Lockers & Differentials

The Difference Between Open And Locked Diffs

When it comes to traction in off-road situations, differentials play a key role. In general, the differential in a vehicle's axle allows the outer wheel to rotate more quickly when the vehicle turns a corner. The outer wheel travels about 30 feet farther than the inner wheel in a 360-degree turn. A 4WD vehicle has one diff in each axle.

A full-time 4WD vehicle also has a center-diff in the transfer case, because the front wheels rotate more quickly than the rear ones when turning a corner and traveling forward. 

A differential always:

• distributes equal amounts of torque to both wheels
• reacts to resistance/traction to allow a wheel with more resistance to rotate less and a wheel with less resistance to rotate more (The rpm difference created by the differential is always proportional. If the inside tire rotates 15 rpm less in a turn than going straight - then the outside tire will rotate 15 rpm more than going straight.)

Locking the differential is accomplished by doing one of three things:

1. Installing an open differential
2. Installing a locking center section which ALWAYS locks the differential
3. Installing a "lock-on-demand" unit like an ARB air locker

The trick is knowing when to lock the diffs and when not to.

Here's what happens when irregular terrain leaves a tire in the air or on a poor traction surface and you have...

• Open differentials

• Locked differentials

• Limited slip differentials