Does It Make Sense to Add Rear Lockers to a Daily Driver?

[High Proof]

Get the lockers. More expensive to add later if you decide to and you may decide to. Trails are fun! If you get a taste of it you're going to want to do more of them.

You can get a lot of places without lockers but they can make it a lot less risky when you don't have to be as heavy on the gas pedal. Even on relatively tame trails like in the vids below.

Examples of what you can do without lockers:

Two vids up the wall at Poughkeepsie without lockers.







Another vid with open diffs. I had to be on the gas a bit more and the tire spin allowed me to slip to passenger. I thought I was going to end up on my side for a sec. A better line and/or lockers would have helped considerably.







About 15 seconds in to this one you can see tire spin from a good angle. I make it over everything without much effort but again slip to the side when the tire starts spinning.





And then there is the issue of mud and other slippery surfaces...

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[Mattwings]

With the electric locker, it has none of the negatives of the mechanical lockers. It’s fun, nice to have and will make the resale better if and when you move on. I won’t have a truck without it if I have the option.

 

[Mountain Goat]

Added a lunchbox locker to my old 2WD, manual transmission Ranger for street use and occasional field use. It would do a 1-wheel peel, tire smoke and all in first or second gear at about 25% throttle without the locker. So yeah, it can make sense...

 

[Y2Dre]

I should've known you all would be pretty convincing! But, seriously...I appreciate the feedback. I haven't driven an SUV since 2012 when I gave up my Explorer Sport Trac and back then, I had no idea what lockers were and had no inclination whatsoever to go off-roading. But with age comes wisdom...a new Bronco...and a desire to do something new.

 

[kodiakisland]

There are pros and cons to an e-locker. In an ideal world, they are great because you only use them when you need them. In reality, electrical parts can and do have issues at time. Coming from a Toyota, it's not that uncommon for the elocker to either not engage or not disengage when used a lot. Both can be a pain depending on the situation.

For a DD that rarely sees trails, I like a Torsen style LSD, but that's going to be expensive to upgrade in the M220. I would still get the elocker for a DD, since it will always be open until you need it. Even if you only need it once, you need it. I've never, ever heard anyone offroad say they were glad they didn't spring for the locker.

 

[ZackDanger]

Idiot moment, I’m a sports car guy. What exactly does a locking differential do? Lol. What benefit does it serve?

Not sure how much or how little you know... so I’ll just kind of explain it all...

So, very basically you’ve got an open differential, which means all of the engine power goes to the path of least resistance. Open diffs are simple, and cheap, and allow the car to drive around and turn (so the outer wheel can spin faster than the inner wheel). The problem with an open diff is that if one wheel has zero traction (say, on ice), since that wheel is so easy to turn, no power will go to the wheel that does have traction. You’ll just sit there spinning on wheel. (See also: lame one wheel burnouts.)

On the other end are a completely locked differential. (In the case of the Bronco, its a “lockable” diff.) The effect is that opposite wheels on the same axle are locked together and turn at the same rate no matter what. The upside is that if one wheel has very little resistance, say it’s up in the air in a rock-crawling scenario, the wheel that’s still on the ground is still getting power to it, and you can still actual move the vehicle. The down side is if the wheels are locked, then when you’re driving around on a high friction surface (like a regular road), the outer wheel cant spin faster relative to the inner wheel. Best case you get chattering and the wheel skips, worst case you damage drivetrain components.


In between a completely open and a locked differential is a “limited slip differential” or “LSD”. Usually the preferred differential in a sports car since it keeps power going to both wheels while also allowing cornering and drive ability.



(Many modern cars achieve an LSD effect by using an open diff and then applying the brakes just to the wheel that’s spinning faster, thus increasing resistance, and returning power to the wheel that does have actual traction.)

 

[Jchetty]

How expensive will it be to add later if your needs, wants, desires, or hobbies change? How can I put this delicately.....

 

[Bronco4lyfe85]

Not sure how much or how little you know... so I’ll just kind of explain it all...

So, very basically you’ve got an open differential, which means all of the engine power goes to the path of least resistance. Open diffs are simple, and cheap, and allow the car to drive around and turn (so the outer wheel can spin faster than the inner wheel). The problem with an open diff is that if one wheel has zero traction (say, on ice), since that wheel is so easy to turn, no power will go to the wheel that does have traction. You’ll just sit there spinning on wheel. (See also: lame one wheel burnouts.)

On the other end are a completely locked differential. (In the case of the Bronco, its a “lockable” diff.) The effect is that opposite wheels on the same axle are locked together and turn at the same rate no matter what. The upside is that if one wheel has very little resistance, say it’s up in the air in a rock-crawling scenario, the wheel that’s still on the ground is still getting power to it, and you can still actual move the vehicle. The down side is if the wheels are locked, then when you’re driving around on a high friction surface (like a regular road), the outer wheel cant spin faster relative to the inner wheel. Best case you get chattering and the wheel skips, worst case you damage drivetrain components.


In between a completely open and a locked differential is a “limited slip differential” or “LSD”. Usually the preferred differential in a sports car since it keeps power going to both wheels while also allowing cornering and drive ability.



(Many modern cars achieve an LSD effect by using an open diff and then applying the brakes just to the wheel that’s spinning faster, thus increasing resistance, and returning power to the wheel that does have actual traction.)

Makes perfect sense! Thanks!!

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