Lockers?? (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Jun 10, 2003
Threads
25
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143
Location
Columbia, SC
Hey, I was playing around with the lockers on my 80 yesterday. I put it in low gear range then turned the dial so that both front and rear adiffs were locked. So basicly Front, center, and rear diffs were locked. The problem I have is when the front one locks, I can't turn the wheel unless I really put some muscle into it. It is extremely difficult to turn etc. I'm guessing that this is due to the wheels haveing to turn at the same speed or somethin. It doesnt work when moving or stopped. Any suggestions? Thanks!
 
Prefectly normal operation. Do you still have the information label on the driver's door panel? It states steering is difficult. The owners manual also states that information.
 
You basically lose your power steering.

[move]BTW, I likey the new Forum.[/move]
 
I understand the concept, just worried at first. Up till about a year ago I thought that the little flashing Diff light ment that they were locked sooo lol ya anyways, shows you how much I am a noob to some of this stuff. Ya, was just askin cuz I almost hit a car. they also took forever to disengage. Thanks
 
Jon,
It is a good idea to test your factory electric lockers about once a month. Always do the testing on a low-traction surface like dirt or soft gravel. Never test then in traffic or high traction surfaces. In order for the locks to engage and disengage there must be a differential between the axles. Slowly turning left and right will usually get all 3 unlocked within a few seconds. Mine usually lock and unlock within 3 seconds.
-B-
 
[quote author=Jon916996748 link=board=2;threadid=3619;start=0#msg26533 date=1058142357]
Ya, was just askin cuz I almost hit a car. they also took forever to disengage. Thanks
[/quote]

Was this on the street? You don't want to be locking up the center diff or either axle on hard pavement; doing so puts a lot of stress on the entire driveline.
 
Jonny9,
I take it this is your first automobile? Pardon me for sounding like a dad, but there is a lot to the 80 that isn't covered in the run of the mill driver's training program. Do yourself a big favor and pull out the owner’s manual and read it from front to rear. (Beowulf will give you a pop quiz in the near future, and if you fail you have to deal with Junk.) If you don't have the manual, give C-Dan a PM and he can probably hook you up pretty cheap. You'd be surprised by the info that is in one of those manuals. The traction devices on an 80 can help you or hurt you depending on how and when you use them. That's a darn big and expensive toy to be experimenting with especially when others are around.
CJ
 
aYa first car here. I was lucky enough to have a dad who got tired of his 80 and bought a Honda Accord :D. But ya, ill make sure not to run those lockers on the street. I'll also have to start reading they manuel. Im guessing the manuel that came with the car. And this is a little off topic but I was going to be doing my Breather extenstion tomorrow and was just checkin out the existing ones. Is it normal to have a lot of oil around the hose? Its not a whole lot but its there. Thanks.
 
Jon,
>> Is it normal to have a lot of oil around the hose? Its not a whole lot but its there. <<

The answer is yes and no. Yes, it's normal on 80s that haven't had the diff breather mod. The more miles, the more likely to have oil around the breather hose. The diff breather (brass thing on the end of the hose) creates a vacuum and sucks oil up the breather hose. Sometimes the vacuum will suck grease past the axle tube seals and into the diff. Sometimes the vacuum sucks water into the birfield.

The "no" part of the answer is that this isn't something you want to happen. In other words, no it's not 'normal' for oil to be coming out of the diff breathers. It's messy and can create problems as mentioned above.

HTH.
-B-
 
Im new to front lockers and when my front locker is engaged i cant turn left but I can right easily? Any suggestions?
 
It should never be engaged on hard ground unless some wheel slippage can occur (ie rocks etc).

But after that, it's not uncommon for a locked axle to bind. Mine can be very hard to turn under load. Like almost impossible to hold onto.
 
I thought it was for drag racing and help keeping the truck straight. :doh:

Old thread, funny. Right after the axle swap I engaged the front in my driveway to insure operation, reversed out 10ft, boy howdy, had to quickly disengage to get back into the driveway. They work. :lol:
 
I should've mentioned that my lockers are flashing but it felt engaged as it didnt have problems turning in 4low until I turned the knob.
 

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