Item: Power Trax - LockRight
Locker
Cost: About $250 Pros: Very good
performance off-road, small but strong, cheap, no-brainer installation. Cons: A bit noisy
in town, amplifies bad spring bushing, either it clicks
or you give it gas and it squeals
the tires (not bad but can eat up tires). Experience: I have
LockRight lockers front and rear in my '81 FJ40. I first put the front in,
which was an amazing improvement off-road. Right before I hit Independence
Trail (CO), I put the rear locker in. The rear install is very easy, one
tough part of getting a C-clip in between the locker pieces, but nothing all
that hard. With the rear locker and worn out rubber spring bushings, and
no shocks currently on the rear, the rearend does kick some. Not too bad
(doesn't really turn the vehicle), but you can feel the rearend all over the
place. With the front hubs locked in,
the steering is tough. I have factory power steering which helps, but they
still don't like to turn. I've noticed the rear locker making a very loud
bang every so often, I think I figured out last night what it is. When you
are turning on pavement, the tires don't really want to drag or slide, so it
makes the locker do it's clicking thing. However, if you are on loose
ground, like hard gravel or such, the tires can move a little, but not always
enough to make up for the difference in speed in between the two tires, so it
gets stressed to the point where it finally pops really loud. That is the
only explanation I can think of, since on pavement its manors are jumpy, but not
a loud banging. The LockRight?s pavement
manors aren't always bad. It can be tough to turn when going slow in a
parking lot especially if your engine is somewhat jumpy. For example, if
any power gets transmitted from the engine, the locker locks up, but the split
second you let off the gas, the axle wants to kick the other way. It can
really throw you around and is not something for a novice driver who doesn't
know the vehicle. The best method I have found to avoid this is to use
enough momentum to coast around tight corners, then it only clicks. Keep
the clutch in as much as possible in tight stuff and it's hardly noticeable.
But turn and give it some gas and you better be quick on the steering wheel,
which is tough if you have the old manual steering box, been there, done that... Any questions, or can't find a
LockRight for $242 + tax, e-mail me:
mabrodis@scream.com Written 10/1999 BACK
to the main Product Reviews Page |
