G80 Question

jjohns · November 12, 2009

I had some wheel spin because of the rain soaked roads today. I was making a right turn from a stop. Normal stuff for a truck, but this time I heard and felt four pops from the rear end. I assume this was from the Eaton locking differential but I am not sure. I believe I was getting it to engage and disengage because I was feathering the gas trying to get the wheel spin to stop. From what I have read in other posts the Eaton locks when about 100 rpm difference between wheels is achieved. It did not seem to help traction at all. Is this the normal operation of the locker, or is it an indication of a problem? After the wheel spin stopped, I had no problems with the rear end.

Fogot to add that this is a 04 z71 with just over 44,000 miles.

dlstewart01 · November 12, 2009

I had some wheel spin because of the rain soaked roads today. I was making a right turn from a stop. Normal stuff for a truck, but this time I heard and felt four pops from the rear end. I assume this was from the Eaton locking differential but I am not sure. I believe I was getting it to engage and disengage because I was feathering the gas trying to get the wheel spin to stop. From what I have read in other posts the Eaton locks when about 100 rpm difference between wheels is achieved. It did not seem to help traction at all. Is this the normal operation of the locker, or is it an indication of a problem? After the wheel spin stopped, I had no problems with the rear end.

Fogot to add that this is a 04 z71 with just over 44,000 miles.

Lockers do not like turns while locked. They will make noise.

bluesrefugee · November 12, 2009

Yeah, watch out with heavy throttle when turning or your Eaton "gov-lock" will become the Eaton "grenade-lock". You'll be picking up pieces of it off of the road . Also, if the diff locks up when you are turning and you are giving the truck enough throttle, the rear end can swing out and get scary in a hurry. I like my Gov-Lock, though. It just takes a little getting used to.

csheatz · November 12, 2009

Yeah, watch out with heavy throttle when turning or your Eaton "gov-lock" will become the Eaton "grenade-lock". You'll be picking up pieces of it off of the road . Also, if the diff locks up when you are turning and you are giving the truck enough throttle, the rear end can swing out and get scary in a hurry. I like my Gov-Lock, though. It just takes a little getting used to.

Some people might find that fun not scary

bluesrefugee · November 12, 2009

Some people might find that fun not scary

Yeah, I could see that. Just not if you're pulling out into traffic.

C. Charles Hahn · November 12, 2009

Yeah, watch out with heavy throttle when turning or your Eaton "gov-lock" will become the Eaton "grenade-lock". You'll be picking up pieces of it off of the road . Also, if the diff locks up when you are turning and you are giving the truck enough throttle, the rear end can swing out and get scary in a hurry. I like my Gov-Lock, though. It just takes a little getting used to.

Some people might find that fun not scary

Far more fun with a limited slip than with a locker, but yeah it can be

csheatz · November 12, 2009

Far more fun with a limited slip than with a locker, but yeah it can be

Must be a Michigan thing!

jjohns · November 13, 2009

It probably would have been fun if I had meant for it to happen, but I was pulling into traffic. Luckily it did not snap around. I was just worried that I had grenaded my locker. It is good to know that this is normal operation of these lockers.

hockeypro1411 · November 13, 2009

Trust me, you'll know what it grenades. You'll hit the gas and watch the engine rev up and the truck not move. You'll then have to to collect the pieces off the roadway.

ColoradoSkiCountry · November 13, 2009

Or when you turn (not breaking traction) it starts to make all kinds of horrible noises.

hockeypro1411 · November 17, 2009

When these things are totally cashed, will it always just leave you stranded, or will it just make popping noises when you turn and essentially be an open differential? I was doing some doughnuts in the rain today (hey, what are warranties for?) and when I finished, I drove away just like usual. I went to make a turn and sweet Jesus there was 4 or 5 loud ass pops and you could hear the tire skipping across the ground. I figured I'd limp it home from there. It did that for 3 more turns, and after that I drove straight for about 4 miles. After the 4 miles, I made a turn and it made absolutely no noise. Took the next turn a little sharper and with some more speed and still nothing. I drive for about a half hour and haven't heard another noise. Did this thing grenade, or just get stuck locked for a while? What the hell.

dlstewart01 · November 18, 2009

It depends what breaks. Sometimes the locking mechanism just brakes and the diff works as an open diff. THEN sometimes the spider grears explode and thats it.

You know the G80 does not like donuts.....

hockeypro1411 · November 18, 2009

It depends what breaks. Sometimes the locking mechanism just brakes and the diff works as an open diff. THEN sometimes the spider grears explode and thats it.

You know the G80 does not like donuts.....

Yea I'm pretty sure the locking mechanism just broke. Because now it drives perfectly fine. It made a loud pop a few times, so I guess that was when it broke. Is there now something in there being tossed around? Or am I good to drive it for a week until I can get it to the dealer for some warranty work?

dlstewart01 · November 18, 2009

It depends what breaks. Sometimes the locking mechanism just brakes and the diff works as an open diff. THEN sometimes the spider grears explode and thats it.

You know the G80 does not like donuts.....

Yea I'm pretty sure the locking mechanism just broke. Because now it drives perfectly fine. It made a loud pop a few times, so I guess that was when it broke. Is there now something in there being tossed around? Or am I good to drive it for a week until I can get it to the dealer for some warranty work?

It still may not be broken. They will pop pretty loud and not brake. But if it is the small parts will be at the bottom of the diff and probably won't cause a problem for a week or so.

Now these are failures

hockeypro1411 · November 18, 2009

Well, looks like the cover's coming off tomorrow. I called today for some prices on a new drain and fill plug. The parts guy at the dealership told me that the drain plug was ~$9 and the fill plug was $1.85....But they came in a bag of 10. I asked the guy what the hell GM expected me to do with 9 fill plugs. He said that was a common reaction. Well, no shit. Why the hell would anyone want a bag of 10?