I have just moved yet again so now I am having a blast drivng a 4x2 through a blizzard and that was before Winter even officially started. Anyway, I am not going to trade in the truck but I am trying to make it more capable in the snow.

I have a 3.73 LS from the factory and just upgraded my tires to BFG TA KO's (wonderful tires for the snow). All I want to know is, would the Detroit Trutrac give that much better performance over the OEM LSD in the snow and ice? Because the Ford LSD is a POS on ice.

Thanks and Happy New Year to all.

 

Please tell me why you feel the oem LSD is a "POS"...

 

I have no prob driving on ice and snow with my 4x2 maybe you need to keep your foot out of it

 

May I ask exactly what you're basing your, uhm, opinion on? It seems apparent you may not have much of a mechanical background. No offense, but just blurting out that product "A" is a "POS" sounds very ignorant, especially since you give no reason why you feel so animated.

For the record, you will benefit ZERO from any sort of LS vs. fully locking rear end when driving on ice. The only gain is if you were to go from a non-LS to a LS or full locker. The only time you notice any sort of difference between a full locker and a LS is in a race car. I have a 10 second Mustang and I have a Strange 4:30 LS in a Ford 9" N-type carrier. My 1.5x 60ft times PROVE that a LS is a VERY good unit! I would not benefit by stepping up to a fully locking rear end. Plus, if I did change out to a full locker, it would be a serious pain driving on the street.

If you're having issues driving on snow/ice, I can guarantee you it has nothing to do with your LS rear end. It's more than likely your right foot since you have very good tires.

 

My opinion is based on the one wheel peel that occurs even under idle. Didn't mean to offend anyone here, I guess some people are touchy. My previous work truck was a GMC that I drove through Wisconsin and Ohio in the winter and the LSD worked fine, hence the frustration with watching only one wheel work. Now, I know I am not the only person that has this issue, so I refer to my previous question.

 

Unless i'm missing something here a tru trac is only a different type of LS (gears as opposed to clutches) probably more durable than the OEM unit but serves the same function....including driving on ice. Would be a waste of time if that was the reason why you wanted to switch. I have a Detroit Locker in my Scrambler, full lockers are great in the muck, mire and rocks but I am definitely not a fan of it in the snow and ice. Kicks the rear around too easy....just my opinion. The most obvious is your sure you have a LS?

 

I thought I was pretty clear in my first post, but perhaps not. In short, you will see absolutely ZERO gains in snow/ice by "upgrading". As Muddyape said, a LS is a LS. You would only gain a bit of durability by making the upgrade but no performance gains in snow/ice at all. It would be money wasted.

 

Bingo, if you're only getting a 'one wheel peel' than more than likely you've got a open rear end.

 

I had the same problem. I made a vid of me in the snow, I could not get my LS to kick in for the life of me. Nick, I hear ya. The truetrac will be a huge improvement if you can afford it I'd do it. Missed ya at the last meet btw.

 

No problems with my factory LS locking up in snow, ice or mud.

Sounds to me that if you do actually have a factory LS, it has some sort of problem.

 

I have the same problem with my LS in my FX4 when in snow. I actually had an incident last winter when I got "stuck" trying to start out on a slight grade in my neighbor's driveway. The back wheels were sitting on hard-packed snow and only one would spin, thus forcing me to use 4wd just to pull out of his driveway. The truck only had 15k on it at the time. I guess I am curious (and I am sure this is what Nick is asking about) as to whether the Truetrac will offer a more positive or stronger engagement than the oem LS. The oem LS just seems very weak. My neighbor has a 97 Ram and his factory LS is so tight it actually spins the inside tire when turning in a gravel driveway (acts like it is locked). Mine seemed to be that tight when it was brand new, but after 5-10K it really got weak. I'm sure it could benefit from a rebuild, but I'm afraid that it would only last another 5-10k. Would the Truetrac last longer?

 

The culprit here is the friction modifier that Ford uses. I had a severe vibration when turning my newly purchased 150 a couple years ago. I figured that the LS was locking up too hard, so I took it in. They added just a little modifier to the rear end and the problem was fixed. Six months later, I spun only one wheel while crossing a creek with my trailer. 4wd pulled my up out, but I started to notice that my LS was not working very well. I went back to the dealership and had them investigate. "Too much modifier", they said. They changed the fluid and followed the "values" set by Ford and I have not had a single problem since. I was told that the modifier works really well, and not much is needed at all. I can now spin one tire about 3/4 around before the other grabs ahold. I am wondering if this is just a case of too much or too little modifier has been added. I know from experience that the oem LS rear ends do work, and sometimes too well.

 

I'll have to agree with you about the friction modifier... Up to about 15,000 miles, I had the stock oil/fluid in the rearend. I wanted to add an aftermarket diff cover, so I went ahead and changed the oil while I was at it. I went with the Royal Purple 75w140. Per RP's instructions, I did NOT add any friction modifier. I immediately noticed a difference in the performance of the LS. It is now much tighter than it was before. Even going around corners on asphalt, I now get a little tire chriping. That never happened before... I now have about 30,000 miles, and it's still tight.

If I were you, I'd go ahead and at least try a diff oil change. It's pretty cheap, and it may help your issue.

 

I have a rear diff leak, changing the fluid and gasket tonight...went out and bought both. I bought the same fluid, Royal Purple 75w140 I was lucky because thats the only RP they had and it was designated for limited slip applications only.

 

Thanks guys,
Thanks for the input guys.

Just like ford141 and kspencer said, I was inquiring if it would be a tighter or more proactive LSD. Thanks for the heads up, I will check into the modifier and see if that is what is going on. Also, yes I do have a limited slip rear end, I have verified it when I purchased the truck back in CA. I have also had a mechanic here verify it when I got the spacer kit put in because of the tires spinning. He recommended looking into the Trutrack because according to him it is for lack of a better word, stronger and will do what is intended more than the Ford unit. I wanted to check with this on the board before dropping cash on a mechanic/salesman's advice.

Also, the tires are new, about 9 days old, and we haven't had a storm of the same caliber as the blizzard since well the blizzard, but with winter just starting and snow season lasting into March/April I felt I would look into what I could do to increase the capabilities of the truck as I plan on having it another 5 years or so.

PS - Josiah, sorry I missed the meet, I've just been crazy with the 2 moves to 2 new states, setting up the new offices and planning the wedding (ok, pretending to pay attention as she goes over a thousand things). 24 more days of singleness left, yikes where did time go?