Real locker not releasing

ERAUGrad04

ERAUGrad04

Caught the Bug
Today while working our way through the Tillamook Forest, I ran into a small issue with my rear locker (factory Rubi e-locker) . It would not disengage. I tried every trick in the book including backing up, driving in circles, etc. with no luck. After driving quite a bit with it stuck on (all in muddy terrain), we finally stopped and I pulled the fill plug and was able to slide the lock ring over with a flat blade screwdriver.

With the plug out, we cycled the locker a few times and the ring moved easily with no issues.

However, further down the trail, I had to use the rear locker again and it would not release with the switch. This time, after driving another couple of miles, it finally released on its own.

Any thoughts? I am tempted to take it in for warranty, however, with new gears and covers, I'm wondering if they will cover any work.

FWIW, I am running 85w140 Royal Purple. Any chance that is is cussing the locker to hang up?

Thanks!
 
2013rubirick said:
I run 85w140 also, but I am also running 5.38's. I ran it with 5.13's and never had a problem either.
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Dynatrac calls for 85-140. I was curious why he was running it in factory axles. Manual says 75-90.

Not saying it's a problem either, just curious. The dealer might question it.
 
ERAUGrad04 said:
Today while working our way through the Tillamook Forest, I ran into a small issue with my rear locker (factory Rubi e-locker) . It would not disengage. I tried every trick in the book including backing up, driving in circles, etc. with no luck. After driving quite a bit with it stuck on (all in muddy terrain), we finally stopped and I pulled the fill plug and was able to slide the lock ring over with a flat blade screwdriver.

With the plug out, we cycled the locker a few times and the ring moved easily with no issues.

However, further down the trail, I had to use the rear locker again and it would not release with the switch. This time, after driving another couple of miles, it finally released on its own.

Any thoughts? I am tempted to take it in for warranty, however, with new gears and covers, I'm wondering if they will cover any work.

FWIW, I am running 85w140 Royal Purple. Any chance that is is cussing the locker to hang up?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I've been through a few lockers on a 2013 and 2014.

Mine started sticking (front and rear) until they fully failed - they will always fail locked.

The magnets get dumb and stop releasing. If you take it in (be very specific about the issue), the whole carrier gets replaced.
 
All good info. The diffs were filled originally by ORE with 85w140 non-synthetic. When I pulled the covers for the 500mi inspection, I switched to Royal Purple.

Once I get back home, I'll play with the lockers a bit and see if I can repeat the issue. If it still is acting up, I'll take it into the dealer and see what they have to say. My biggest concern is whether or not they are going to balk at the gear change and blame that for the locker issue.
 
ClarksAdventures said:
On the plus side. I didn't know you could manually unlock it if needed. So I learned something new today.
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Yeah, for sure. That was my first time unlocking the locker like that, but it really was super easy. More of a pain than anything else especially given our conditions today! :)
 
2013rubirick said:
It's because he is running 5.13's I think. They create a lot of heat to run ragular 75-90
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Yup, recommend by ORE.

That said, when I was researching oil choices, I read in quite a few places that 85w140 actually generates and holds more heat than lighter weight oil. The flipside is it offers better lubrication properties when under the greater pressure of a ring/pinion gear set under a tow load.
 
ERAUGrad04 said:
All good info. The diffs were filled originally by ORE with 85w140 non-synthetic. When I pulled the covers for the 500mi inspection, I switched to Royal Purple.

Once I get back home, I'll play with the lockers a bit and see if I can repeat the issue. If it still is acting up, I'll take it into the dealer and see what they have to say. My biggest concern is whether or not they are going to balk at the gear change and blame that for the locker issue.
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my installer had me run dino non-synth for the break in period but then switched to synthetic afterwards. you might call ORE and see if you should still be running the non-synth in the stock locker - it does require the additive or synthetic oil to operate properly.

if you take it to the dealer with non-synth they may tell you it's your issue.
 
That's good info on being able to unlock it like that. I prolly never would have thought of doing that.
 
The rear locker in my 2013 Rubicon started sticking in regularly, sometimes releasing on its own, and sometimes having to be released manually.

I've just had it checked at the dealer, who didn't have a clue what they were looking at, and who made plenty of noises about the mods I had and the effect his could have on a warranty claim. When asked how much it would cost if I had to pay for it, a figure of about $4000.00 was quoted.

I've decided to not worry about the warranty claim and am pulling the factory e-locker out and replace it with an ARB locker.

I'm extremely disappointed with this dealers attitude towards warranty, as well as the fact that I am replacing one of the key features which caused me to buy this vehicle in the first place.

I have a friend who has had his locker replaced under warranty, and know of a couple of others who are having trouble with their locker sticking in.
 
Wizard said:
The rear locker in my 2013 Rubicon started sticking in regularly, sometimes releasing on its own, and sometimes having to be released manually.

I've just had it checked at the dealer, who didn't have a clue what they were looking at, and who made plenty of noises about the mods I had and the effect his could have on a warranty claim. When asked how much it would cost if I had to pay for it, a figure of about $4000.00 was quoted.

I've decided to not worry about the warranty claim and am pulling the factory e-locker out and replace it with an ARB locker.

I'm extremely disappointed with this dealers attitude towards warranty, as well as the fact that I am replacing one of the key features which caused me to buy this vehicle in the first place.

I have a friend who has had his locker replaced under warranty, and know of a couple of others who are having trouble with their locker sticking in.
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You'll probably have to make noise with Chrysler Resolution.

This is a known issue that is well documented.
 
Just a little update. Today I finally got around to playing a little bit with the locker. I went up the hill from my house to an open grass/dirt field and went to town cycling the locker. I probably cycled the rear 15-20 times while slowly driving around and every time, within a second or two of pushing the button, it released. I could not get it to fail.

About the only thing I can think of is while running the trial in Oregon, it was probably 40-45° and the diff probably never had a chance to warm up. Maybe the 85w140 was a bit stiff? :confused:

I'm probably going to just keep an eye on it for a bit and of it acts up again, I'll take it in for warranty.
 
ERAUGrad04 said:
Just a little update. Today I finally got around to playing a little bit with the locker. I went up the hill from my house to an open grass/dirt field and went to town cycling the locker. I probably cycled the rear 15-20 times while slowly driving around and every time, within a second or two of pushing the button, it released. I could not get it to fail.

About the only thing I can think of is while running the trial in Oregon, it was probably 40-45° and the diff probably never had a chance to warm up. Maybe the 85w140 was a bit stiff? :confused:

I'm probably going to just keep an eye on it for a bit and of it acts up again, I'll take it in for warranty.
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What fluid are you using now?
 
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