Center dif lock

[codyaustin5]

I laymen terms can someone explain how the center dif works and when to use it? I have never used it and don't think the manual does a good job. Is it only used similar to a rear dif lock? Speed constraints? Just use to get unstuck? Drive straight only? 4L only? Drive normally when engaged on snowy/slippery roads? Thanks for your input!

 

[T4Runner]

My understanding is that when locked the front and rears get 50/50 torque distribution, whereas it's otherwise rear biased. My understanding is (and practice has been) that it only be used off pavement. I don't believe it matters whether 4H or 4L and you need not drive in a straight line. On my 4Runner it deactivates VSC as I presume it does in the LC as well but I haven't had it offroad in the three weeks I've had it...

 

[OrangeTJ]

Seems to me that locking that center diff would be be much the same as the behavior you get from a part time 4 wheel drive system when engaging 4wd. In other words, not for use where lots of traction is available and turns will be happening. Otherwise, you'll be binding up the system. In dirt/mud/loose rocks/snow/etc., non issue. On something like a granite slab, probably not the best plan.

 

[T4Runner]

I suppose if purely a granite slab, although when I did a weekend class in Maine with Bill Burke several years ago that included some rather large rock sections he encouraged it's use when I asked him and there was a noticeable difference between locked and unlocked. So I wouldn't be afraid to use it off road. I just avoid it on road unless it's like a foot deep snow and unplowed...

 

[codyaustin5]

Thanks all. Any other feedback? Doesn't seem there is a real consensus on when and how.....

 

[kreiten]

my experience has been if you are offroad but don't need it, leave it off, the truck will turn better etc. If your in 4low and going through heavy terrain(i.e. mud etc) I would lock it just to avoid getting stuck. basically it turns the truck from AWD to 4wheel drive.... just my 2 cents, I use it offroad all the time, not always needed but I like the way the truck reacts with it on!

 

[kreiten]

if memory serves me my other LC's would automatically lock the center diff when put in 4lo, this rig just gives you the option... 9 times out of 10 if I'm in 4lo I lock it up!

 

[gaijin]

I'm simple:

4 High AWD until I can't go forward any more, then ...

4 Low until I can't go forward any more, then ...

Center Diff Lock On so I can back out of wherever I just got stuck in 4 Low

I think of the Diff Lock as a kind of "Get Out of Jail Free" card - use it when all else fails.

HTH

 

[ggmanning]

I asked this last year when we got our 200 because I had 0 experience with AWD. I got no response at all but being the muddin' redneck that uses my stuff I just figured it out on my own.
Center diff lock any time I need more traction than AWD provides. Off road or slippery surfaces only. This would be 4lo or 4hi depending on speed needed. Unlock when not needed to make turning easier.
4lo just like any 4wd system provides no extra traction...just slower pace by gearing. It gives no extra traction over 4hi.
Crawl control for situations that require 4lo and center lock and I want to let the vehicle have more control like steep rocks, descents, ascents and traversing ditches, etc.

 

[maujkar]

Majority of our Middle-Eastern spec cruisers comes with 2 diff locks, center and rear. I always use center-diff when offroading (mostly sand, gravel roads) to have more traction and avoiding any of my wheels spinning freely and hence having myself dug-in deeper etx. It doesn't require 4LO, but I think when you engage 4LO, center diff is activated automatically (need to double check it..). As T4runner mentioned, its more of a 50/50 torque split and you feel it especially on sand. For serious bogged down scenario - I go ahead and engage my rear diff and this is like scooping yourself out of a hole ! amazing ... but.... most of the times the lads are kind to snatch me out... they are always out to snap a picture of a stuck LC200

 

[kreiten]

Majority of our Middle-Eastern spec cruisers comes with 2 diff locks, center and rear. I always use center-diff when offroading (mostly sand, gravel roads) to have more traction and avoiding any of my wheels spinning freely and hence having myself dug-in deeper etx. It doesn't require 4LO, but I think when you engage 4LO, center diff is activated automatically (need to double check it..). As T4runner mentioned, its more of a 50/50 torque split and you feel it especially on sand. For serious bogged down scenario - I go ahead and engage my rear diff and this is like scooping yourself out of a hole ! amazing ... but.... most of the times the lads are kind to snatch me out... they are always out to snap a picture of a stuck LC200

The US rigs don't lock in 4lo automatically which kind of shocked me but is also cool, gives you the option if you want to or not... I did yesterday because I spent a lot of time in 3 wheel motion

 

[Desert Nomad]

The US rigs don't lock in 4lo automatically which kind of shocked me but is also cool, gives you the option if you want to or not... I did yesterday because I spent a lot of time in 3 wheel motionView attachment 1039000

I think the ones equipped with crawl give you the option and the rest lock up in low.

With my center diff locked in high my aussie auto lokka in the rear stays locked in the sand even while performing a u-turn from standstill, also in very soft sand the 50-50 power distribution is awesome. Gives you tons of grip

 

[MScruiser]

View attachment 1039000

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

 

[Rando Kuruza]

In the Fj Cruisers and 4 Runners (sr5 and trail editions) When you shift it into 4wd the center diff is locked and will give you 50/50 power front/rear. The reason why you can't use this on dry surfaces is because the front and back spin 50/50 if you turn and there is a different speed from the front to the back it will bind the gears. If you have rear lockers and lock it you essentially have 50% power in the front 50% to the back with 25% to the rear right and 25% to the rear left... with open differentials the power goes to the wheel with the least resistance... In other words the power goes to the wheel that is slipping... Retarded yes... why do they do this?? it's cheaper and they don't want stuff breaking!

The 200 has a torsen limited slip differential in the center. So it automatically transfers power to the front and back for you... When you lock it's 50/50 front back, in essence regardless if the wheel is slipping or not it will just keep spinning to help you get out of what you need to get out of... If you have lockers front/center/rear basically you get 25% power each wheel spinning equally all the time... it doesn't care what is happening it will just keep spinning... that is why you need to be on a surface that the wheels can slip... If you locked your fronts/center/rear and turned in a parking lot all the gear would just bind up possibly break. This is why you don't really need to lock unless you are stuck... Or unless you are worried about getting stuck and you know the wheels will need traction, then lock. The 200's have atrac that automatically kick in when you need it as well.

So in conclusion for me. I only lock if I need it, or I think I am going to go over something really knarly and slippery and don't want to get stuck.

That is my 2cents

This is a cool video about how differentials work check it out...

 

[codyaustin5]

Thanks all makes much more sense. So basically treat as we would with a rear dif. So those of you who have stock center and rear are yours awd as well? I wonder why US didn't get the rear option?

 

[maujkar]

Thanks all makes much more sense. So basically treat as we would with a rear dif. So those of you who have stock center and rear are yours awd as well? I wonder why US didn't get the rear option?

Yes all time 4WD. The centre is must and common across all LC200s here , however rear diff option has varied across previous years and on certain model grades. 2014 onwards, I see it more common though.

 

[Rando Kuruza]

My 1998 100 series had rear lockers, after 2000 they got rid of it in favor of atrac in the USA anyway... Atrac kind of acts as a rear locker, it kicks it automatically... For traction I still think lockers are better... For the off road I do I have never needed lockers in the 200... Oddly enough I have used my rear lockers more than a half dozen times to get out of a bind in my 13 fj cruiser

Whatever they do in the land cruiser they seem to have great traction IMO