Aussie locker opinions

Kevin B.

Kevin B.

Not often wrong. Never quite right.
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Stinkwater
I've read a lot of reviews commending the behavior of the Aussie locker on snowy/icy roads, but they're all newer heavier rigs with electronic traction aids. I've got an '86 4Runner for a daily driver/wheeler, which is much lighter in the rear and lacks the electronic whizbangery. Anybody else running an Aussie in a similar vehicle, and how does it behave?
 
Any lunchbox locker is going to act the exact same in the snow if your on the throttle its gonna stay locked if your off the throttle it will unlock. I personally think the spartan lockers are the smoothest operating units.

My dad has an aussie locker and he is not impressed at all.
 
I had an Aussie in my 86 4runner and currently have one in my FJ40. After installing i quickly adjusted some of my road driving habits and i hardly notice it. It's not as awesome as a selectable locker but it's inexpensive and good quality.
 
I had one in the rear of my TJ. It worked fine. You could hear it click. It was not as quite and they want you to believe. Selectable is the way to go if its in the budget, if not, Aussie is fine. I dont have experience with any thing else.
 
skippy said:
My dad has an aussie locker and he is not impressed at all.
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Interesting. What rig is it in? What doesn't he like about it?

There's a huge thread over on Pirate about the aussie lockers toyotas, with 99% positive reviews. Not to discredit what Skippy said, but I would pick an aussie locker over any other non-selectable locker for a yota.
 
I have heard pretty good things about the Aussie locker. I haven't run one, but I would.

I don't really see there being much of a difference in all the lunchbox lockers. They seem pretty much the same.

I know lockrite makes you pay extra for the high strength shaft. The spartan includes the shaft. I don't know about the Aussie.

All-in-all I think you will be pretty happy with any little locker as long as you can adjust your driving style a little.
 
sixstringsteve said:
Interesting. What rig is it in? What doesn't he like about it?

There's a huge thread over on Pirate about the aussie lockers toyotas, with 99% positive reviews. Not to discredit what Skippy said, but I would pick an aussie locker over any other non-selectable locker for a yota.
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It is in the back of an XJ in a chrysler 8.25 And up until we had experience with the spartan locker he was very happy with it. Once we tried the spartan it was evident that the spartan was much smoother and quieter operating than the aussie was. Im not bagging on the aussie but a side by side comparison clearly made the spartan feel like a superior product.
 
I installed an Aussie in my '84 flatbed and later '86 Xtra-cab and it was easily the best 260.00 spent on the Truck. The install went smooth and I had zero driveability issues, even in the snow. It was quite harsh with the original 30" tires but thr addition of 33's mellowed it out considerably. It always clicked/ratcheted around corners as advertised. I always switched to 85/140w gear oil after break in and that helped to quiet it.

I'm a fan of the Aussie's and have heard a lot of good things about the Spartan's as well. I have installed 3 Aussies and 1 Lockrite. No installation problems with either, but the Aussie has a better quality feel to it.
 
Thanks, everybody.

Hardcastle said:
I had an Aussie in my 86 4runner and currently have one in my FJ40. After installing i quickly adjusted some of my road driving habits and i hardly notice it. It's not as awesome as a selectable locker but it's inexpensive and good quality.
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SLC97SR5 said:
I installed an Aussie in my '84 flatbed and later '86 Xtra-cab and it was easily the best 260.00 spent on the Truck. The install went smooth and I had zero driveability issues, even in the snow. It was quite harsh with the original 30" tires but thr addition of 33's mellowed it out considerably. It always clicked/ratcheted around corners as advertised. I always switched to 85/140w gear oil after break in and that helped to quiet it.

I'm a fan of the Aussie's and have heard a lot of good things about the Spartan's as well. I have installed 3 Aussies and 1 Lockrite. No installation problems with either, but the Aussie has a better quality feel to it.
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So other than getting used to it, no problems at all with a snowy commute or a run up to ski areas?

I've been thinking I'd need to wait until I could afford a selectable. This is encouraging, thanks everybody!
 
We've done the lockrite in an cherokee and a wrangler and do not have any issues in snow. The wrangler is even a snowplow for us in the winter. We are running 33's on both. Even the super short wheel base of the wrangler is not an issue in the snow. The only times I have had issues with sliding out are when I am being intentionally heavy footed for "testing" purposes.
 
So I pulled the trigger. It's not an Aussie, but it was too good a deal to pass up. Thanks, SLC97SR5!


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I gotta say, that instruction booklet is chock full of dark and mysterious wizardry I know nothing about. I'm hoping it'll all make sense once I get the third pulled and get some eyeballs on it.
 
I like it in my '95 Runner on a snowy freeway when there is a huge line of snow in between lanes. When I switch lanes, the wheel not on the pile of snow keeps me straight. Enjoy the install, and pray for snow.
 
4Chin said:
I like it in my '95 Runner on a snowy freeway when there is a huge line of snow in between lanes. When I switch lanes, the wheel not on the pile of snow keeps me straight. Enjoy the install, and pray for snow.
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Awesome. :D
 
Gonna tear into it tomorrow morning, if the weather holds. It's so hard to get off work in the morning and have any motivation to crawl around my cold concrete driveway, but my weekend starts tomorrow and I'll have no more excuses.
 
Black magic, I tell you.

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So the crosspin won't clear the ring gear, and I'm officially over my head. Near as I can tell, what I need to do now is remove the four bolts (marked "10") and pull the whole dealio out of the housing? What about the two bolts holding the clip things on the ends - are those the bearing caps that they're holding? Do those need to come off first? And can I do this without mucking up my backlash? I don't have a dial indicator or the first idea how to use one.

eta - found this: http://www.gearinstalls.com/aussielocker.htm, and it looks the same, so I'm diving in. I guess I know who to call if I bork this up... :D
 
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