on fleabay at $470 plus $20 for shipping, to suit hiluxs.

[brad 93hilux]

Im in a similar boat where air lockers are just too much coin.

If you were buying a auto locker for an ln106 hilux (assume the rear lsd is shagged), would you go front or rear first? or not at all until you can get both?

I dont do hard core stuff, mainly to get in and out of areas of interest for kayaking, but kayaking is always when raining or just rained so mud is common - last year we struggled with greasy hill climbs out of creeks etc etc.

I do alot of road k's so needs to drive well (if in the rear as front would not matter in 2wd)

how hard is it to find these things second hand?

Lux_89 we might be able to do a new group buy?

shim the rear lsd and buy one for the front, there should be no reason why you cant shim the lsd. They wear out to a certain point then basically stop working.. thus more shims needed.

This would be a pretty good setup if you havn't got much money....
Thats what i did first...

Brad

[thehanko]

cheers

[Troopy93]

G'day all,

I have Lockright Powertrax Noslip lockers front and rear in my Troopy and so far over 15,000km they have performed faultlessly. The rear makes no noise on road or off and as for unlocking while 4wding you would have to be on a really hard surface and turning a sharp corner to get it to unlock.

The front makes no noise and no difference to driving offroad except the return to centre feel is a bit stronger.Personally I have had no scary moments in any situation with them after driving in all sorts of terrain. The noslips are a much smoother operating locker than the standard Lockright .

I noticed in an earlier post that someone recommended not to get them from www.rocky-road.com. I purchased mine from here and had them in my hands 5 days after I ordered and paid for them, so in my view they were excellent to deal with.

[thehanko]

what did they cost? did you fit yourself?

[Emo]

I picked up one for the rear of my 80 series recently from another 4x4 forum. A bloke had bought the wrong one so I got it cheap. I got mine professionally fitted by Jack McNamara Diffs because I reckon most of the problems you read about them is because they haven't been installed or set up correctly.
I've used mine twice offroad so far and although I haven't done anything real hard, it's just made the driving I've done so much easier.
On road, I've had no problems at all. I do get some clicking going around roundabouts but that's what it's meant to do.
My vehicle is a permanent 4WD auto so both of those negate alot of the problems I've read with Lockright lockers (rear stepping out in the wet and driveline slop).

[Troopy93]

what did they cost? did you fit yourself?

I paid just on $1200..00 for the pair delivered and our dollar was 73c then, and I did fit them myself..rear took 2 hours and front was 12 hours but I replaced all the swivel hub bits, trunion bearings and wheel bearings and seals as well.

A bit of a heads up if you are fitting yourself, with the rear you can install it without removing the crown wheel or touching the carrier bearings, but on the high pinion fronts you must remove the carrier bearings and crown wheel to fit the locker, as there is not enough room to install the bits with the crown wheel in place. So if you are unsure if you can get the clearances right on re-assembly you'd be better off getting someone who can, to install the locker to the diff centre.

[Clown Boy]

I sell them on ebay.

PM me if you want to.

I can help fit them also.

[BOGFROG]

PM Sent!

[joeblow]

many, many, many years ago i had an auto locker in the rear as at the time it was the only one available for my vehicle [ it was the more expensive full sidegear model ].it got me to some awesome places and did its thing, but after a short while it became apparent there were too many drawbacks.noise, large clunking sounds, tyre wear, constant re- shimming so it would engage properly [ i was a licenced fitter of the product ], and in wet conditions was absolutely dangerous. people think they unlock all the time when they have no drive, this is not true. if they are not shimmed 100% than erratic behaviour will occur. they were harsh on axle splines too! then a selectable locker became available and i was quick to get one, and have never looked back. the old auto locker i couldn't even sell because i'd feel guilty with it being in someone elses car. this is only my opinion, and make of it what you will. those who know me know that i have tried almost everything when it comes to diffs. at the end of the day you get what you pay for, and i would rather save for a better diff than one of these. and i like my vehicle too much and would be insulting it and whoever drives her to ever use one of those things again.

[Troopy93]

They have come a long way since you had one, you'd be surprised at how smooth they are (Powertrax Noslips) compared to the standard Lockright. And no nasty noises, clunks, bangs, axle damage in 15000km so far.

Each to their own preferences but people always seem to have trouble with selectable lockers doing Air lines ,seals etc.

Dangerous in the wet pffffft, same as driving with a good an LSD in my experience.

[dank]

I had a lockrite in the front of my zook for a couple years then went airlocker front and lockrite in the rear and I've very rarely had any noise coming from mine at all. Even on tight high traction turns it seems to be very smooth. I can only recall two times where it has noticably clunked. I think many people have a winge about them because they are not set up properly from the start. Its worth the money finding someone who actually knows what they are doing rather than someone who thinks they know what they are doing. I know on mine we had to play for ages trying to get the right shim pack for it.

If I had a choice of installing a lockrite in the rear or the front I'd go the rear.

Don't waste your time on group buys. The Aussie dollar is super strong and you can get your own into the country from the US for good prices. I got my zook one for AU$280 shipped to my door about 2 1/2 years ago when the dollar was only buying around $0.76US.