aI am going to install a LSD in my rear end on my 02 with the 3.73 Open. Now, I have also heard of these putting additional stress on the rear, so some folks advise also adding a differential cooler, like a Mag-Hytec or similar. As for the LSD, I think I am going to go with a Truetrac, as it seems like many on here have had positive results.

My primary questions are:

A: How does the Detroit Truetrac do with snow and icy conditions?

B: Is the diff cooler needed? (I plow 7 hours a day or more when conditions hit, and the LSD will definitely get used a whole lot, not including my summer towing 4-5 days a week on a 4-6k lbs. trailer.)

 

Don't know about the detroit unit specifically but an lsd will be a big help in slippery stuff
You should not need a cooler
You do want to make sure you use the appropriate fluid with correct friction modifiers in it

 

Contact Randy's Ring & Pinion. Their tech support group comes highly recommended.

http://www.ringpinion.com/

 

You don't need a diff cooler. If the LS is slipping enough to produce a significant amount of heat then it isn't doing anything for you. I put the TruTrac in in December and love it. I don't notice it much in daily driving unless I get on it hard out of a corner or on gravel, but it definitely is a big help in snow and other low traction conditions. One thing about it though, it requires some torque to lock up, so if one tire has good traction and the other has very little (on ice or wet grass) it won't lock up consistently. In situations like this you just need to feather the brake to get it to lock up. All in all I love mine and glad I went with it over other Lockers/Limited Slips.

 

Will do all. Thank you.

 

x2 on contacting Randy's R&P. They have been excellent when I built my diffs.

I'm running a Eaton posi in the rear and Yukon Powr-Loc in the front of my rig. Both units work great. The rear unit is very quiet and locks up when needed and does not lock up when not needed. No need for the fancy diff cover. Just add some Limited Slip Additive with your fluid and it will be the best you will have done to your truck. Good luck.

 

I wouldn't go with the Eaton posi or any of the differentials that use clutches because they will eventually wear out like the stocker. The TruTrac doesn't have clutches and will last much longer.

 

I'd have to agree with you, in hindsight I wish I'd gone with a tru-trac, but hindsight is always 20/20. However I beat on my truck REALLY hard so we will see how long the Eaton lasts.

 

I also added the true trac this last spring/summer and have enjoyed it since. I also replaced the rear diff cover with the 08 alum finned cover while in there. No friction modifier of stuff needed. Works like a champ in the stuff that I have used it for thus far.

 

I also did the '08 cover, cheap upgrade

 

I had a True Trac, two in fact, in a Jeep in snowy conditions. A Jeep having the shorter wheelbase can be a handful. The True Trac did not seem to make it any worse. You will not need a new diff cover or cooler.

 

Nitpicking here. I agree, in principle, but don't the newer True Tracs include clutches for preload to help them lock up? I thought I read somewhere that they do.

Still, if they do, and those clutches wear out, the True Trac should retain most of its function, I would think.

 

I don't think they do, but I'd like to know too.

 

Nothing on the Eaton/Detroit website about clutches in the TruTrac. I got mine in December and I know it doesn't have any.

 

I went to their website just now, and saw what you saw. But then I opened the installation instructions pdf:

http://www.eaton.com/ecm/groups/publ.../ct_128482.pdf

Where I found this little nugget on page 5:

"* For TrueTrac models built with pre-load, the rotation will be restricted (approx. 100 lb. ft. torque required to rotate).
Pre-load units are all models for Toyota and Dana 30 axles, and for the Ford 9”–913A328 model only."

So it appears that some do have clutches. I knew I had seen that somewhere. Why they would put them on some, and not others, I don't know. Personally, I would prefer clutchless, but I guess when the clutches wear out you still have a limited slip.