4x4 And Posi-traction

Max Diyer · October 29, 2007

You guys with 4x4's, when your in 4WD and in a low traction situation like snow & ice, do you prefer an open-differential or a posi unit? I'd like to hear from guys with snow plows, also.

What do you all prefer and why?

Woodcutter · October 29, 2007

You guys with 4x4's, when your in 4WD and in a low traction situation like snow & ice, do you prefer an open-differential or a posi unit? I'd like to hear from guys with snow plows, also.

What do you all prefer and why?

I can't think of any instance in which a locking or limited-slip diff wouldn't be a better choice than an open diff for low-traction situation.

My new truck is the first one I've owned with a locking differential, so I'm curious as to how much better it will work in the snow, etc. Of course, it probably won't make too much difference with these stock "all-season" P.O.S. that come stock on new Silverados.

GatorFan · October 29, 2007

I love my locking diff in my truck. If it didn't have one, I probably would've already spent the $$ and bought one anyway. I have pulled boats up ramps with no issues and have seen those limited slip trucks spin one tire all the way up the ramp. Last year a limited slip Ford almost went the wrong way (right back in the water) when the boat he was pulling was almost too much for his little V-6 and one-wheel action!

Anyway, IMO, it is piece of mind. Not sure about the snow because where I live in Georgia, it doesn't snow much at all but does freeze. If you hit black ice at 70 MPH, I don't think it would help having the locking diff or not

Nytemare · October 29, 2007

Say what you want about the G80...It is a handy piece of kit...as long as you don't abuse it.

I love having a Locking diff...I play in the muck sometimes, and my 2wd goes just as good as the guys in their 4wd with open diffs.

I wont know about snow till maybe December, but as for muck and wet slippery roads it works great.

PLUS.....it looks sooooo much better spinning 2 wheels than just peglegging..

mattro · October 30, 2007

If you have the stock g80 don't floor it around turns it burns the cones out or something inside and locks the rear. I got my g80 3.73 rebuilt they said that's the number one cause of failure. I love it too.....I'm pretty sure mine failed because a quick lube shop put the wrong gear oil seeing how you have to have synthetic I think for the g80. But its fun whipping it. I know my silverado in 2wd mode handles the loose gravel better than my lil s-10 one will wonder ever did because I couldn't get that thing over like 5mph without loosing the rear. The s-10 had 3.73 and the fatty street tires maybe one cause. Looks good leaving Two strips of rubber too ha ha =

Rookie · October 31, 2007

A G80 factory unit will work great in snow , mud ..... An aftermarket unit like a power tracks unit will spin you around quicker than @*&%. you need to pat attention when driving with one. After i put mine in i was on loose gravel and it pushed the rear around and the next thing i knew i was facing the other direction. just my.02

Nytemare · October 31, 2007

If you have the stock g80 don't floor it around turns it burns the cones out or something inside and locks the rear. I got my g80 3.73 rebuilt they said that's the number one cause of failure. I love it too.....I'm pretty sure mine failed because a quick lube shop put the wrong gear oil seeing how you have to have synthetic I think for the g80. But its fun whipping it. I know my silverado in 2wd mode handles the loose gravel better than my lil s-10 one will wonder ever did because I couldn't get that thing over like 5mph without loosing the rear. The s-10 had 3.73 and the fatty street tires maybe one cause. Looks good leaving Two strips of rubber too ha ha =

Do you mean it keeps it locked together like a welded diff...or just wont rotate at all???

Because if its the first one...I cant see anything wrong with that...LOL

Max Diyer · November 1, 2007

The reason I want to know about posi's in 4x4's is that I am planning on ordering a new 4x4 Sierra 3500 HD in the late winter. Some guys I talk to say I'm better off not getting the locking diff and other's say to definately get it. Personally I've had 3 - 4x4's without locking diffs. I'm just trying to figure out what to order. I appreciate your opinions.

Nytemare · November 1, 2007

Let me put it to you this way....

Would you rather have 2 wheels spinning in 4x4 or 3???

If you have an open diff...the wheel with the least traction spins. If you have a locker both wheels spin regardless of which one has traction.

If you could get it a front locker is even better, If you rock crawl and your front wheel gets against a loose rock, with out a locking front diff the wheel will just push the rock along the ground, with a locker it will crawl up and over the rock.

The only reason I could see someone telling you not to get a locker is if you have never driven a RWD vehicle before. The locker tends to make you fish tale a little more than an open diff, this can make cornering in the rain and snow a little squirrelly.

But even than, with all the TM and traction control, auto transfer cases and other BS trucks have on them now, a kid that just got their DL can jump aboard and drive it.

You get a locker, you will go further in 2wd than any of your buddys with open diffs in 4wd. Than when your buddys get stuck, you can toss it in 4x4 and pull them out.

Max Diyer · November 1, 2007

The 2 guys that told me not to get the posi have snow plows. I might want to put a plow on the 3500 sometime in the future. Both their reasons were the rear of the truck sliding sideways, but they might have lockers.

I do know that lockers go sideways easier than limited-slips. The 3500HD is a limited-slip. I'm leaning toward getting the G80.

Any opinions are welcome. Any plow guys out there?

Nytemare · November 1, 2007

In snow, a LSD will work pretty much the same as a locker. There is limited traction on both wheels anyway.

An LSD is posi-traction, most of the time where a locker is posi...all the time.

Remember that the G80 is a locking diff...not a locker. So it will act somewhat like an LSD.

the difference being, a locking rear end locks under an action, the G80 for example needs one axel to spinn at a 100rpm difference from the other, an ARB air locker uses air, and an eaton E-locker uses electricity.

A locker is locked all the time and only comes unlocked (tries anyway) when going around turns. You can hear a Detroit a mile away clicking and clunking as it tries to separate. And it makes you squeal at any speed as you corner.

Woodcutter · November 2, 2007

You get a locker, you will go further in 2wd than any of your buddys with open diffs in 4wd.

I'm not one for attacking personal opinions here, but come on! Yes, there are certain situations where 2wds with a locker will probably keep up. But as a generalization, an open-diff 4x4 where the front axle is pulling and the rear is pushing will win more times than not! Especially if vehicle momentum is taken out of the equation.

Anyway, just throwing in my own opinion.

Max Diyer · November 2, 2007

I remember my first experience with a Detroit Locker. I was riding in a friend's truck, heard the noise, stuck my head out the window and told him that a u-joint or the rear-end was going. He looked at me and started laughing, then told me about the Locker.

Woodcutter · November 2, 2007

Can someone verify this -- the difference between a locking diff (G80) and a Detroit Locker? Does the G80 stay "open" until slippage occurs? How about the Detroit Locker -- does it stay locked until going around corners when it must disengage?

Nytemare · November 2, 2007

Can someone verify this -- the difference between a locking diff (G80) and a Detroit Locker? Does the G80 stay "open" until slippage occurs? How about the Detroit Locker -- does it stay locked until going around corners when it must disengage?

You've never been in a car with a locker have you?

http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jk/070912.htm

With the locking axle, the vehicle was driven slowly on the roller and the wheel spun freely. By accelerating slightly so the spinning wheel is turning about 100 rpm or about 13 km/h, centrifugal weights in the differential latch to a locking mechanism that forces the differential gears to spread apart and engage clutches in the sides of the differential. Within one turn of the wheel, the clutches lock both sides together and the truck drives over the obstacle with ease. I have pulled out of icy parking spots with a GM vehicle equipped with an Eaton locking axle many times when I would have been stuck without one.

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locking_differential

Automatic lockers lock and unlock automatically with no direct input from the driver. Some automatic locking differential designs ensure that engine power is always transmitted to both wheels, regardless of traction conditions, and will "unlock" only when one wheel is required to spin faster than the other during cornering. They will never allow either wheel to spin slower than the differential carrier or axle as a whole. The most common example of this type would be the famous "Detroit Locker," also known as the "Detroit No-Spin," although there are many others.
Other automatic lockers operate as an "open," or unlocked differential until wheel spin is encountered and then they lockup. This style generally uses some type of internal governor to sense a difference in wheel speeds, or they react to torque input from the driveshaft. An example of this would be GM's "Gov-Lok." This is the type most often found on vehicles factory equipped with a locking differential.