Thread: An APOLOGY to ARB - surprise

Well, yesterday the guys at ARB had my Disco for the day. They investigated and they fixed
Now what they discovered was that the air line was in fact full of oil... which I knew. They also found multiple air leaks.... which I suspected, but didn't know for sure.

Much of the problem was in fact due to the original installation. They were able to explain to me clearly what those issues were.

At the end of the day, I have to give ARB a HUGE thumbs-up for their attentive service, they even drove me to the Croydon station so I could get home after dropping the car off.

As to the cost? ARB and I came to a very satisfactory arrangement in this regard.

I really can't speak highly enough of the way I've been treated. Thankyou and well done ARB!

I've had some contact from Sam at ARB- thankyou Sam- including an email outlining potential causes of the air and oil leak problem. I plan to have the vehicle off the road next week for the installation of my Ashcroft locker, CVs, axles and flanges. Hopefully I'll get this done in time to remove the rear diff also to investigate further.

Glad to hear it's all sorted, Wardy. I had a quick look under your vehicle yesterday as well, when it was on the hoist, and the guys pointed out the issues.

POD, looking forward to hearing how you go with yours.

Cheers, Sam.

Originally Posted by ARB 4X4 Accessories

Glad to hear it's all sorted, Wardy. I had a quick look under your vehicle yesterday as well, when it was on the hoist, and the guys pointed out the issues.

POD, looking forward to hearing how you go with yours.

Cheers, Sam.

You would,nt want to know about another arb locker spitting oil out the compressor valve ? Even tho it is still in my old vehicle it is soon to be removed and fitted to my updated car
It is the front I have a Ashcroft in the rear

Originally Posted by rangieman

You would,nt want to know about another arb locker spitting oil out the compressor valve ? Even tho it is still in my old vehicle it is soon to be removed and fitted to my updated car
It is the front I have a Ashcroft in the rear

Hi Rangieman, in our experience, most Air Locker problems relate to fitting issues. If you're about to remove it and reinstall it in another vehicle, then the best advice would be to ensure it's fitted by either an authorised ARB store/stockist or a diff specialist.

If anyone else has a similar issue, then the best first port of call is always the store where the Air Locker was purchased/fitted.

Cheers, Sam.

Hey ARB, what are the fitting instructions like that are supplied with the Air-locker, what I mean is are they comprehensive enough for a reasonably talented spanner-man to fit the unit successfully?
There is a lot of talk about the fitting of the item being the cause of failure, and understandably ARB should not be expected to fix the mess someone else had made of an installation, but being as your dealers would have seen all manner of "shoddy" jobs, do you outline the pitfalls in the instructions, after all as unjust as it is, bad news travels far and wide, and some of the "mud" sticks.
The reason I ask is that I am considering fitting one or two of the lockers to my '98 Disco Tdi, and because I'm an old Fitter with 48 years industry experience I do not like other guys working on my machinery, especially with labour rates as high as they are.
To be frank I have been hesitant to go ARB because of some of the "bad press" that diff lock has got ("The Leaky Locker"), and have been looking for vacuum or electric actuated units, for a Disco they are a bit hard to find.
I would like to shop Aussie and much of your gear is highly regarded but I need the "whole story" and info when I buy the units, and would not be seeking to end up in a dispute with the supplier over a failure due to "bad fitting", I am aware of how the game is played, I had 10 years in the equipment supply/service industry and sometimes it is easy to blame "someone else".

Its interesting you should say that Gazby, I feel much the same as you. As a machine fitter myself, and having been in charge of transmission assembly line, its amazing how many people say "she'll be right mate". We did extensive training with everybody, and generally speaking the standard was excellent, but still far from perfect. Its extremely difficult to instil qualities such as diligence, care, and probably above all, a sense pride, (so to do it once, do it right, means not having to fix it), something which does not seem to be recognised these days.
What amazes me most is the amount of people who say the problem lays with the manufacturer when something fails. Quite often at times, when analysed properly, a lot of the time its a fitment issue that started the failure. Even something as simple as a contaminated gasket, or a piece of metal swarf, be it alloy,brass, steel, and even plastic. Something as small and insignificant as a human hair can destroy a bearing, so what will a bit of steel do, or a bit of dirt grit/sand. Then, there's how its used too, another whole topic on its own I'm sure,,
Most of us don't have "clean rooms" with which to work in when doing various jobs, but if care is taken, it can be easily sorted. Also having the right tools for the job can help, don't know how many times I've gone off at blokes using spanners as hammers or screw drivers as drifts or chisels.
Ultimately, take care, read or follow instructions, don't "force" parts to fit, and when in doubt, ask.

Double post.