Thread: Eaton elocker self-locking without any warning

Originally Posted by 87County

I have a friend with Eaton elockers front & rear on his 130.

He appears to have a problem with the front diff occasionally, without warning, locking.

He has disconnected the actuating power to the front diff but the problem still occurs at about the same frequency.

Can any experts confirm that it is possible for these to "self lock" and if this is what is occurring what possibly is the "fix"?

It has become potentially very dangerous eg. - on a roundabout.

All appropriate advice will be appreciated.

After looking at the video on how they work,


I'm no expert, but what a stupid design , The diff only stays locked whilst torque is applied in one direction & unlocks when backing off, so in some situations that dog clutch is going to get hammered. A proper diff lock stays positively engaged until you unlock it, this E-locker design is prone to excessive wear and damage. I'd be pulling that diff out ASAP and replace with an ATB or Eaton TrueTrac. Very dangerous indeed could lead to a catastrophe.

My 20 cents worth. Seems you need power to instigate lock. Therefore if power is disconnected fault has to be within the unit.the unit seems to disengage under no load but only to the next rise in the locking pin cam . My guess. (20 cents) the return springs or wave washers are damaged.

Originally Posted by theelms66

My 20 cents worth. Seems you need power to instigate lock. Therefore if power is disconnected fault has to be within the unit.the unit seems to disengage under no load but only to the next rise in the locking pin cam . My guess. (20 cents) the return springs or wave washers are damaged.

Broken return spring could cause the fault for sure , especially given (not shown in the video) the engagement is by electromagnet ring dragging on the cam ring , much like a electric trailer brake. Theres always going to be friction or suction , surface tension or whatever the fluid dynamics are , especially with thicker 140 oil when cold , of the magnet ring dragging the cam ring into lock position. I can visualise that being a possibility.

Originally Posted by 87County

IIt has become potentially very dangerous eg. - on a roundabout.

Stay away from mountain trails with a sharp drop-off!

I have an elocker and had the same problem on my first centre (replaced under warranty). The return spring in the earlier built versions were not strong (firm) enough to resist the hydraulic pressure of the oil and allowed the cam to engage. Happened when hot or cold oil. While mine was not an early version it was built with the less than ideal spring. Get it replaced under warranty. Since then i’ve had no issues with engagement.

Take it this is the cause of his hard steering issue he was talking about?