Toyota
Hilux Rear Differential Locker Modification
For those of
you who owns the 1998 till 2004 Toyota Hilux 4x4 bakkies you would
have noticed that you can only use your rear diff-lock in Low Range
4WD (L4).
Apparently this
is a safety feature built into all these models for those that have
a factory fitted rear diff-lock like the Raider and KZ-TE
One often needs
the diff-lock in 4H or even while in 2 wheel drive. Especially when
driving in sand my experience is that you hardly ever use low range.
In standard
form you can only engage the differential locker on these vehicles
by going to Low 4
Changing this
is very easy. If you are technically challenged I am sure that you
might still be able to do it yourself following the instructions
below. Otherwise just print it and take it to a friend or neigbour
who knows a little bit about cars.
This took me
about 15 minutes which included the taking of photographs.
Instructions:
Park your Hilux
outside in the shade where you can breath fresh air. Put on your
favorite music.
Look at the
floor area at the driver's side.
You will note
the two panels indicated in the picture below. Those are the panels
you will have to remove.
Take the screw
drive and remove the three screws in the cover as shown below
Pull the cover
upwards. If it sounds as if you are breaking it DO NOT PANIC.
It is only the clips that are being released. These do not break
easily but be careful anyway.
The inside cover
does not have any screws. You can just grab it at the back and pull
it carefully towards you as indicated below.
You will now
see some strange thingies on the inside. One of them is a little
black box as shown in the picture below. I have seen some of these
have a white sticker on but they are all located at the same spot
and it is the only black box in the area.
The black box
is indicated at point A above. The plug where the wires are located
is indicated at point B above and the bolt that retains the little
black box is indicated as point C above. You now have to remove
this bolt. Use a No10 (10mm) socket or spanner. A socket will be
the easiest. Turn the bolt anti clockwise until it comes out.
Now pull the
black box out carefully. You can unclip the socket with wires if
you want to but you can also do the mod without removing the box
completely. I removed it in order to make photographing easier.
In order to
bypass the censor that disables the diff-lock in 2H and 4H you will
have to cut the wire indicated in the picture above. On my Hilux
which is a 1999 model it is a Red/Blue wire. On some other models
apparently it is a grey wire. But it is always located at the same
spot.
If you turn
the plug so that the clip faces away from you it will be the third
wire from the left in the bottom row. Or if you removed the plug
and look into the female part of the plug located inside the little
black box you will see a number "8". THIS IS THE
ONE
Now cut the
wire about 3cm from the plug. Then take another piece of wire and
join it to the wire you just cut ON THE PLUG SIDE of the wire.
This extra piece
of wire can be about 25cm long. On the other end of the wire you
can add a little eye in order to fasten it with a bolt. See pic
below. The eye must be at least 6mm big.
Use
insulation tape to close both the joint and the open end of the
wire on the harness side.
If
you unplugged the little black box plug it back in. Then put the
black box back into place. When you put back the bolt also add the
new wire to it. See pic below.
|
Before
you put everything back test it first. Switch on the vehicle
so that the lights on the dash board come on. While in 2H
press the diff-lock button. You will hear it engage and also
the diff-lock and ABS lights will come on. If all of this
happens you succeeded.
You will
now be able to use the diff lock in 2H, 4H
and 4L.
WARNING:
Never ever use the diff-lock while driving on a hard surface
like a tarred road. You will damage the side shafts and diff.
You can
now replace the covers and continue enjoying your Hilux. |
PS. Hilux is
also called Tacoma in the USA |