I thought I'd post up some pics of my elocker install - I know there are a lot of writeups out there however I found that many contain a slight amount of bad info or at least info that doesn't apply to the landcruiser flavor of elocker. So here we go, enjoy the pics!
FJ80 Elocker Installtion In a Late Model FJ40 FF Rear Axle
There is a lot of conflicting info about the parts you need for this job, but I'm pretty sure I've sorted out what it takes. I don't know if there are differences between the late model full floaters and earlier ones, but this is what I needed:
FJ80 rear elocker third
*F/BJ70 long sline axle shaft (short side) (42311-60081)
2x long (50mm) F/BJ40 studs (90116-10075)
2x LONG (91mm) FJ80 studs (90116-10124)
Homebrew controller
Thats it. Some writeups suggest you need more new studs, others say you have to drill and tap the housing - Not so, and I've got the pics to prove it.
Step 1 - Get an elocker! There are a lot of "elockers" out there, but the one you want is from the rear axle of an FJ80. You cannot use the front diff from an FJ80, or the elockers from the smaller toyotas. Also, elocker thirds are now discontinued from Toyota so you HAVE to go used. Once upon a time you could get a locking third new for under a grand - no more.
Step 2 -You'll need to drill the flange for your driveshafts The FJ80 bolt pattern is just sliiightly differentbang. I took off the short half of one of my driveshafts clamped it to the elocker while its sitting on the bench, and used the holes in my flange to guide the drill. Worked perfectly - the race in the center of the DS flange will mate with the third flange and keep everything perfectly centered.
I forgot to take a pic, but here is the end result:
Step 3 - Build the controller/harness. I think its best to do this now, so you can test the actuator, which are expensive and also known to occasionally get stuck. There are schematics all over the web, but I modified them a little bit:
Note that the DPDT relays are intended to have the normal open contacts used and the normally closed contacts ignored.
The difference in this schematic is that most of the ones I saw on the web use a momentary switch, but I didn't want to have to hold the switch down while locking - I just wanted a Locked position and an Unlocked position. One of the other writeups out there is concerned that if the motor seizes up, a push-on/push-off switch could leave power on and burn up your wiring. My solution is to add a motor light, which illuminates whenever the motor is energized, as well as a lock light which lights when the locker physically locks. If the motor light ever gets stuck on, I'll just pull a fuse.
The finished controller:
I took these before I added the lights.
I was surprised how long the harness needed to be, so measure carefully. I routed my harness along the parking brake cable, to the frame crossmember, and then inside the frame to the cowl and into the throttle cable grommet. Split loom tubing makes everything look nice.
Notice that I used a standard 6-position molex connector from radioshack on the locker end of the harness - the Toyota connectors are unique and I didn't feel like sourcing them. An alternative is a nice 7-position waterproof trailer connector, but in the end I decided it probably won't really matter. Time will tell if I'm right...
Anyway, whatever connector you use, you've gotta change the motor and lock switch connections. The motor is easy:
The lock switch is tougher as there are no leads - I just reached my soldering iron down into it and soldered my wires right to the connector pins.
At this point you should test out your actuator. Its boring, but if you care to see, here is a youtube video of mine:
YouTube - Toyota elocker actuator
You can see at the end of my video the actuator gets stuck - this was what happens when you have a low voltage battery and a sticky actuator. I ended up taking my actuator all apart to grease things, but think carefully about doing so - the whole thing is spring loaded and its gonna look like a bomb went off in a clock factory. I won't go into it, but if you do disassemble your actuator and lose the relative positions of the cogs, you'll need to know the the "unlocked" position is ~2 1/8 to 2 3/16" extension and the locked position should be about 2 7/8 to 3 1/8" extension.
This is what's in there, so you don't have to go looking:
Now for the fun parts!
Step 4 - Remove the old third! Everyone probably knows by now this only works for FF rear axles, so I was able to do all of this with the truck on its own tires. Start by draining the diff and pulling the shafts. You can see the comparison between the regular axle shaft on the top, and the long-splined axle shaft from a BJ70. The axle shaft you need is Toyota p/n
Then use a jack to break the third loose from its cement-like gasket. I left the nuts on the ends of the studs so the the third couldn't fall off.
FJ80 Elocker Installtion In a Late Model FJ40 FF Rear Axle
There is a lot of conflicting info about the parts you need for this job, but I'm pretty sure I've sorted out what it takes. I don't know if there are differences between the late model full floaters and earlier ones, but this is what I needed:
FJ80 rear elocker third
*F/BJ70 long sline axle shaft (short side) (42311-60081)
2x long (50mm) F/BJ40 studs (90116-10075)
2x LONG (91mm) FJ80 studs (90116-10124)
Homebrew controller
Thats it. Some writeups suggest you need more new studs, others say you have to drill and tap the housing - Not so, and I've got the pics to prove it.
Step 1 - Get an elocker! There are a lot of "elockers" out there, but the one you want is from the rear axle of an FJ80. You cannot use the front diff from an FJ80, or the elockers from the smaller toyotas. Also, elocker thirds are now discontinued from Toyota so you HAVE to go used. Once upon a time you could get a locking third new for under a grand - no more.
Step 2 -You'll need to drill the flange for your driveshafts The FJ80 bolt pattern is just sliiightly different
bang. I took off the short half of one of my driveshafts clamped it to the elocker while its sitting on the bench, and used the holes in my flange to guide the drill. Worked perfectly - the race in the center of the DS flange will mate with the third flange and keep everything perfectly centered.I forgot to take a pic, but here is the end result:
Step 3 - Build the controller/harness. I think its best to do this now, so you can test the actuator, which are expensive and also known to occasionally get stuck. There are schematics all over the web, but I modified them a little bit:
Note that the DPDT relays are intended to have the normal open contacts used and the normally closed contacts ignored.
The difference in this schematic is that most of the ones I saw on the web use a momentary switch, but I didn't want to have to hold the switch down while locking - I just wanted a Locked position and an Unlocked position. One of the other writeups out there is concerned that if the motor seizes up, a push-on/push-off switch could leave power on and burn up your wiring. My solution is to add a motor light, which illuminates whenever the motor is energized, as well as a lock light which lights when the locker physically locks. If the motor light ever gets stuck on, I'll just pull a fuse.
The finished controller:
I took these before I added the lights.
I was surprised how long the harness needed to be, so measure carefully. I routed my harness along the parking brake cable, to the frame crossmember, and then inside the frame to the cowl and into the throttle cable grommet. Split loom tubing makes everything look nice.
Notice that I used a standard 6-position molex connector from radioshack on the locker end of the harness - the Toyota connectors are unique and I didn't feel like sourcing them. An alternative is a nice 7-position waterproof trailer connector, but in the end I decided it probably won't really matter. Time will tell if I'm right...
Anyway, whatever connector you use, you've gotta change the motor and lock switch connections. The motor is easy:
The lock switch is tougher as there are no leads - I just reached my soldering iron down into it and soldered my wires right to the connector pins.
At this point you should test out your actuator. Its boring, but if you care to see, here is a youtube video of mine:
YouTube - Toyota elocker actuator
You can see at the end of my video the actuator gets stuck - this was what happens when you have a low voltage battery and a sticky actuator. I ended up taking my actuator all apart to grease things, but think carefully about doing so - the whole thing is spring loaded and its gonna look like a bomb went off in a clock factory. I won't go into it, but if you do disassemble your actuator and lose the relative positions of the cogs, you'll need to know the the "unlocked" position is ~2 1/8 to 2 3/16" extension and the locked position should be about 2 7/8 to 3 1/8" extension.
This is what's in there, so you don't have to go looking:
Now for the fun parts!
Step 4 - Remove the old third! Everyone probably knows by now this only works for FF rear axles, so I was able to do all of this with the truck on its own tires. Start by draining the diff and pulling the shafts. You can see the comparison between the regular axle shaft on the top, and the long-splined axle shaft from a BJ70. The axle shaft you need is Toyota p/n
Then use a jack to break the third loose from its cement-like gasket. I left the nuts on the ends of the studs so the the third couldn't fall off.
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