Eaton Elocker4 vs. old style eaton e locker

[06h3]

Yeah. I am leaning more and more that way.

I was so Anti ARB but maybe I should get my head out of my ass and just buy one.

I had high hopes for this elocker 4. Now that ARB changed their seals I bet the seal issues will even be a thing on a past.

What ticks me off even more is that it’s breaking BEFORE STOCK shafts!!! Come on Eaton....

@‘84 Bronco II Those Auburn ected lockers were complete trash and had no idea they developed a new one. I bet it’s the same story....they will work for 3-4 years then fail.

 

['84 Bronco II]

@‘84 bronco II

Mine is direct locking. I had the ramp style in my 10 bolt and that thing was a garbage POS.

I have run an ox locker (little 1/4in bolts kept wanting to back out, which they supposedly had a design change on that)
The eaton ramp style....total crap
Eaton direct acting...great up until this trip.

That auburn looks intriguing!!! So did the direct acting locker.....LOL.


Here is the clip.

It worked the next day....just under extreme load it did that but under normal load it would lock and work just fine. Looking at the diagram I am wondering if the locking collar that locks to the back of the side gear has the teeth rounded off

Looks like a locking mechanism failure. Too bad, that is disappointing that the direct acting ELocker 4 is weaker than a stock 35 spline axle.

Just looking at the exploded diagram I posted, it seems like the collar style has a more robust locking mechanism aside from the fact it disengages and reengages during direction changes. The Auburn Select-A-Lock certainly appears to be a superior design based on the cross-sections of it. They have Tony Pelligrino pimping it and he supposedly runs them in his Terremoto JK he ran in the 4400 race at the Hammers a year or two ago.

 

['84 Bronco II]

Yeah. I am leaning more and more that way.

I was so Anti ARB but maybe I should get my head out of my ass and just buy one.

I had high hopes for this elocker 4. Now that ARB changed their seals I bet the seal issues will even be a thing on a past.

What ticks me off even more is that it’s breaking BEFORE STOCK shafts!!! Come on Eaton....

@‘84 Bronco II Those Auburn ected lockers were complete trash and had no idea they developed a new one. I bet it’s the same story....they will work for 3-4 years then fail.

The ECTED was basically a clutch-style limited slip and used the electric actuation to clamp the clutches to "lock" it. Just like a clutch-style limited slip, the clutches start to wear and it wont "lock" anymore. The open-locker version of the Select-A-Loc (the one I posted) does not have clutches. The limited slip-locker version of the Select-A-Loc looks like a rebranded ECTED and is something I would steer clear of.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

Yeah. I am leaning more and more that way.

I was so Anti ARB but maybe I should get my head out of my ass and just buy one.

I had high hopes for this elocker 4. Now that ARB changed their seals I bet the seal issues will even be a thing on a past.

I was also, I was sold on the Toyota elocker because "you can manually lock it" well I ended up manually locking it more than I locked it with the switch then it broke.

What ticks me off even more is that it’s breaking BEFORE STOCK shafts!!! Come on Eaton....

@‘84 Bronco II Those Auburn ected lockers were complete trash and had no idea they developed a new one. I bet it’s the same story....they will work for 3-4 years then fail.

It may be really good, just like the last one

Personally, I don't like being the Guinea pig for stuff like this.

The only other selectable I'd consider is the ox. The new version looks pretty good and you can pick air, 12v or cable. Which are all external.

 

[06h3]

Yeah I would definitely stay away from the limited slip version....

I have heard the same thing about factory Toyota e lockers. They are praised but in all reality suck.

I didn’t have issues with the ox locker from a strength standpoint. They just had these 1/4 in bolts holding together a D44 case and they kept wanting to back out. It didn’t matter if you used loctite and proper torque specs. I have a friend who went that route but the new design shows different bolts and a snap ring that prevents the bolts from backing out. I am not sure if Ox has different bolts or retention systems on other lockers.

 

[06h3]

So I pulled apart the locking hubs and took off the diff cover to confirm what we already knew....

R&P looks brand new, Yukon hardcore hubs looks perfect. So it’s confirmed it’s the locker.

I called Eaton for the D70 rebuild kit. They give me part # 23283-00S. I google it. Nothing....I do some digging and in their May 2021 catalog they list that part #. Their October 2021 catalog, they do not list it.

They discontinued the rebuild kit!!!!!

I call them back up and the guy agreed it’s stupidity and bullshit. He said send him an email and he will send it up the chain. He didn’t seem too motivated to help. I gotta find someone who actually gives 2 shits and see if I can get some parts.

I’ve seen this story before.....every Detroit locker that has broke when a shaft breaks, ends up in the garbage because getting rebuild parts is like pulling teeth.

I hope Eaton can get me the parts, I’m literally happy to give them my money so I can move on with life....but so far they don’t seem to care.

If it doesn’t work out I’ll make sure to recommend everyone AWAY from Eaton.

So I’ll start thinking about option #2....Grizzly or ARB....

I’ll also have the e locker apart for pics at some point. I just don’t wanna tear it all apart without a plan. I have plenty of other crap I gotta do before tearing it apart and allowing it to collect metal dust while I’m cutting and grinding away on other projects

 

[06h3]

It took a fucking act of Congress to get Eaton to send me these parts but I have them. They pulled them from a never run show unit that was used for display.....I will get the locker apart after thanksgiving. The casting looks like shit. I would have thought they were forged or something

 

[F***roads]

glad they eventually helped you out... hopefully the rebuild lasts!

 

[YotaAtieToo]

Seems like a good opportunity to sell a freshly rebuilt elocker to another sucker. (but also serious)

 

[TrailTamer]

Seems like a good opportunity to sell a freshly rebuilt elocker to another sucker. (but also serious)

The last one to be rebuilt with parts from manufacturer on earth, considering parts was pillaged from their display unit

They either ain’t proud of it & lose a complete unit for display or about to come out with a new generation?

 

[YotaAtieToo]

The last one to be rebuilt with parts from manufacturer on earth, considering parts was pillaged from their display unit

They either ain’t proud of it & lose a complete unit for display or about to come out with a new generation?

Their designs suck, so they keep coming out with "better" ones.

 

[SLOWPOKE693]

Their designs suck, so they keep coming out with "better" ones that still suck.

FIFY

 

[Gwagensteve]

So for the people who won't run an Air Locker because of the vulnerability of the air lines, how often do you tear up brake lines, and what terrain are you driving where there's heavy debris getting between your chassis and axles frequently enough that this is an issue? Is it cross country travel through scrub? floating logs in mud holes? I don't see any difference here between having a 12v wire to the axle or an air hose. Route it with care and it won't be a problem, however, I was surprised to see that the E locker just uses a rubber grommet through the housing with a flying lead. Surely there's a high likelihood that snagging the lead or hitting the housing with something could result in a wiring failure that required the third member to be removed/ or the cover pulled. That seems like a fail to me.

I've been using air lockers since the early 1990's. The original style of hose fitting at the axle was a nightmare and was vulnerable to damage, but the new style, especially if you use the supplied banjo bolt, is incredibly low profile and quick to work with.

 

[bdkw1]

The last one to be rebuilt with parts from manufacturer on earth, considering parts was pillaged from their display unit

They either ain’t proud of it & lose a complete unit for display or about to come out with a new generation?

Demo units are usually assembled with junk parts.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

So for the people who won't run an Air Locker because of the vulnerability of the air lines, how often do you tear up brake lines, and what terrain are you driving where there's heavy debris getting between your chassis and axles frequently enough that this is an issue? Is it cross country travel through scrub? floating logs in mud holes? I don't see any difference here between having a 12v wire to the axle or an air hose. Route it with care and it won't be a problem, however, I was surprised to see that the E locker just uses a rubber grommet through the housing with a flying lead. Surely there's a high likelihood that snagging the lead or hitting the housing with something could result in a wiring failure that required the third member to be removed/ or the cover pulled. That seems like a fail to me.

I've been using air lockers since the early 1990's. The original style of hose fitting at the axle was a nightmare and was vulnerable to damage, but the new style, especially if you use the supplied banjo bolt, is incredibly low profile and quick to work with.

It's all just bs from people who have never ran them.

Air lines aren't even hard to repair. The only argument they have is the internal seals can fail. No different than an elocker mechanism failing.

Most all arb failures or issues are 100% user error.

 

[rockyota83]

So for the people who won't run an Air Locker because of the vulnerability of the air lines, how often do you tear up brake lines, and what terrain are you driving where there's heavy debris getting between your chassis and axles frequently enough that this is an issue? Is it cross country travel through scrub? floating logs in mud holes? I don't see any difference here between having a 12v wire to the axle or an air hose. Route it with care and it won't be a problem, however, I was surprised to see that the E locker just uses a rubber grommet through the housing with a flying lead. Surely there's a high likelihood that snagging the lead or hitting the housing with something could result in a wiring failure that required the third member to be removed/ or the cover pulled. That seems like a fail to me.

I've been using air lockers since the early 1990's. The original style of hose fitting at the axle was a nightmare and was vulnerable to damage, but the new style, especially if you use the supplied banjo bolt, is incredibly low profile and quick to work with.

i ran ARB's front and rear on my last two rigs, i broke 3 times as many brake lines as i did air lines

ive had both logs and large rocks break brake lines, ive also had broken shocks allow lines to over stretch. limit straps fixes that but not the logs or rocks

air lines are no more likely to break than any other part of your rig, not running ARB's because youre worried about breaking an air line is like not running tires because youre worried you will pop a tire spare air line is easier to carry then a spare tire

 

[rockyota83]

It's all just bs from people who have never ran them.

Air lines aren't even hard to repair. The only argument they have is the internal seals can fail. No different than an elocker mechanism failing.

Most all arb failures or issues are 100% user error.

in all my years of running ARB's i only once broke a line and it was fixed with some spare line and fittings in less than 10 minutes

 

[rockyota83]

my buddies air compressor broke on the trail so he couldnt use his ARB's, i filled his tank with my air compressor giving him enough to leave his ARB's locked in for the rest of the day

 

[Gwagensteve]

It's all just bs from people who have never ran them.

Air lines aren't even hard to repair. The only argument they have is the internal seals can fail. No different than an elocker mechanism failing.

Most all arb failures or issues are 100% user error.

I had an RD88 (Samurai rear/tracker front) professionally installed many years ago and it leaked from the outset. I put up with it because it always locked and stayed locked, it just cycled the compressor more than it should. I recently replaced the RD88 with an RD204 myself (and just today I've fitted an RD209) and they have zero leaks. The new seal setup is really, really good. I broke an air line in the 90's with the old style blue line, and more recently ran the aeroquip HD line, but these aren't compatible with the new hose. The new hose/banjo setup is flawless. I only bring this up because some people, confusingly, are dead against an air hose going through a bulkhead fitting that takes minutes to repair but somehow fine with a rubber grommet and flying lead through the housing.

 

[Waterchicken]

Another down vote for the old style E locker. This is the first time it has failed me in 5 years. I also drive like an idiot. Go from forward to reverse under full power and pretty much just don't give a fuck. Had a pretty happy life with a 4.0 in my XJ but has soon as a LS went in it lasted 3 trips. Unfortunately it managed to wipe out a ring and pinion in the process. Should have a grizzly and a 10 inch 60 gear set sitting on my front porch tomorrow.

 

[F***roads]

Another down vote for the old style E locker. This is the first time it has failed me in 5 years. I also drive like an idiot. Go from forward to reverse under full power and pretty much just don't give a fuck. Had a pretty happy life with a 4.0 in my XJ but has soon as a LS went in it lasted 3 trips. Unfortunately it managed to wipe out a ring and pinion in the process. Should have a grizzly and a 10 inch 60 gear set sitting on my front porch tomorrow.

damn dude! thats an SD 60? impressive!

 

[Waterchicken]

damn dude! thats an SD 60? impressive!

Yep. 2004 Superduty. I like to show my ass on the trail.

 

[Hooligan]

Another down vote for the old style E locker. This is the first time it has failed me in 5 years. I also drive like an idiot. Go from forward to reverse under full power and pretty much just don't give a fuck. Had a pretty happy life with a 4.0 in my XJ but has soon as a LS went in it lasted 3 trips. Unfortunately it managed to wipe out a ring and pinion in the process. Should have a grizzly and a 10 inch 60 gear set sitting on my front porch tomorrow.

That looks broken.

 

[nukegoat]

It's all just bs from people who have never ran them.

Air lines aren't even hard to repair. The only argument they have is the internal seals can fail. No different than an elocker mechanism failing.

Most all arb failures or issues are 100% user error.

I went through the era of bonded seal issues that ARB tech (and any vendor of ARB I assume) acknowledged from 2017-2019ish. The worst.

That said, they've been reliable since, but it was super annoying and definitely not user error. Not fun on Dana axles to have to disassemble the carrier etc especially with the rotating seal being behind the carrier bearing.

I don't know of a better option though

 

[06h3]

I definitely do not think it’s close to 100% user error. Id say 70-80% is probably installed fine with a 20-30% user error.

ARB acknowledged they sold shitty seals for multiple years. Going down the rubicon you see a guy struggling, you mention your open diffing and I usually hear my ARB is leaking....

When recovering on backdoor we saw it too. These are pros, I imagine the install is correct. As they are winching up backdoor most “open diffing” cars have that little blue line come out of the diff.

With that said, I just wheeled with 2 guys for a week at the hammers who had ARBs front/rear. So a total of 6 axles, 4 ARBs, 1 Detroit and 1 E locker....which one was the ONLY one with issues? The e locker.

I have a friend with a new ARB and his has been flawless. Maybe I will give it a try. I am even less then impressed now that I got my hands on these replacement parts.

Look at how tiny the teeth are! My bigger concern isn’t the tooth size, it’s that fact that there’s slip between the teeth....so I am loading and unloading the axle shafts, as that happens the teeth just slap each other until they shock load enough they get worn....then fail. I feel like the solution is so simple....just make the locking teeth tight so when it locks it’s like 1 solid piece of steel. I’m not an engineer though.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

I definitely do not think it’s close to 100% user error. Id say 70-80% is probably installed fine with a 20-30% user error.

ARB acknowledged they sold shitty seals for multiple years. Going down the rubicon you see a guy struggling, you mention your open diffing and I usually hear my ARB is leaking....

When recovering on backdoor we saw it too. These are pros, I imagine the install is correct. As they are winching up backdoor most “open diffing” cars have that little blue line come out of the diff.

With that said, I just wheeled with 2 guys for a week at the hammers who had ARBs front/rear. So a total of 6 axles, 4 ARBs, 1 Detroit and 1 E locker....which one was the ONLY one with issues? The e locker.

I have a friend with a new ARB and his has been flawless. Maybe I will give it a try. I am even less then impressed now that I got my hands on these replacement parts.

Look at how tiny the teeth are! My bigger concern isn’t the tooth size, it’s that fact that there’s slip between the teeth....so I am loading and unloading the axle shafts, as that happens the teeth just slap each other until they shock load enough they get worn....then fail. I feel like the solution is so simple....just make the locking teeth tight so when it locks it’s like 1 solid piece of steel. I’m not an engineer though.

This is the other side of the coin. There are a lot of arbs out there probably more than any other locker besides maybe a Detroit. For every one with an issue, there are probably 10-20+ running down the trail with no issues.

Almost every time I've heard people bit h about arbs, they've never owned one.

 

[Sean778]

Never owned ARBs, any cold climate folks care to chime in on their winter wheeling functionality?

 

[YotaAtieToo]

Never owned ARBs, any cold climate folks care to chime in on their winter wheeling functionality?

Although I'm sure you see colder temps than the CA Sierras, I've never seen or had a issue that could be pinned on cold or snow.

Unless you count an idiot falling through a frozen pond and having ice chunks wipe out everything including brake lines and valve stems.

 

[06h3]

That is true but to say that those ARBs have been problem free is not true either. nukegoat was the guy with 2 ARBs and his brother in law had the other 2. I know he has had his apart multiple times fixing internal air leaks. He can chime in on his BIL’s ARB’s, while they were flawless this trip I know they haven’t been in the past.

I’m very tempted to run one. I’ll also be ticked if I have to touch that locker more then one time in 5 years. Maybe that’s unreasonable but my Detroit went in 2016, and hasn’t been touched since. I even broke 2 shafts and it didn’t wipe out the Detroit which is rare! On the other hand, I don’t like how the Detroit “pushes” your rig forward....guess you can’t have it all

This is the other side of the coin. There are a lot of arbs out there probably more than any other locker besides maybe a Detroit. For every one with an issue, there are probably 10-20+ running down the trail with no issues.

Almost every time I've heard people bit h about arbs, they've never owned one.

 

[YotaAtieToo]

That is true but to say that those ARBs have been problem free is not true either. nukegoat was the guy with 2 ARBs and his brother in law had the other 2. I know he has had his apart multiple times fixing internal air leaks. He can chime in on his BIL’s ARB’s, while they were flawless this trip I know they haven’t been in the past.

I’m very tempted to run one. I’ll also be ticked if I have to touch that locker more then one time in 5 years. Maybe that’s unreasonable but my Detroit went in 2016, and hasn’t been touched since. I even broke 2 shafts and it didn’t wipe out the Detroit which is rare! On the other hand, I don’t like how the Detroit “pushes” your rig forward....guess you can’t have it all

Luck of the draw maybe, or like you said, theirs are part of the generation with issues, I know a couple people who have ran arb's for ~20 years with almost no issues.

Instal is a big thing with them, make sure that you have someone do it who knows what they're doing.

Sounds like you might just want a grizzly or Detroit. Running 2 hi or even front wheel only when possible will help a lot with steering. An auto locker front should steer better than a locked selectable, but obviously not quite as good as an open.