Traction Control vs Diff Lock (Lockers) - 4WD Trip

02 Mar 2017

Hi Kelvin

I have both traction control & traditional Diff locks.
They both work well.
However, traction control will only kick in when the computer sences a wheel slipping (Reactive)

Locking the rear or both Rea & front diff is being PRO-Active). When you have come to a section of track that really is hard, you can lock the diffs before you get there. and 99.9999% of the time your can drive it. As traction control is reactive, you may get stuck.

That is my opinion though.

Matthew (discomatt)

02 Mar 2017

Anyone that says TC is no good or not as good as lockers has never been in or seen a goody sytem in action, not all systems are equal and if this site was more user friendly I would add a link to a video showing the major differences between systems but I tried and can't get the link up, maybe me, maybe the site, probably just me...

Just check out Discovery and prado in sand on youtube, its about a 4 min. clip

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02 Mar 2017

Andrew Wale (awale) wrote:

Hi Kelvin

I have both traction control & traditional Diff locks.
They both work well.
However, traction control will only kick in when the computer sences a wheel slipping (Reactive)

L......

your first part is spot on,

the second part, not necessarily. I just got back from Tasmania and one of tracks I had to winch 5x in the first 5km..... (twin locked on 35") - just no traction at all or mud way to deep - 99.9999% seems a bit too high ;)

Last year I went Madigan Line and when I got to Big Red I made it nearly all the way up, by about 50cm - the front wheels where on top already. Again twin locked. Instead of going back and try again with lower pressures I turned the lockers off and used the handbreak as T/C (my car doesn't has T/C) - got up the last 50cm without a drama, whereas locked I didn't.

Sometimes a little bit of slip is of advantage and having the wheel without traction spinning is not always good. T/C will stop that wheel from spinning, just think about sand where the spinning wheel will dig you in.

For those who have cars without T/C - your handbreak can be used as manual rear wheel T/C, but its not as good as the computer controlled factory things ;)

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02 Mar 2017

Matthew (discomatt) wrote:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V05uNdqXqqU

whilst I agree with you - that video has to be fake.... if you check the track marks you can see the different tyre pressure....

Simon (PovPack80)

02 Mar 2017

Brake Traction Control has several disadvantages, as has already been pointed out it's reactive. So waits until there is an issue before doing something about it. This usually causes a loss of momentum and will often get you stuck. Toyota's and Mitubishi's latest offerings are very good, Isuzu are average and the Everest is hopeless.

You can however go around a hairpin bend with functional traction control, you can't do that double locked.

Lockers are pro-active, so you have to know when to engage them, they work a lot better than traction control at very slow speeds, they will also vary the torque supplied individually to each wheel up to the traction limit of the terrain when engaged. Open diffs distribute torque 50:50 under all scenarios. They are also able to aid in stability in steep downhill terrain better than any hill decent control available.

Alexander (ENDGME)

02 Mar 2017

Hi guys. I have a Volkswagen touareg with factory centre lock and traction control. I personally turn it off when taking it off road, like many other cats, it just cuts power to all the wheels.
Cheers Alex

Ross (Rosco_4x4)

02 Mar 2017

Off-road and on-road traction systems are different animals as well!... a system that drops engine revs to avoid wheel spin is an on-road type, off road systems either use brakes (abs), auto diff-locks or computer controlled viscous couplings between wheels/diffs.......all very different animals but great at what they are for!

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02 Mar 2017

Simon (PovPack80) wrote:

I think you mixed the torque figures up.

Open Diff -> distributes torque to wheel with least traction

Locked Diff -> equal torque no matter what.

in a situation (assuming centre is locked) where you have two wheels without traction:

- twin locked -> only 50% of torque are used to move the car

- no lockers but T/C -> somewhere between 50% and 100% of torque are used to move your car

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02 Mar 2017

Ross (Rosco_4x4) wrote:

spot on!

Everyone who has a 4WD with T/C of some description and thinks its crap should go somewhere in a controlled environment and test what works and what not. All of those systems have advantages but not in all situations.

Few years back I've seen a guy in a brand new Landrover with all the bells and whisles and he got stuck on sand everywhere, most basic things... he uses a lot of bad language that day. Met him a month later and he loved it, didn't get stuck anymore, not a bad word. He read the owners manual and did some research to understand how that new technology works.

Matthew (discomatt)

02 Mar 2017

() wrote:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V05uNdqXqqU

whilst I agree with you - that video has to be fake.... if you check the track marks you can see the different tyre pressure....

Thanks for putting up the link, if you think thats a fake just look at another 10 clips comparing different TC systems and you will soon see that some are excellent and some not so much.

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02 Mar 2017

Matthew (discomatt) wrote:

Thanks for putting up the link, if you think thats a fake just look at another 10 clips comparing different TC systems and you will soon see that some are excellent and some not so much.

As said before, I am a 4WD instructor and see that all the time.

The main point I'd like to make is - any T/C system works better once the driver understands how this particular system works.

in regards to the video - I've seen stock Prados do much better in sand, plus there is a part in it where only one wheel spinns (no center diff lock on!)

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02 Mar 2017

seen the interest on that topic, I might ask my boss if we can do a T/C test day on our obstacle course.

Kelvin (TREXGQ)

02 Mar 2017

() wrote:

seen the interest on that topic, I might ask my boss if we can do a T/C test day on our obstacle course.

Hey mate where is your obstacle course?

Andrew (Kimmdogg)

02 Mar 2017

The traction control on my Range Rover is of an older type brake system unit. However quiet effective in that it doesn't seem to affect the engine power at all. Though only operating on the rear wheels, it tends to keep the vehicle moving without needing to lift a finger. Ultimately lockers are the bees knees to traction aid, but awareness is needed to know it's switched on. Seen many people forget to turn the lockers off when suddenly hitting hard surfaces with either a Brocken hub or diff to follow. So manual lockers is ideal for the somewhat experienced off roader who knows how to use it correctly, though not one to recommend to newcomers to intermediate drivers still learning the art of off road, needing to concentrate more on what line to take. That's where traction control is a better option for learners, something they won't need to worry about when driving.

TC's do vary greatly between vehicles, especially now with electronics playing a huge part in all of this.

Chris (cap8959)

02 Mar 2017

See if this video works. The hill is much steeper than it looks. First run is with Stabilty off and using only traction control. Second is with diff lock on and traction and stabilty disabled. VIDEO HERE