2020 JLUR Locker Replacement

[gbr]

I had my diff gears changed to 4.88 recently. While taking off the main bearing (on both diffs), the guy bust them up pretty good. No biggie, got replacements and done.

Unfortunately, he left some busted up pieces in the rear diff. The gears seem to be fine, but the actuator looks broken (I'll be able to test when I get my Jeep back from service). Apparently, you can't get them separate and have to buy a new diff, gears and all.

So now I'm thinking just replace the lockers (thinking Ox or Eaton). Is that doable? Is there anything else I could do here?

ps: The guy that did the work may not cover this under warranty.

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[CarbonSteel]

What the...? Was this a reputable shop or someone's garage? Since he "busted them up pretty good" and "left pieces in it", how can this not be covered under his warranty?

 

[word302]

What the...? Was this a reputable shop or someone's garage? Since he "busted them up pretty good" and "left pieces in it", how can this not be covered under his warranty?

Exactly. If buying a complete axle is currently the only way to remedy this that’s what they would be doing for me.

 

[wibornz]

Exactly. If buying a complete axle is currently the only way to remedy this that’s what they would be doing for me.

and then re gearing it back to 4.88s.....

 

[asuperheat]

Yeah that's ridiculous, he did not have the correct tools if he could not pull the bearing's. If not the correct tools probably not the experience or knowledge either. I'm guessing this was not a shop and if it was it was a bad one.

I have used Eaton in the past. I now run ARB's. If not factory lockers I personally would switch to air from past experiences I think you will be better off if you use them. It wont be cheap.

 

[gbr]

Done by a reputable shop. Used to be the go to shop for gear changes up here. There have been issues recently (which I didn't know), and mine is the icing on the cake. The local Jeep club and shops will no longer be recommending this guy.

The shop owner told me if he warrantied the repair, it would put him out of business... says he was hit hard by the pandemic. I'll be getting something out of him, but he won't be touching my Jeep ever again, or anyone else's if I can help it.

I can't tell you how furious I am.

 

[gbr]

What the...? Was this a reputable shop or someone's garage? Since he "busted them up pretty good" and "left pieces in it", how can this not be covered under his warranty?

I even have him recorded as saying he might have left some pieces behind. He didn't completely clean everything either, there was definitely old oil in that diff when we pulled the cover.

 

[CarbonSteel]

I even have him recorded as saying he might have left some pieces behind. He didn't completely clean everything either, there was definitely old oil in that diff when we pulled the cover.

I am no lawyer, but it sounds like a legal case in the making. No slight against you, but did you vet this guy at all before giving him your brand new Jeep to undertake a task like this?

This all sounds so half-assed and home garage based. Your situation is infinitely more complicated due to the fact there are no repair parts for the locker mechanism in the Rubicon axles. You are looking at $$$$ to even bring this back to stock.

 

[JimLee]

You won't be able to run aftermarket lockers from the factory locker switches, but you can run them from the aux switches.
Edit, apparently Z Automotive has a fix for that, see below.

 

[gbr]

I am no lawyer, but it sounds like a legal case in the making. No slight against you, but did you vet this guy at all before giving him your brand new Jeep to undertake a task like this?

This all sounds so half-assed and home garage based. Your situation is infinitely more complicated due to the fact there are no repair parts for the locker mechanism in the Rubicon axles. You are looking at $$$$ to even bring this back to stock.

This guy has been working on club Jeeps for years. I found out (after the work was done) that he lost his mechanic and hired a new guy. The old mechanic is the one that had done all the previous diffs.

I'll be getting something out of this guy, whether it bankrupts him or not.

 

[gbr]

You won't be able to run aftermarket lockers from the factory locker switches, but you can run them from the aux switches.

Thank you!

 

[CarbonSteel]

This guy has been working on club Jeeps for years. I found out (after the work was done) that he lost his mechanic and hired a new guy. The old mechanic is the one that had done all the previous diffs.

I'll be getting something out of this guy, whether it bankrupts him or not.

Finger and toes crossed--that is a major snafu. Hope it works out for you.

 

[Gorilla57]

You won't be able to run aftermarket lockers from the factory locker switches, but you can run them from the aux switches.

Yes you can.......

z_lkr_ctlr

 

[JimLee]

Yes you can.......

z_lkr_ctlr

Nice, I stand corrected.

 

[dlporter]

To my knowledge, ARB is the only aftermarket locker available for the JL rubicon. The catch is that it requires 35 spline axle shafts. The next catch is that RCV is the only company that makes 35 spline front axle shafts that I’m aware of. RCV = $$$$. The third catch is that nobody makes 35 spline rear shafts for the JLUR and ARB locker.

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