Driving with hubs locked??? (1 Viewer)

[Roberto]

Is it O.K to drive on highway with hubs in locked posistion in 2WD? Therefore if you had to you could just switch to 4WD? Does the driveshaft turn if in locked posistion or only when transfer engaged?

Roberto

 

[nov74fj40]

I believe your front drive shaft will turn with the hubs locked, it just won't be engaged with the trans case. I remember seeing something on this topic from a previous post many moons ago, and if memory serves me correctly the posting person was not in favor of engaging the hubs and driving around in 2wd.

 

[Mr. Notorious]

You can if you want, this is how all the newer Jeeps are setup. Your driveshaft should spin. But there will be extra wear on all the items now moving in your front end and you may need to have your front driveshaft balanced since it will now be spinning.

 

[offrd63]

You will add some wear to the front diff, but you will see the difference at the gas pump. Lower mpg is reason enough to get out and lock the hubs when you need them.

aw

 

[billmc]

Whoever that poster was, they're totally wrong. Most FJ40s came with the front hubs locked by drive plates from the factory. Nothing will suffer except your mileage a little, and if you were worried about that you'd be driving something else, right?

Bill

 

[Jerry D.]

My ’68 FJ40 had factory installed caps on the wheel hubs that always kept the front axle/driveshaft engaged. Drove that way for about two years until I could afford manual lockout hubs for the front. Did not have any problems with the front driveline. But as mentioned above, the fuel mileage improved a bit with the lockout hubs.

It would just depend on your driving needs as to having the front hubs locked or un-locked.

Jerry D.

 

[nodaksn3]

No harm. That's the way all 4-wheel drive vehicles used to run before Warn hubs were invented. All of the 4-wd vehicles in WW2 ran that way, and we won anyway, so what the heck?

 

[desertpat]

Lock n Lube

My FJ40 manual says to normally run in unlocked, but lock the hubs at least once a month for a few kilometers to swish oil around and lube.

 

[workingdog]

Doesn't locked hubs make tight turns very difficult?

Peter

 

[brian]

Doesn't locked hubs make tight turns very difficult?

Peter

nope.

i was driving around for a few weeeks with the hubs locked, forgot i locked them.
only figured it out after i noticed it seemed to be wandering alittle bit, and the front they'res a locker in there.

 

[fishlessman]

i used to keep them locked in the winter in a bronco, with all the snow and slush they would freeze up and be difficult to lock when needed, so i just left them locked during the winter. dont see any reason to keep them locked in a warm climate if they arent needed or spring summer and fall for road use up north

 

[Mark W]

Locked hubs have no detrimental effect other than sliughtlu decreased fuel economy (talking 1-2% here) and slightly increase wear on birfields and frnt axle seals.

Most of us up here lock the front hub in about November and unlock them in april or so.

Like mentioned above older 4x4s did not have unlocking hubs and until 76 for the '55s and '80 for the '40s (and '60s of course) Cruisers left the factory without unlocking hubs.


Mark...

 

[FJ-40Original]

I only lock my hubs (in my 46 Willy's CJ-2A...) TO lube the front end real good and help run out accumulated moisture. BUt the guy's are correct that the hubs being locked is NOT bad UNLESS you have the 4WD engaged... THen you will likely experience serious binding on the pavement.

 

[JohnnyC]

Doesn't locked hubs make tight turns very difficult?

Peter

only if you have a front locker like a detroit or lincoln locker

you will "chirp" around corners

 

[John McVicker]

Is it O.K to drive on highway with hubs in locked posistion in 2WD? Therefore if you had to you could just switch to 4WD? Does the driveshaft turn if in locked posistion or only when transfer engaged?

Roberto

I have 3 DD Cruisers & with few exceptions lock the hubs @ 1st snow & unlock several months later. One I purchased new in '75 another one has 260+k miles. I honestly can tell no difference in mpg, either way, locked or unlocked. Disengage actual 4x4 thru the T/case. You won't have any problems at all.

HTH John

 

[smithbr]

ARB Front + Back AIR lockers on 79 FJ 40

HELP - I have a 1979 FJ 40 and have just installed ARB front + back air lockers. I'm trying to understand how the FJ 40 "locking" hubs actually work (without ARB) and how they should best be used with ARB air lockers.

 

[pickle]

Mr. MarkW, If you want to lube your front end......... why can't you just pull it in to FWD on the floor..............won't this spin and lube everything on the front axle out to the hub , which would not be engaged???

 

[Brian in Oregon]

Interesting question. Most makers warn against driving with the front axle engaged with the hubs unlocked, but I don't know why.

Many vehicles were made with solid drive flanges on the front axle, and locking hubs were an extra expense option. Some vehicles are difficult to get locking hubs for. If and when a production run is made, they're often a short run and it's a long time until the next run. Older Dodge 4x4's were this way for many years, especially the military half-tonners.

It does no harm to run around with the hubs locked and front drive disengaged for the short term. Over the longrun, though, you'll average worse gas mileage, and have increased wear and tear on the drive train components and tires.

 

[inkpot]

Mr. MarkW, If you want to lube your front end......... why can't you just pull it in to FWD on the floor..............won't this spin and lube everything on the front axle out to the hub , which would not be engaged???

Howdy! Yes, this will lube up the ring & pinion just fine, but it is also a good idea to run the hubs in and out once in a while just to make sure they operate OK.

I run LockRights in both ends of my Piggy, and I run a lot of 2wheel drive, low range for easy trails. I also run a lot of 2wd in high range with the hubs locked in. If I hit nasty spots I just lift off the skinny pedal a bit, slide into 4wd, and throttle back up. This works great on washboard by just going to 4wd at speed and keep just a little power on the wheels. Also makes it fun to do 4 wheel drifts on the big wide soft gravel curves. That way I can cruise at freeway speeds on the back roads, so I can get to the good places much faster! Always seems like there is 40 miles of bad road just to get to the trail heads. John

 

[Mark W]

Mr. MarkW, If you want to lube your front end......... why can't you just pull it in to FWD on the floor..............won't this spin and lube everything on the front axle out to the hub , which would not be engaged???

Generally, I don't see why you couldn't do this. You may experience driveshaft vibration, even if you don't when in 4wd or when running in 2wd with the hubs locked. But unless you never use your 4wd anyway, spinning the workings for lubrication shouldn't be necessary.


Mark...