locking the rear differential
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 209
Likes: 1
From: Innisfree, Alberta
I agree. I have had several Detroit lockers and while they work great, they're not recommended if you are towing a heavy trailer. Also they tend to wear down tires faster than a limited slip. Detroit True Trac has a good rep and that will be the next one I will install. You can see them on Youtube. They have been around for a long time and they are geared limited slips with no clutches to wear out. And I will install the True Trac in the front as well because it acts like a normal diff until one wheel loses traction then locks up.
More Turbo
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 664
Likes: 129
From: Columbia, MD
ARB air lockers are available for the Sterling. Have one in the rear, and one in front (Dana 60). Advantage- Full open differential on good footing, full lock up when you want it. Disadvantage- if axle vent tube is blocked, pressure builds up in the differential and blows gear oil past the seals. Rear brakes and seals are not cheap. E-locker would not have this problem.
But check your vent tubes!!!
Lockers front and rear probably are overkill. With a locker in the rear and both front hubs engaged, you have to spin both rear wheels and one front before getting stuck. Adding locker to front requires spinning all 4 wheels. Front and rear may be a help creeping down bad hills, tends to keep all wheels turning rather than risking any locking up.
I did have one incident where I had to yield the road to a tri-axle dump or become a bumper ornament... narrow twisty 1.5 lane road in WV; I got over into the ditch on the uphill side. Could not access the passenger side hub without wading in muck, so locked both diffs and the driver side hub and crawled out in 4 low with no drama. I probably needed both lockers or a pull in that episode.
But check your vent tubes!!!
Lockers front and rear probably are overkill. With a locker in the rear and both front hubs engaged, you have to spin both rear wheels and one front before getting stuck. Adding locker to front requires spinning all 4 wheels. Front and rear may be a help creeping down bad hills, tends to keep all wheels turning rather than risking any locking up.
I did have one incident where I had to yield the road to a tri-axle dump or become a bumper ornament... narrow twisty 1.5 lane road in WV; I got over into the ditch on the uphill side. Could not access the passenger side hub without wading in muck, so locked both diffs and the driver side hub and crawled out in 4 low with no drama. I probably needed both lockers or a pull in that episode.
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