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Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,724 posts, read 58,067,115 times
Reputation: 46190
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pikabike
Very few, if any, are made with manual locking hubs now. You are really outdated if you think they still are common.
I don’t miss the ones on an ‘87 Samurai I owned. But the truth is that getting out to lock and unlock was not that big a deal.
Leave 'em Locked IN, if you are not on some long road trip. Keeps the bearings well lubricated. Mine are locked some times in summer if there is any chance I will need 4wd.
Leave 'em Locked IN, if you are not on some long road trip. Keeps the bearings well lubricated. Mine are locked some times in summer if there is any chance I will need 4wd.
I knew the likely trouble stretches along my commute very well and would have the drivetrain ready before getting to them. Often, the only place I needed 4WD was the last short but extremely steep unpaved road to my house. There was a perfect chain-up spot at the bottom of the climb. Yes, it got used for that, by UPS and others. I used it to lock the hubs.
People forget that it was normal for people to get outside their vehicles, and even put real tire chains on and off, not that long ago. Push buttons were for radios. Before I had a 4WD, the winterization consisted of swapping the normal wheels for another set with four snow tires and putting some sand tubes in the trunk. I never got that car stuck, and it was a 1960s RWD sedan.
These days, FWD and sticky tires are enough for most heavily populated areas. The roads are paved, plowed, and salted. Steep hills might require more; packed snow in shady spots melts and freezes into barely-visible slicks.
Leave 'em Locked IN, if you are not on some long road trip. Keeps the bearings well lubricated. Mine are locked some times in summer if there is any chance I will need 4wd.
Keep the bearings WHAT??? My Dodge (2004) are sealed and "maintenance free" (which basically means 200k miles). After that I just change them out with Moog and continue living my life.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,724 posts, read 58,067,115 times
Reputation: 46190
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddm2k
Keep the bearings WHAT??? My Dodge (2004) are sealed and "maintenance free" (which basically means 200k miles). After that I just change them out with Moog and continue living my life.
You also have a SEALED differential? (let me know how that works out for you.)
If any of my 1st Gen CTD's croaked at 200k, I would have been SOL many, many years ago.
They have to show up and WORK every day, often towing 40k up and down mtns.
Not suitable service for 'plastic' trucks (?). Not that 1st Gens are that great, but... At least they can WORK (daily... all day, often all night too).
$30 grand and no 4 wheel drive? Eff that. for $30 grand I can get a near loaded Toyota Tacoma with a 6cyl, 4x4 and it's a much better truck than the Ford.
You also have a SEALED differential? (let me know how that works out for you.)
If any of my 1st Gen CTD's croaked at 200k, I would have been SOL many, many years ago.
They have to show up and WORK every day, often towing 40k up and down mtns.
Not suitable service for 'plastic' trucks (?). Not that 1st Gens are that great, but... At least they can WORK (daily... all day, often all night too).
You also have a SEALED differential? (let me know how that works out for you.)
If any of my 1st Gen CTD's croaked at 200k, I would have been SOL many, many years ago.
They have to show up and WORK every day, often towing 40k up and down mtns.
Not suitable service for 'plastic' trucks (?). Not that 1st Gens are that great, but... At least they can WORK (daily... all day, often all night too).
$30 grand and no 4 wheel drive? Eff that. for $30 grand I can get a near loaded Toyota Tacoma with a 6cyl, 4x4 and it's a much better truck than the Ford.
You won’t get even close to that low a price for a loaded Tacoma in Colorado. Unless you mean a used one.
Manual locking hubs gotta get out in the mud/snow and engage
I live close to the Outer banks in NC. I had 4x4 vehicles for 35+ years. Fishing, 4 wheeling, whatever. All my vehicles had manual locking front hubs. I didnt want auto locking hubs. Over the years I've seen my share of vehicles stuck up to their chassis from front auto locking hubs not locking. And upon leaving the beach ramp, seeing vehicles being driven back and forth not being able to disengage their front hubs for the drive home. Im done with that activity. Hopefully manufacturers have done better at the 4x4 systems. Manual hubs seemed to be less worries to me.
I have a '95 F250, long bed, 4wd and leave my hubs locked in and just engage it through the transfer case in the cab when the 4wd is needed. Have had the hubs freeze up in cold weather and it is a pain, so I leave them locked. Mostly use the 4wd in mud to get around the place. Truck is pretty basic with no power door locks or power windows. Have a radio and ac though. Use it to haul stuff and pull a cattle trailer. Not many miles beyond that. Good truck but getting rusty.
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