Aussie front locker install

Alright, day two of the locker saga. I have now spent about 14 hours working on this POS. Couple hours just getting cotter pins out. Lessons learned, to remove the CV joint, there is a retaining ring just inside the "green" cup that holds the balls and cup assembly. Just use a knife and pop it out. You have to remove the inner boot to do this. Had I known that, I never would have broken the axle seal, and saved a few hours of labor. To date, I have now replaced drivers side upper ball joint, lower ball joint, maybe a sway bar tie rod end, front axle seal.
To make matters worse, my locker didn't fit. Requires .006 in min clearance between collar and pinion shaft. I ended up sanding down to 0.0065 one side and 0.004 on the other. That took quite a while.
Over all gap after assemble" .142ish, min required .145. Better be close enough. If anything, it won't unlock, which is fine, cause I will be running 2wd high via manual hubs anyway.
I didn't take pics, but it wouldn't be good anyway, a lot of cussing and screaming and running to parts stores. Now I am paying storage while the VX sits on the lift at the Hobby Shop. I should finish tuesday evening. Right now, CVs are in, diff mounted, full of Royal Purple. Good news, the cvs from Ebay fit just fine. Now I have my OEM set as spares. they were in good shape, boots were rough, but whole, and grease looked great.

Sounds like a headache, just think of how your locked front end will be on the trails :grino::grino:

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Originally Posted by Marlin

Over all gap after assemble" .142ish, min required .145. Better be close enough. If anything, it won't unlock, which is fine, cause I will be running 2wd high via manual hubs anyway.

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So it sounds like TOD will no longer work because the front end will always be locked. Is this how the locker is designed or is it because the locker doesn't fit the front diff correctly?

His TOD will work when his hubs are locked, however BOTH front tires will be engaged.

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Originally Posted by VXorado

So it sounds like TOD will no longer work because the front end will always be locked. Is this how the locker is designed or is it because the locker doesn't fit the front diff correctly?

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TOD doesn't distribute power between the front wheels. It only distributes power between the rear axle and the front axle. The front is an open diff, so you might not get power to the ground depending on situation. If you get a front wheel in the air (not touching anything solid) all power would be sent to it and you won't really have pulling in the front end.

With the locker in place, even if one wheel is in the air the other tire will get power. This greatly increases the off-road capabilities of any 4x4 vehicle. Now I want to see how long his front CV's hold up.

:_thinking Thanks guys, that makes sense. I've been in a 4x4 with a locked rear and felt how difficult it was turning, I assume that a locked front would be worse and almost impossible to drive on city streets.

Isuzu CV's are so easy. Just messy, time consuming, and you gotta do it right.

That story was funny, but woulda made americas most funniest mechanic videos with him cursing and throwing grease and tools for days!!!:bgwo::yesy:

But, don't ever follow the book or manual 100% or you'll take apart way more than necessary and it will take you a whole lot longer to take apart, as well to put back together and will probably have a lot of you having it towed on its bare knuckles to the shop and paying them anyways to fix it.


Aussie Lockers is what I was going to run in the ol' VX of mine as they disengage when turning. Then engage when wheels straight.
So, they are not a real locker, but are supposedly stronger than a lockright and make a good lunchbox locker of sorts.
Welding woulda just been cheeper and good with running Manual hubs.

If you weld the rear axle spidergears be really careful with turns and get to know your new VX.:p

Spazz-
As for the rear end, no mods there, if you watch some of my utube videos, my LSD in the rear in tandem with ebrake works as well as a locker.
VXorado, you are right, with an "autolocker" or "soft locker" in the front and manual hubs on 2wd, TOD will no longer be effective. Not because of the locker, but because the tires will roll independent of whatever the front axle is doing while the hubs are in 2wd. I never had any intention of driving with the lockers on the pavement. Too much risk for tearing up CVs and what not.
Spazz is 100% right, just throw the stupid tech manual out for doing mechanical work. Now that I know how to disassemble front driveline, I could have saved hours of labor not breaking the various ball joints, and not ruined an axle seal as well. I am now confident that I could do this job again in one day, pending rust and cotter pins.
As for the locker, the spacer collar was machined too big on both sides. My diff was spotless, no wear marks, and no looseness, oil was good. The error was on Aussies side, not mine. I know I read on the Planet or another site of someone having to shave their Aussie kit to get it to fit. They sanded the thrust washer, sounds like a bad idea to me. It is a sliding load bearing surface. Doing the outside of the collar, it was just a spacer and doesn't slide on anything. No harm, no foul if it relatively rough compared to the other surfaces. If you had a machine shop, it would be a real quick and simple fix, but doing it by hand on sand paper was no fun. As I mentioned, I am sure it will work as designed, but I probably voided my locker warranty. but since it only covers parts, not labor, not a big deal for something thats only 400 bucks, compared to the 800 or more it would cost in labor if I had paid a shop to do it. Waiting for new parts was not an option either, down my 2nd vehicle, sitting in a rented bay at the Hobby Shop cost me bucks. So I rolled the dice. I will let you know what happens.

Are they still $4 a day for a covered staul and $4 extra for a lift and you get 10 tool tags for tools?


Thats the way Miramar was when I was there.
If you needed more tools you gave up a tool tag for another set of 10 tool tags.

$3 a day for an uncovered staul.

I HAVE NOW JOINED THE LIMITED RANKS OF THE LOCKED VXs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:supercool:supercool:_beer::jump::LineWave::dance: :dance::dan_ban::dan_ban:
I did have another problem, had to call Mike at Indy4x, no help there. Couldn't get the hubs on and the C clip for the CV. He said it would be tight. Turns out, take a steel bar with a hole through, the proper pitch bolt, and a socket to use as a spacer, and then screw it into the CV. Sort of like a gear puller, only its a CV puller. Those bad boys are never coming off again....very tight fit indeed.


For a covered stall with lift, its $5 an hour. If store over night, another 5 bucks. tools, no limit, just hand over your ID. I know most of the folks that work there, they are fellow Chiefs from my command, so I kind of do what I want.
So here is the tally for the final product:
Aussies-$365
CVs-$120 or so
Various ball joints-$150
axle seal-$30
Royal purple gear oil-$36
Super Winch hubs-$120
stall rental-$130
So somewhere around 900ish and an IMMENSE feeling of accomplishment. I now know a helluva lot more about the drive train, and how to disassemble and reassemble stuff. I am just happy that it all works, and that my awesome friend from work took the time to explain how things work, such as the spider gear assembly, locker, various drivetrain terms and so on. I owe him big!!! I tested out the Aussie, no problems, I tooled around in the gravel with it in 4low, hubs engaged, disengaged, 4high and all the combinations. It is definitely a different beast in 4 low with it locked.
If someone reads this that has manual hubs, does your TOD front power indicating light flash up and down at lower speeds? No worries, since I am in manual now anyway, TOD means nothing to me, I may have to black tape over the lights to keep it from annoying the piss out of me.

I don'tdrive the VX much anymore, but I do not recall the TOD trying to redistribute power very much. I think the split goes to the normal one bar for the front wheels, and never moves from that, but again, I don't drive it much anymore.

You Rock, MARLIN. Your tenacity and skillz never fail to amaze me and you continue to make more mod's to your VX in the shortest amount of time than anyone else on this entire forum. You are a true "Lead By Example" type of guy, and I'm damn proud we have you in our military.:thumbup:

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Originally Posted by Riff Raff

You Rock, MARLIN. Your tenacity and skillz never fail to amaze me and you continue to make more mod's to your VX in the shortest amount of time than anyone else on this entire forum. You are a true "Lead By Example" type of guy, and I'm damn proud we have you in our military.:thumbup:

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:mbrasd:
People are gonna think we are dating...lol. Well, I do want to have the reputation of doing what I say I will. So far, I have done everything I said I would. There are others that say one thing or another, but never follow through. With that being said, I am going to climb Kodak rock in a few weeks, for those that are not familiar, that would be the tough obstacle at Uwharrie National Forest. They told me I couldn't do Daniel with open front end without a strap, been there, done that, video to prove it.
I have no idea what my next project will be. Probably restoration of the undercarriage. Might as well use that soda blaster I bought this winter. I will probably just pay to have valves adjusted, shims and whatnot do not sound fun, and the repercussions of an error are far worse than messing with the differential and suspension. We shall see.
I will say having manual hubs seems to make old girl more spry, or it could be the various new ball joints, but she seems to turn easier, even with those monster mudders on the wheels.

Do the front Hubs need to be unlocked on the road even when in 2wd with an aussie locker. thinking of getting one? sounds like alot of work to fit it to the Vcross. Been reading installs on the trooper owners site and seems alot simpler.

same install for the trooper and the VX.

Yes manual hubs have to be unlocked when driving on pavement with a front locker.

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Originally Posted by VX1032

same install for the trooper and the VX.

Yes manual hubs have to be unlocked when driving on pavement with a front locker.

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Well, not entirely true, I drove around quite a bit, but for daily driving, the front hubs should be on 4x2. Otherwise you get an annoying click and an occasional chirp. As for the install, it isn't that bad, mine was just so rusted, and I had never done anything like this, it was a PITA. I could do it again in 1/3 of the time.
Go for it!!! Makes it a whole new truck!

Congrats Marlin! You've got more patience than I do. Mine was rusted pretty bad too so I gave up and had a mechanic friend of mine do the install. It was much less stressful! Not quite the same feeling of accomplishment though. :laughy:
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BMW M60 HISTORY

I can't find any suppliers?

Suppliers for what? CV or locker? Locker is a no brainer, Matt at Indy 4x. As for CVs, Ebay has them, but I wouldn't run them locked. I will now have two new spares and a OEM spare, but those other two are for emergency use only.
I am heading to the junkyard, there is a VX by my house, but I don't know how much he wants for the CVs. He only wants 1500 for the whole truck.

$1500 for the whole truck.....GET IT :D

Yep, i meant the Lockers, but as you say i will now have cheapo CV's HMMMMM

A little birdie tells me the LSD rear diff on the old troopers was a 10 bolt and fits directly to the front of a newer 10 bolt front IFS trooper :D :D

I know the Isuzu impulse had a LSD 10 bolt setup as well, but they are getting hard to find round here. NO NEW ONES available anywhere in the Isuzu market.

Just reading this thread now.

Marlin, why did you have to take out your CVs to install the locker? I thought you could install the locker by just removing the 3rd member? Or does removing the 3rd member require pulling the axle shafts? I'm gonna put an Aussie in my rear 12 bolt and hopefully that will be easier than the front.

Bart

You have to pull the cvs out a little so they unplug from the carrier inside the third member.

Yep, the only way I could figure to do that safely was to pull the whole fornt end down.
While your at it, might as well replace all the ball joints, I wish I had enough parts on hand to both sides, I only had enough for one side:(
The rear end should be MUCH easier.

OK I see. I wonder what the rear end of my Trooper will entail. Indy4x told me I can just pull the 3rd member....

Bart

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Originally Posted by nfpgasmask

OK I see. I wonder what the rear end of my Trooper will entail. Indy4x told me I can just pull the 3rd member....

Bart

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And part of the wenching to do that, is removing the axles first.

Sorry Bart.

PK

Here's a write up with pics on a trooper install.

http://www.itocuk.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=13509

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Originally Posted by Marlin

I know the Isuzu impulse had a LSD 10 bolt setup as well, but they are getting hard to find round here. NO NEW ONES available anywhere in the Isuzu market.

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Yeah, I installed a limited slip out of an Isuzu Impluse, into the front diff of my VX a few years back....Works great, no need for hubs, just enough "slip" for tight turns on dry pavement, AND in the off road stuff, just stab the brakes and throttle and you got both front tires PULLIN...:yeso:

Last time I checked the 10 bolt LS diff, were still availble new OEM from isuzu....but pricey $$$$

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Originally Posted by BigMeatVX

Yeah, I installed a limited slip out of an Isuzu Impluse, into the front diff of my VX a few years back....Works great, no need for hubs, just enough "slip" for tight turns on dry pavement, AND in the off road stuff, just stab the brakes and throttle and you got both front tires PULLIN...:yeso:

Last time I checked the 10 bolt LS diff, were still availble new OEM from isuzu....but pricey $$$$

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I talked to Jerry about the Imulse diff, they showed 2 left in the US, he ordered them, nothing inside, just the housing itself. Turns out someone stripped the guts already. So unless there are some private dealers that are sitting on them, they are all but impossible to come by new.

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Originally Posted by Marlin

I talked to Jerry about the Imulse diff, they showed 2 left in the US, he ordered them, nothing inside, just the housing itself. Turns out someone stripped the guts already. So unless there are some private dealers that are sitting on them, they are all but impossible to come by new.

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I also called each individual yard that had a Turbo Impulse listed about a year ago, and I could not find a 10 bolt LSD.

Just wanted to revisit this with an update. The aussie has performed flawlessly. Lots of trail time, makes the VX a whole new machine. I highly recommend it to anyone who is actually gonna wheel their VX.

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Originally Posted by Marlin

Just wanted to revisit this with an update. The aussie has performed flawlessly. Lots of trail time, makes the VX a whole new machine. I highly recommend it to anyone who is actually gonna wheel their VX.

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I second that!

If the front is locked on pavement, it sways from side to side and is almost dangerous. Also ruins any chance of driving on snow or ice. Me jeep has lock-rights front and rear. I have to Pull the fronts for winter. Great for off road though. Rear you can leave in, but it sucks in snow as well.

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Originally Posted by rockhavok

If the front is locked on pavement, it sways from side to side and is almost dangerous. Also ruins any chance of driving on snow or ice. Me jeep has lock-rights front and rear. I have to Pull the fronts for winter. Great for off road though. Rear you can leave in, but it sucks in snow as well.

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IIRC, aussies are designed to be open when not engaged & locked when engaged. They should NEVER be engaged whilst on dry pavement or you WILL either have an accident or cause an explosion of your very expensive differential. When open (not engaged) it's just like driving a stock VX.

Am I missing something???

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Originally Posted by tom4bren

Am I missing something???

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Aussies unlock automatically when turning, otherwise they are locked and there's no way to disengage them. If you have an Aussie up front, the hubs need to be unlocked for street driving. For winter driving, some guys on the planet will unlock one front wheel hub and drive in three wheel drive.


For winter driving, ARB lockers are the best (and most $$) option because they can be engaged/disengaged using air.

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Originally Posted by VXorado

For winter driving, ARB lockers are the best (and most $$) option because they can be engaged/disengaged using air.

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OK, that was my brain fart. I mixed up ARB & aussies. Senility, thou art a cruel bitch!

I talked to matt at indy about the whole 'unlock one hub and create a regular 4wd' for snow. He said it doesnt work like that, thats fine for daily dry roads, but with one side locked up all the time, its gonna push you into a ditch in snow. He said that doing that in snow is very dangerous if you drive on any regular basis in snow. (he said if you do it once a year, and are careful, fine, buT not a good idea for a DD in snow)

Another revisit, its been 2.5 years. No issues, still works perfect. I put one in the wife's Trooper RS as well. Just as flawless operation. I highly recommend it for the person building an unstoppable wheeler on a budget. As for driving with the front locked, I drove for some time with the OEM drive flanges, handledfine,but the click was annoying. Just dont get on the gas in a corner.

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Originally Posted by Marlin

Another revisit, its been 2.5 years. No issues, still works perfect. I put one in the wife's Trooper RS as well. Just as flawless operation. I highly recommend it for the person building an unstoppable wheeler on a budget. As for driving with the front locked, I drove for some time with the OEM drive flanges, handledfine,but the click was annoying. Just dont get on the gas in a corner.

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Im guessing your snow driving time is minimal though, right?

I drove it from Whistler,BC all the way down pastVancouver in 14" of snow, no problemo:) I was in 4 low when in the Mountains