I have a 2004, SE with LS in the rear. I want to purchase an ARB locker, but only one. Should I lock up the front or the rear? I need traction for moderate to difficult 4WD trails. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. THX

rear, you will need to change 3rd's to an open to make it happen.

Is it possible to transfer the LS to the front then?

Lock the rear first. The rear is much stronger than the front, and it's more common to need a locker on the rear, because usually you're going uphill when you need a locker, and there's more weight over the rear axle.

The ARB locker will replace the entire differential carrier, so it doesn't matter if you have LSD or open, it'll fit. I replaced my factory LSD-equipped H233B rear end with an ARB locker about 6 years ago ( click here for the write-up ), and even ran the infamous Rubicon trail with just the rear locker (and a winch, of course). Only last year did I decide I was ready to drop the extra cash and get a front locker.

The LSD from the rear diff is not interchangeable with the front, because it's a different size.

BTW, the Xterra and Pathfinder (which I own) use the same drivetrain components.

Disregard this comment. It is incorrect.

ARB is your only option, and it is a full replacement carrier that replaces open or LSD carriers.

Definitely lock the rear. It's a lot stronger, and most of the time you need a locker, it's on an incline, and the weight transfers to the back of the vehicle then.

Stock LSD's are near worthless, as their breakaway torque is far to low to be terribly useful off road.

Just to be a PITA:

Lock the front.



The rear has plenty of traction going up hill, and the tires are less likely to slip....the front IFS on the other hand, doesn't have the leverage of a live axle, and is short on wheel travel compared to the rear...so its more likely to hang a tire, and to slip a tire going up hill....

...so a locked front may be more useful afterall.

A comparison of wranglers was done quite a few years ago, comparing front to rear lockers on a set of trails...and they found that the front only locked jeep was able to get through more obstacles than the rear only locked jeep.

It was a surprise, as "common knowledge" was to always lock the rear first.

After some research, it seems this was based upon mechanical lockers, and the loss in steering that goes with a locked front end......now that selectable lockers allow you to unlock to turn and then re-lock, etc....that has become less of a drawback.

So - if the IFS is most likely to get slippage, well, then its the one that would benefit the most from being locked.

As far as durability of a locked IFS, well, ask the people who have front AND rear lockers....they seem to be holding up so far on the X's at least....I know on some other rigs, the IFS is more delicate, hell, they break locked rears too.



OK - back to the "Lock the rear first" mantra.



(Locking the rear works great too)

Yep lock the rear first.

mmmm I don't know... I would think I would go through less 1/2 shafts if I locked the front first. But on the other hand with the IFS... it's usually the rear tire that is off the ground when off camber. I hate LSD

No you wouldn't.... Xterraintx breaks 'em just as frequently with his front locked.

The primary reason to lock the rear first is that you can't steer worth a damn with the front locker on (and I'm very hesitant to crank hard on the steering wheel in a vehicle that's notorious for steering problems).

I've had both lockers for a couple years now (both before and after the SAS) - the rear is the way to go.

Lock the rear first. Rear gets used most often, even in dual locked rigs.

OK, my two cents on this topic.

First, I have a locked front and LSD rear. The locked front was not pre-planned, and I probably would have followed conventional wisdom by locking the rear first if I was planning to put in a locker. But, after having blown the front diff, I decided to put in a locker there rather than an open diff.

As for the degree of traction, I find that the locked front provides an excellent boost in traction. Rather than have two locked wheels and one power wheel with an open diff (as would be the case with only a rear locker), I have two locked wheels and then a rear set with a LSD. Yes, the LSD is weak, but it is still better than an open diff which what you have if you don't lock the front.

As for the steering issue -- it is not as hard some people make it out to be. In most circumstances, any increased heaviness in the steering is barely noticeable, if at all. The only time it becomes an issue is if you are stopped and your tires are wedged on rocks; and then if becomes too hard to turn the tires, I just turn off the locker, turn the wheels, and then re-engage the locker.

The only downside that I notice occurrs if you lose traction on both front wheels. In that situation, the front end of the truck may have a tendency to slide sideways. If you are aware of this tendency, you can avoid getting yourself into trouble, and you can even use it sometimes to slide yourself onto a better line.

As for breaking a front shaft - that can happen with an unlocked front diff. (In fact, I wish that it happened to me, in which case the diff would not have blown in the first instance. I would much rather replace a front shaft than have a diff rebuilt.)

YMMV

k_enn

Kenn, I remember that run. ("Mr. Clicky")



I remember you AGONIZING over just replacing the blown diff with another open one, or getting the front locker as long as they had to replace it all anyway...

You thought about it a LONG time before pulling the trigger and locking the front.

That's a good point about rear locker and open front, - vs - rear LSD and Locked Front...

I think as its the FRONT end (IFS) that's going to be most likely to lose traction/hang a tire...it DOES make some sense to lock the front as a priority...and in YOUR case, it was the ONLY good choice.

I welded my rear diff and now I can drive around in 2 low and make it through stuff that I would of needed 4 low before. And now I have a lokka coming for the front. It will be interesting to see if it will make a difference or not, mainly because since I welded the rear I've never gotten stuck or couldn't make it.

OK, if you have manual hubs up front, why not weld that as well? It will have no effect whatsoever if you are unlocked.......

Brad

BTW, what's that like in the snow with the welded diff?

If the locker performs like they say it will it will ratchet when I have to turn sharp on the trails and reduce stress on cv joints and axles. I live in Washington state and the trails here are pretty narrow with tight turns. And I could just weld the front and then just run around with the passenger side hub locked and then get out and lock/unlock the drivers hub when needed but I'd rather try this locker first. Then if I don't like it I can take it out and then weld the front, then If I don't like that Ill take it out and replace with an arb.


And as for driving in the snow I was out of state when we got our tinny bit of snow for the year and is was gone before I could get home and do a snow run. I did drive it on some icy roads though and it did just fine because I didn't accelerate in the corners.

OK, I had this kind of locker in my Jeep in the front. When I called to order it, I asked for 2, 1 for the front, one for the back. The man on the phone said to just get one for the front and see how it went, promised I would not be disappointed. I did some heavy mudding with it for 4 years, and never considered buying another one, he was right! It took about 2hours to install, the kids complained 'cause we didn't get stuck anymore, the rides weren't any fun now.

Do this, don't weld.


Brad

people can weld their diffs if they want. It's a good idea to know what your really getting into before you do it though. I know tons of wheelers that weld their diffs and they never have problems. The weekend wheeler/dd shouldnt but if its just a wheelin rig then it's a good idea.