I think that was what dad got on his, they broke quickly and the dealer installed Warn units under warranty.
Did 55’s ever come with front axles that didn’t have locking hubs? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Blastservices
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These are the warn hubs everyone is referring to.
Those look more like full time locked hubs, as found in SOR's catalog. I discovered those today while doing research for my Pig.
080-06B-KIT
080-06B-KIT
Blastservices
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- #24
That is exactly what they were.
WarDamnEagle
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I think they are called drive flanges and I think that is/was the standard configuration from the factory. I personally would never bother to change them to locking hubs but now I'm just repeating myself.
I think they are called drive flanges and I think that is/was the standard configuration from the factory. I personally would never bother to change them to locking hubs but now I'm just repeating myself.
The difference between drive flanges and locking hubs is that drive flanges cause the birfields and front diff to turn whether the transaxle is engaged or not? And locking hubs allow the wheels to turn without driving the birfields and the front diff?
Just trying to wrap my head around how 4wd works on these rigs. I've honestly never dinked with it before.
I've seen 40s without manually locking hubs....so not odd that some 55s wouldn't have them either.
WarDamnEagle
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No 4Xs, 55s, 6xs, or 7Xs in the middle east came with free wheeling (locking) hubs to my knowledge. I have seen at least one 60 with locking hubs but the owner said they were added (in the advertisement). I'm guessing South America would be very similar.
WarDamnEagle
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That sounds about right. It doesn't appear to affect drivability whatsoever based on my experience with my Troopy and my FZJ75 pickup. I must say however I don't know exactly what goes on in the differential. I'll have to experiment and see if my front driveshaft turns when I'm driving in 2H.
You are correct. Drive flanges force the birfs, diff and front driveshaft to turn all the time, even if the transfer case is not transferring engine power to them. The upside to locking hubs (free-wheel) is that they save a lot of unnecessary wear and tear on front axle parts and save a little on gas too. The downside of locking hubs is that you have to get out of the truck and lock them to engage the front.
Theoretically, at least, a drive flange should be more durable than a locking hub, so that might be considered a positive.
Though balanced against the increased wear and fuel consumption....
WarDamnEagle
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I hear these arguments but certainly the wear and tear argument doesn’t seem to be an issue in actual practice. And if you think about it, it’s not like your rear axles or diffs wear out if you take care of them. I’ve never seen any data to back the gas mileage argument but I’m sure there’s some impact, even if it’s very minimal.
I’m pretty sure I would be making the opposite arguments had I never spent any time in the Middle East. You just never see a locking hub over here.
Edit: Nothing wrong with locking hubs and I won’t be changing the ones on my 55 for drive flanges. My comment is simply that I don’t think it’s worth installing them if you don’t already have them.
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Drive flanges are definitely more durable, If you have them then everything in the front end is turning, axles, brifs, diff, and drive shaft.
In the 80 world people that convert to part time with locking hubs report no gain in gas mileage.
In the 80 world people that convert to part time with locking hubs report no gain in gas mileage.
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I hear you. The front driveline components are meant to be used as such, and not necessarily as a second string player only to come off the bench in a time of need. However, metal on metal does equal wear. Metal on rubber equals wear. If you can eliminate wear and possibly save .001 percent on gas at the same time, over a period of years, I think it is worth it. I can tell you this...I have swapped out several rear diffs with worn pinion bearings and chewed up gears, but I have never had a front diff wear problem with a truck with locking hubs. In fact, any time I have to replace a rear diff, I always try to replace it with a spare that was in the front position, because the front ones are all practically brand new...at least the ones with locking hubs on the axles.
Drive flanges on the 80 and 100 series is not a fair comparison because these trucks are full-time 4wd. Going part time with lock-out hubs on these trucks does, without a doubt, save gas. The savings will be much less on a truck with a part time case like a 40, 55, 60 or 70 series.
The savings well not be enough to pay for a part time conversion with locking hubs. It's less then a mile a gallon even on these trucks
I observed a solid 1mpg gain on my 80 for a couple of months with only the front DS being removed (I was waiting on a DC shaft to be built for me). I would not do a part time conversion on an 80 series for gas mileage gains alone. There are several other (and better) reasons to do it. Better mileage is more of a side benefit. That being said, I did not part time my 80. I just installed a DC shaft and kept it full time. I sure did enjoy driving it part time though. Steering / handling was more nimble and acceleration was a bit snappier as well.The savings well not be enough to pay for a part time conversion with locking hubs. It's less then a mile a gallon even on these trucks
Less than a mile a solid mile semantics
Sweet pics of your 55 in Toyota Trails... Nice!!
Blastservices
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Ha! All of this is a valid argument both ways…but non of which was my original thinking to swap for. My reason was simple. The truck had hubs caps that were new with holes for locking hubs. I could have either bought new caps and keep the the stock full time action or find a set of used lockers and keep the caps. My 40 in college had locking hubs and I didn’t mind getting out when I needed to use 4WD.
