ARB Air locker vs Quaife LSD with Jimny TC

Thankyou for taking the trouble to reply, most appreciated. there is a very informative video on youtube by robert pepper that details how to disable the stability control in a Gen4 to overcome the issue of it being reactivated at a given speed (40km PH ?). Im sorry I dont know how to import a youtube clip to this post but it really is interesting. If you put "sand driving suzuki jimny" into youtube, its about 5-6 mins into this video that its covered. I have 2 concerns, I dont know if the Gen3 jimny is the same as the gen4 with regards to this hack and secondly im lacking confidence to try it in case I bugger things up. If someone can insert this video clip to this post, Im sure it would be interesting to others. Higher speed sand driving is clearly more of an issue in Australia...

I have no experience with LSD's or the gen4 system.

But my rear ARB makes driving offroad so much better for me in a gen3 than my directly comparable mates with open diffs on the suzuki meets. Had it for many years now.
There is no question when it is engaged. There is full lock and full traction. Unsurpassed for offroad in my opinion. And when disengaged it is just a normal diff that works like it should.

The compressor is very handy for filling air into my own and other cars and equipment so for me it is a plus and not at all a drawback. I would most likely get an on board compressor anyways if I did not have an ARB.

As some say here the quality of some of the ARB parts are questionable. Had to change a solenoid wich is easy and cheap, and now it seems that i have a leak in the actuator pulling diff oil from the rear axle and into the solenoid on return. Still works just fine so for the time being I just monitor the oil level. But the diff will have to come out soon for a service. I installed the ARB myself so might be I did something stupid too.

ARB's are costly but there are copies now that have a bit better quality than the first copies from china. Even the ARB must be used with care to keep it from blowing splines and drive shafts, especially in the front. So with more normal tyre size and a normal engine the copies should last long when used with a brain.

For my kind of driving I cannot see the point in using money on a LSD when there is full lockers to be bought for almost the same money.
But then again I never had one.

Thanks Busta for your reply. If i'm understanding things correctly. Your set up improves traction in 2WD due to the ATB on the rear. You have your diff locked (welded) on activation of the 4WD so in 4WD you have a ATB rear and locked front but no way to drive 4WD without front Diff being locked. My knowledge isn't sufficient to know how much of a compromise this is. My guess is long faster drives on sand would need to be in 2WD as doing this with the front locked due to welding would cause issues. This correct ? . I am liking the idea of ATB rear and ARB air locker in front. Added benefit of this being if the air line fails (lamberts concerns) you still have the ATB. Extra level of cover in my circumstances as both are not reliant on the air. Thanks again...

Many thanks for your reply Yakuza.

It covers my 2 concerns, these being:

1. How much do I lose in tough, slow terrain or get out of trouble situations having Quaife atb plus TC vs ARB air locker. Getting out of trouble/overcoming difficult situation being more of a priority than better day to day performance in less demanding situations.
2. reliability. I'm a numpty with regards getting my hands dirty. I don't have the confidence or skill that you have to manage maintenance issues.

Fit and forget Quaife vs ARB airlocker performance...
Different peoples advice and recommendations helping to clarify and so thanks for yours

I have never had the ARB fail me due to air problems, even with the bad solenoid and now the leaky actuator it still locks up just fine. And most important, unlocks for normals 4x4 driving. Living in Norway I drive alot on the snow and I never use the ARB for that on-road as there is no need for it. Only for getting me out of troubles if stuck. I have tried it on steep hills in the winter but it doesnt improve traction enough compared to loosing the ability to point the car where i want to go. I use full nordic winter tyres so with the grip they provide there is no need for the locker.
A front locker on snow will make turns difficult. Had a front locker on my SJ 20 years ago but not for long as it was best with open diffs for snow driving in my opinion.

a.dutton@hotmail.com wrote:

Thankyou for taking the trouble to reply, most appreciated. there is a very informative video on youtube by robert pepper that details how to disable the stability control in a Gen4 to overcome the issue of it being reactivated at a given speed (40km PH ?). Im sorry I dont know how to import a youtube clip to this post but it really is interesting. If you put "sand driving suzuki jimny" into youtube, its about 5-6 mins into this video that its covered. I have 2 concerns, I dont know if the Gen3 jimny is the same as the gen4 with regards to this hack and secondly im lacking confidence to try it in case I bugger things up. If someone can insert this video clip to this post, Im sure it would be interesting to others. Higher speed sand driving is clearly more of an issue in Australia...

I don't know if you do the same on a Gen 3, I'd have guessed there might be a fuse you can pull to disable all of the traction systems, which might be the easiest option should you need it.

I've not driven the Jimny on sand really, not too many sand dunes you can play on in the UK. But I do drive on stubble fields, which are also quite loose and slippery.

The stability control on the Jimny is a bit of a pain IMO and prevents you using 2wd or even 4wd high if you want to have a bit of fun.

It does intrude less in low range, even if you whip up through the gears, although obviously your speeds will be lower than when in high range, but this might be sufficient for some sand driving scenarios.

No issues with the stability control doing this:



This video might be interesting too:


Not sure I agree fully 100% with everything, but pretty sound advice otherwise.


Ultimately I think there is no perfect answer, as higher speed use (sand dunes) require different attributes to low speed technical driving where you might be lifting wheels. So you need to tailor the setup to your intended use & driving style. Or go for a bit of a middle ground compromise. Hence my suggestion of an ATB LSD in one axle and a full locker in the other.

The main issue with an ATB in you specific instance is, it won't stop the Stability control kicking in. It 'may' reduce it, but I honestly don't know if it really would. You'd need to test back to back in the real world to see. But as an ATB is a limited slip diff, it will still allow both wheels on an axle to spin at different speeds, which is what will trigger the stability control.

In some ways, ATBs could offer more on a vehicle without stability control (important to differentiate between stability control and the traction control, as traction control will try and make wheels spin, i.e. off road when you lift a wheel. But stability control will try to stop wheels spinning and kill power to prevent you sliding).