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Manual vs Auto Locking Hubs: 70 series Landcruiser
Operating vehicles in the harsh terrain of a mining site requires a reliable fleet of 4×4’s. One of the crucial components in maximising your vehicle’s efficiency, performance and longevity onsite, is the type of wheel hubs you have.
70 series Landcruiser’s come stock from the factory with auto-locking hubs. While these are convenient for the everyday driver, this component is much weaker, and ultimately more expensive than manual-locking, and fully locked alternatives.
The wheel hubs connect your front driveshaft to the vehicle’s front wheels. So, understanding the differences between manual and automatic locking hubs is key to making an informed decision about which to choose for your vehicle.
This blog will delve into the specifics of each type of locking hub, highlighting their advantages and disadvantages to help you determine the best option for your needs.
What Do Wheel Hubs Do?
As briefly outlined above, locking hubs are devices that control the engagement of the front axle of the vehicle.
When it comes to 4×4 vehicles, normally, both the front and rear axles are engaged and used for driving across rough terrain. However, traversing across smooth surfaces using only one axle, i.e., the rear, can be more efficient. That’s where the hub locks come in.
Locking hubs act like a switch and allow you to disconnect the front axle when it is not needed. Doing so helps you to improve fuel economy and reduce wear and tear on your vehicle.
In regular driving conditions, it is useful to easily switch between 2wheel and 4wheel drive based on the requirements of the environment. However, when it comes to mining operations, this becomes less useful and even poses issues.
Out on a remote mine site, the environment means the vehicle is always better suited to being in 4wheel drive with the front axle engaged. This makes the convenience of automatic hubs essentially useless.
For these reasons and more, most light vehicle fleet operators on mine sites opt for either the manual locking, or full-time locked hubs. These present clear advantages over the automatic hubs in strength, reliability, longevity, and also cost-effectiveness.
We’ll explore the differences between the three in more detail below.
Auto Locking Hubs vs Manual Locking Hubs vs Full-time Locked Hubs
There are three primary types: automatic, manual, and full-time locked. Let’s explore each in detail.
Automatic Locking Hubs
Automatic locking hubs, as their name suggests, engage and disengage the front axle automatically once the vehicle goes off-road.
Automatic locking hubs offer more convenience but also more complexity and therefore more potential for issues to occur.
Pros of Auto Locking Hubs
1. Convenience
There is no need for manual engagement or for getting out of your vehicle. This is ideal for the average driver, or entry level 4×4 enthusiast who isn’t yet an expert on the vehicle.
2. Ease of Use
With everything being automated, the vehicle requires simple operation and can be driven by people with all levels of experience.
Cons of Auto Locking Hubs
1. Complex Failures
The significant increase in components means that there are more potential points of failure, and such failure can be more complex. The auto-locking hubs contain electric components which make it’s function possible. These electric components are far more susceptible to wear and tear damage, causing them to fail much quicker than the mechanical counterpart.
2. Cost
Auto locking hubs are far more expensive than the mechanical alternatives. As these are more ‘High-Tech’ and contain electrics, replacing them also comes at a premium. The auto-locking hubs are typically more than double the price of the standard mechanical alternatives.
3. Reliability
In harsh and adverse conditions, the auto hubs can be less reliable. Going back to the complexity of the auto-locking hubs, there is simply more components which can break, and do break. The risk of an auto-locking hub failing in the field, is much higher than that of the mechanical alternatives.
Manual Locking Hubs
What are manual locking hubs? These hubs require physical intervention from the driver to be engaged.
Most commonly, this is done by getting physically out of the car and manually turning a lever or knob on each of the hubs to engage or disengage the front axle.
While slightly more old-school than auto hubs, the simplicity and durability of the manual option make them a popular choice for off-road enthusiasts and mining professionals.
The AISIN manual-locking hubs used to come stock with all 70 series Landcruiser’s up until 2016. These have stood the test of time, with hardcore 4×4 enthusiasts and commercial fleet owners electing to switch back to the hubs of old.
Pros of Manual Locking Hubs
1. Control
Manual locking hubs give you complete control over engaging or disengaging your four-wheel-drive capability. The manual nature of these components, give the operator total control, which is why many enthusiasts still love these on their vehicles.
2. Durability
Manual hubs generally provide more reliability and less risk of failure. The tried and trusted manual locking hubs of old are extremely reliable. They have been manufactured identically for decades, which allows for a huge knowledge base on the product. Many 4×4 enthusiasts and mechanics alike have been working with these same components for decades, and as the old adage goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
3. Cost
The manual locking hubs are far cheaper than the automatic alternative. Not only do they last longer, but the unit price is significantly less, reducing the maintenance costs when it is time to replace them.
Full-time Locked Hubs
What are full-time locked hubs? As the name suggests, these hubs begin and remain fully locked without capability to change.
The full-time locked hubs mean the front axle of the vehicle is constantly engaged, and therefore the vehicle is always in 4wheel drive.
This style of hub obviously limits the flexibility of the vehicle, and for that reason is not common in typical civilian vehicles. However, for the exact same reason it is very useful for applications in which the vehicle never needs to leave 4wheel drive, and hence the front axle can remain constantly engaged.
In mining operations, where conditions require the vehicle to always be in 4wheel drive, this full-time locking can be extremely useful – removing the need for operators to ever engage or disengage the front axle.
Pros of Full-time Locked Hubs
2. Convenience
While these hubs clearly don’t suit the average driver, they are extremely convenient for vehicles in extreme driving conditions such as those used in the mining industry. Operators don’t have to think about engaging/disengaging 4wheel drive, as the front axle remains locked, perfectly suiting the driving application.
3. Durability
Manual hubs are considered very reliable and resistant to damage, but the full-time locked hubs are straight up indestructible! Due to the extremely simple mechanical nature of the component, there is little to no complexity, meaning less risk of failure. Full-time locked hubs are renowned for their durability and reliability, making them a fan favourite for many highly skilled mechanics/fitters.
4. Cost
Just like the manual hubs, the full-time locked hubs are far cheaper than the automatic alternative. Not only do they last longer, but the unit price is significantly less, reducing the maintenance costs when it is time to replace them. The price is comparable with the manual-locking hubs, so it’s more about driving applications than cost.
Why Manual Hubs are Better for Rugged Mining Environments
Mining environments in Australia pose unique challenges that demand robust and reliable component parts. When you’re working remotely or out on the mine site, breakdowns and unexpected issues can be costly, delaying and time-consuming.
For that reason, manual locking hubs particularly excel in these rough conditions due to their simple design, heightened durability, less wear and tear, and greater control.
Manual locking hubs have fewer components and therefore fewer possible opportunities for failure, maximising vehicle uptime and performance.
Not only does the manual hub last longer than the automatic alternative, but it is drastically cheaper to replace once the time ultimately comes.
The exact same is true for the full-time locked hub.
Both the manual, and full-time locked hub present the same benefits within the mining industry and comparable driving conditions.
Some of our clients choose the manual hubs to have greater control, allowing for more flexibility if vehicles are to be driven off site onto sealed roads. Other clients prefer the full-time locked hubs for the extra layer of durability, removing any unnecessary complexity that can cause failure.
The right choice is dependent on what you want, and how your fleet operates. But one thing’s for sure, both options are far superior to the stock standard automatic hubs – when it comes to the extreme driving conditions of the mining industry.
How to Convert your Landcruiser to Manual Locking Hubs
If you want to convert your Landcruiser from the standard auto-locking hubs to manual or full-time locked hubs, you’re in luck.
The TAKEO hub conversion kit was created to do just that. The kit comes with all the necessary components you’ll need to convert your vehicles. While converting might seem like a large time and money investment, it will pay for itself in the long run by saving you hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in replacement part costs.
You only need to convert the vehicle once, and then you are set up to plug and play for the rest of the vehicle’s life span, simply replacing the new component as needed – which will be far less frequently than the stock automatic hub!
When converting your wheel hubs, it’s important to make sure you have the right CV joints and spindle to match your new wheel hub. We take the guess work out of it by kitting these compatible parts together, so you don’t end up with the wrong parts.
Check out this resource for more information on our conversion kit.
Takeo – here to help
The Takeo team are experts in all things manual and automatic locking hubs. Our expertise and experience working with mining vehicles, especially 4x4s, ensures that customers can rest assured that their vehicles will have the power and offer the reliability needed to keep up. If you’re looking for a customer service team dedicated to quality and committed to support, make sure to get in touch with us today for more information about all things manual locking hubs and auto locking hubs.