I saw your video, very nicely done. while I slightly disagree on the outright performance potential of any traction control vs lockers, whether it’s ATRAC or any other brands version, I will definitely concede that you demonstrated very well how it works perfect for 99% of people. Of course, in my case, the 470 atrac is lower resolution and, with 35” tires, that resolution is even lower, leading to more “up-in-the-air” wheel speed, leading to breakages, so lockers made sense for me.
Very informative. Where did you buy the ARB lockers and who installed them. Trying to figure out if I could tackle this on my GX470, though looking only to do the rear.
Hit up Sibi Built if you’re near southern CA. People also ship their third members in from out of state for them to do the work (they’re that good). If you reach out, do me a favor and let them know I sent you 🤙 Sibi Built (714) 390-3399 instagram.com/sibi.built/?hl=en
@@lexus_offroad_adventures What's the benefit of modding a lexus like this vs just getting a vehicle that already has it (stock & well tested) like a 4runner?
@@jamesm5192 well, first off, in order to run the 35” tires, a 4 runner would need a regear as well, so you’d still have to pay that cost. But for reasons beyond that 1) when I bought my GX, 4 Runners and off-road equipped out-of-the-box vehicles were going for more than double the price of a GX470 (this is no longer the case though). I got this thing with 155k miles for $6.5k in 2020 2) Better quality interior materials and sound deadening 3) The GX comes standard with the 4 runner premium drivetrain (Landcruiser 100 series v8 2UZ-FE with full time AWD/center locking diff) 4) the transfer case actuator commonly leaks on these Toyota/lexus rigs, and with the GX, you can finagle it off without splitting the transfer case open because it has the mechanical Hi/Lo selector as opposed to the T4R’s electronic one. So if/when you get that leak, it’s an easy fix (doing that job was the first video on the channel) 5) I personally prefer building vehicles that are not generally thought of as capable. For example, I did a nice bolt-ons build of a Volvo C30 to do Autocross. It dominated the Subarus and evos regularly. But nobody expected it to. I like ironic vehicles lol I’m sure there’s more… but that’s off the top of my head.
@@jamesm5192 and when you say “well tested”, I don’t know what you mean. In other markets, the Lexus GX is a Toyota Landcruiser Prado 120. Toyota doesn’t put the Landcruiser name on anything that’s not well tested. They used the exact same parts as the LC Prado, put a nicer interior in it, tarted up the bodywork a bit, and put a better engine in it, then brought it to the States/called it a Lexus
@@lexus_offroad_adventures Appreciate the replies. What I meant by "well tested" was a stock gx470 or 4runner vs the less tested state of either one plus significant modifications. It does seem to me like the failure of your mod could not cause the vehicle to stop being driveable, so that's good. I see similar trade-offs to you, which is why I'm investigating. 4runner prices are still quite inflated vs some similar ones. I do wonder how much larger wheels are necessary; I don't have experience with both sizes in the same vehicle to know how much it benefits. Since you seem to be into this, I love those custom defenders we see all over youtube, but they're quite expensive and I have to wonder how many 100k miles they'll run without significant maintanence vs stock ("well tested") cars like toyota/lexus. P.S. how does the lift+tires affect mpg? Cheers
Curious how my Lexus Sedan GS AWD works. RWD based AWD system. Same trans as the GX. There is supposedly a center planetary open diff split 70/30 Rear/Front torque split. If any slippage is detected a clutch locks that locks center diff (may be variable) . There is a wire going into it. I guess it can be controlled with some voltage. Just traction control for front and rear diff. Wonder it could accommodate an air locker.
Usually those clutches are incapable of locking. They slip so that a set percentage of torque is transferred like you said. An actually 4WD GS would be epic
@@lexus_offroad_adventures Long Comment with link got eaten, but they certainly lock: the IS250/350 AWD and GS350 AWD are using a planetary-gear center differential, plus a wet-type multi-disc clutch control to act as slip control. This is a very advanced and complex design. Because the multi-disc clutch can be 100% locked, it means Lexus’ AWD can handle the case that even front or rear wheels completely lose traction, than the rest side of the two wheels still have full power. The disadvantage of this design is it is complicated and the parts take space. Actually the IS/GS AWD are similar to an off road SUV - they have a separate transfer case to enclose the differential and the limit slip clutch unit. The 1/2 glare ice test is the best of all my SUVs. there is a steep road gets 1/2 plowed. In a fraction of second you hear a thump and it just goes up. I tried to jack all three wheels up, not sure if it can pull itself off one wheel. That is not such a great test because all weight is one one wheel. It certainly activates the traction control, but not enough to transfer all power to that wheel.
@@alb12345672 wow that’s incredible, I’ll have to look into it more. I wonder if there’s any way to “trick” the system into staying locked. Like on the GX470, we can trick the air bags into staying in the “high” setting, giving a few inches of lift
hey quick question… well 2 1. is this considered triple locked seeing that the gx comes with a center locking diff 2. do the lockers interfere with the Atrac system
@@LosAngeles1791 1. yes she is triple locked 2. ATRAC only activates when a speed differential is detected between the wheels, so if you’re locked up, there is no ATRAC since the wheel speed sensors see that all wheels are spinning the same speed. If you are unlocked, ATRAC functions as designed. If you only lock the rear, ATRAC will only activate on the front/ vice versa. There are no downsides.
@@lexus_offroad_adventures ok thank you for the input, i’ve always seen 100 series guys say that older lx’s are better locked because there was no atrac to interfere but you’ve cleared that up for me, thanks, also are you running ARB lockers? i’m saving up for a future build and trying to soak up as much info as possible
@ I personally think ATRAC still has a place off road and it’s a great system. I use it all the time, especially when I need to make a tight turn and don’t want to use the front locker (it is very difficult to turn when fully locked) ATRAC helps me get the power to the tire with traction without needing to have the front locked. If you find the wire that powers ATRAC going into (I think) the ABS module, some guys have tapped it, put a switch into the cabin, and now are able to turn off ATRAC completely to do donuts or whatever. So if your goal is to eliminate ATRAC that would be a cheap and easy way to start. Yes I use ARB air lockers.
@@lexus_offroad_adventures you know it’s funny you mention disconnecting atrac because the FJ cruiser of the same year has a standard button for attrac in which you can turn it on or off, also random question, how would you complete the gx470 off road to the lx/land cruiser?
@ yeah the FJ was more off-road oriented form factory for sure. Easy to add the switch from what I’ve seen though. If you’re comparing an LX and GX, I’d say the LX/LC have a big advantage in having more robust rear axles (9.5” vs small 8” on GX). They also have more room. But… that is also my gripe about them as well: They are too big for most serious trails, they’re thirstier on fuel, and heavy. The GX/120 platform (vs the 100) is the perfect size for a “rock lander” build where you set it up for tough trails but also have enough room to live out of it for a while if Overlanding is in the cards. The mighty 100 is great for Overlanding and may even be preferable though. I’m sure you can set them up to be seriously good on tough trails, but you’re having to overcome so much size and mass that it may be worth it to just start smaller like with a 120. Of course, I’m biased to the 120 platform so talk to some 100 guys as well and keep in mind that either vehicle may work better *depending on your priorities* .
Lexus atrac works very well. I’d like to add if you use your compressor for tires it gets very hot under the hood. Be wary of melting electrical wires.
@@lexus_offroad_adventures I was going to put lockers in my gx but was so impressed with atrac. I have a Jeep that’s all locked up so I know the benefits. I took the gx rock crawling and was blow away. Video of off roading doesn’t show people how big or steep the objects you’re going over. So unless you’re in it people aren’t impressed. Did you regear your GX also if so what gears?
@@Fremlin haha yes I know video never shows how crazy it really is out there, but in this case I just found a tiny little hill to film this test on. Haven’t really gotten the chance to use them until now. I’ll be hitting some hard trails soon, especially since I just got full RCI skid plates on. ATRAC is good but it’s definitely no replacement for lockers, especially as you get to 35” tires, the resolution goes down and wheel speed goes up, so you have a higher chance of breaking stuff and less control. I have 4.88 gears now. Check out the video called “How to choose Re-Gear ratio” posted a few weeks ago for all the info
@@ggergg6423 after doing a bunch of fender trimming, body mount chop and hammering, I finally have it so it doesn’t rub much at all. Only at full compression do I hear a bit of rub but I’ll eventually get rid of it as I find those high points and trim/hammer them back
Nice 3D graphic skills keep it up 👏🏼👏🏼🙌🏼😏
nice video... love ATRAC on the GX460
I saw your video, very nicely done. while I slightly disagree on the outright performance potential of any traction control vs lockers, whether it’s ATRAC or any other brands version, I will definitely concede that you demonstrated very well how it works perfect for 99% of people. Of course, in my case, the 470 atrac is lower resolution and, with 35” tires, that resolution is even lower, leading to more “up-in-the-air” wheel speed, leading to breakages, so lockers made sense for me.
Very informative. Where did you buy the ARB lockers and who installed them. Trying to figure out if I could tackle this on my GX470, though looking only to do the rear.
Hit up Sibi Built if you’re near southern CA. People also ship their third members in from out of state for them to do the work (they’re that good). If you reach out, do me a favor and let them know I sent you 🤙
Sibi Built
(714) 390-3399
instagram.com/sibi.built/?hl=en
@@lexus_offroad_adventures What's the benefit of modding a lexus like this vs just getting a vehicle that already has it (stock & well tested) like a 4runner?
@@jamesm5192 well, first off, in order to run the 35” tires, a 4 runner would need a regear as well, so you’d still have to pay that cost.
But for reasons beyond that
1) when I bought my GX, 4 Runners and off-road equipped out-of-the-box vehicles were going for more than double the price of a GX470 (this is no longer the case though). I got this thing with 155k miles for $6.5k in 2020
2) Better quality interior materials and sound deadening
3) The GX comes standard with the 4 runner premium drivetrain (Landcruiser 100 series v8 2UZ-FE with full time AWD/center locking diff)
4) the transfer case actuator commonly leaks on these Toyota/lexus rigs, and with the GX, you can finagle it off without splitting the transfer case open because it has the mechanical Hi/Lo selector as opposed to the T4R’s electronic one. So if/when you get that leak, it’s an easy fix (doing that job was the first video on the channel)
5) I personally prefer building vehicles that are not generally thought of as capable. For example, I did a nice bolt-ons build of a Volvo C30 to do Autocross. It dominated the Subarus and evos regularly. But nobody expected it to. I like ironic vehicles lol
I’m sure there’s more… but that’s off the top of my head.
@@jamesm5192 and when you say “well tested”, I don’t know what you mean. In other markets, the Lexus GX is a Toyota Landcruiser Prado 120. Toyota doesn’t put the Landcruiser name on anything that’s not well tested. They used the exact same parts as the LC Prado, put a nicer interior in it, tarted up the bodywork a bit, and put a better engine in it, then brought it to the States/called it a Lexus
@@lexus_offroad_adventures Appreciate the replies. What I meant by "well tested" was a stock gx470 or 4runner vs the less tested state of either one plus significant modifications. It does seem to me like the failure of your mod could not cause the vehicle to stop being driveable, so that's good. I see similar trade-offs to you, which is why I'm investigating. 4runner prices are still quite inflated vs some similar ones. I do wonder how much larger wheels are necessary; I don't have experience with both sizes in the same vehicle to know how much it benefits.
Since you seem to be into this, I love those custom defenders we see all over youtube, but they're quite expensive and I have to wonder how many 100k miles they'll run without significant maintanence vs stock ("well tested") cars like toyota/lexus.
P.S. how does the lift+tires affect mpg?
Cheers
Great video man
Thanks!
Curious how my Lexus Sedan GS AWD works. RWD based AWD system. Same trans as the GX. There is supposedly a center planetary open diff split 70/30 Rear/Front torque split. If any slippage is detected a clutch locks that locks center diff (may be variable) . There is a wire going into it. I guess it can be controlled with some voltage. Just traction control for front and rear diff. Wonder it could accommodate an air locker.
Usually those clutches are incapable of locking. They slip so that a set percentage of torque is transferred like you said. An actually 4WD GS would be epic
@@lexus_offroad_adventures Long Comment with link got eaten, but they certainly lock:
the IS250/350 AWD and GS350 AWD are using a planetary-gear center differential, plus a wet-type multi-disc clutch control to act as slip control. This is a very advanced and complex design.
Because the multi-disc clutch can be 100% locked, it means Lexus’ AWD can handle the case that even front or rear wheels completely lose traction, than the rest side of the two wheels still have full power.
The disadvantage of this design is it is complicated and the parts take space. Actually the IS/GS AWD are similar to an off road SUV - they have a separate transfer case to enclose the differential and the limit slip clutch unit.
The 1/2 glare ice test is the best of all my SUVs. there is a steep road gets 1/2 plowed. In a fraction of second you hear a thump and it just goes up. I tried to jack all three wheels up, not sure if it can pull itself off one wheel. That is not such a great test because all weight is one one wheel. It certainly activates the traction control, but not enough to transfer all power to that wheel.
@@alb12345672 wow that’s incredible, I’ll have to look into it more. I wonder if there’s any way to “trick” the system into staying locked. Like on the GX470, we can trick the air bags into staying in the “high” setting, giving a few inches of lift
thank you :)
hey quick question…
well 2
1. is this considered triple locked seeing that the gx comes with a center locking diff
2. do the lockers interfere with the Atrac system
@@LosAngeles1791
1. yes she is triple locked
2. ATRAC only activates when a speed differential is detected between the wheels, so if you’re locked up, there is no ATRAC since the wheel speed sensors see that all wheels are spinning the same speed. If you are unlocked, ATRAC functions as designed. If you only lock the rear, ATRAC will only activate on the front/ vice versa.
There are no downsides.
@@lexus_offroad_adventures ok thank you for the input, i’ve always seen 100 series guys say that older lx’s are better locked because there was no atrac to interfere but you’ve cleared that up for me, thanks, also are you running ARB lockers? i’m saving up for a future build and trying to soak up as much info as possible
@ I personally think ATRAC still has a place off road and it’s a great system. I use it all the time, especially when I need to make a tight turn and don’t want to use the front locker (it is very difficult to turn when fully locked) ATRAC helps me get the power to the tire with traction without needing to have the front locked.
If you find the wire that powers ATRAC going into (I think) the ABS module, some guys have tapped it, put a switch into the cabin, and now are able to turn off ATRAC completely to do donuts or whatever. So if your goal is to eliminate ATRAC that would be a cheap and easy way to start.
Yes I use ARB air lockers.
@@lexus_offroad_adventures you know it’s funny you mention disconnecting atrac because the FJ cruiser of the same year has a standard button for attrac in which you can turn it on or off, also random question, how would you complete the gx470 off road to the lx/land cruiser?
@ yeah the FJ was more off-road oriented form factory for sure. Easy to add the switch from what I’ve seen though. If you’re comparing an LX and GX, I’d say the LX/LC have a big advantage in having more robust rear axles (9.5” vs small 8” on GX). They also have more room. But… that is also my gripe about them as well: They are too big for most serious trails, they’re thirstier on fuel, and heavy. The GX/120 platform (vs the 100) is the perfect size for a “rock lander” build where you set it up for tough trails but also have enough room to live out of it for a while if Overlanding is in the cards. The mighty 100 is great for Overlanding and may even be preferable though. I’m sure you can set them up to be seriously good on tough trails, but you’re having to overcome so much size and mass that it may be worth it to just start smaller like with a 120. Of course, I’m biased to the 120 platform so talk to some 100 guys as well and keep in mind that either vehicle may work better *depending on your priorities* .
Lexus atrac works very well. I’d like to add if you use your compressor for tires it gets very hot under the hood. Be wary of melting electrical wires.
Yeah I love atrac as well
This is why I went all-out with the ARB twin. Reliability and 100% duty cycle.
@@lexus_offroad_adventures
I was going to put lockers in my gx but was so impressed with atrac. I have a Jeep that’s all locked up so I know the benefits. I took the gx rock crawling and was blow away. Video of off roading doesn’t show people how big or steep the objects you’re going over. So unless you’re in it people aren’t impressed.
Did you regear your GX also if so what gears?
@@Fremlin haha yes I know video never shows how crazy it really is out there, but in this case I just found a tiny little hill to film this test on. Haven’t really gotten the chance to use them until now. I’ll be hitting some hard trails soon, especially since I just got full RCI skid plates on. ATRAC is good but it’s definitely no replacement for lockers, especially as you get to 35” tires, the resolution goes down and wheel speed goes up, so you have a higher chance of breaking stuff and less control.
I have 4.88 gears now. Check out the video called “How to choose Re-Gear ratio” posted a few weeks ago for all the info
What size tires are you running
35s (315/70/17) Milestar M/Ts
@@lexus_offroad_adventures Do your 35" tires rub at all?
@@ggergg6423 after doing a bunch of fender trimming, body mount chop and hammering, I finally have it so it doesn’t rub much at all. Only at full compression do I hear a bit of rub but I’ll eventually get rid of it as I find those high points and trim/hammer them back
Does your title only include g 47 as the model? Trying to make sure this title is looking at is legit.. the x and 0 are missing lol
Says GX470 on my end. “How the Lexus GX470 DRIVETRAIN Works and Why LOCKERS Help Off-road”
👀🔥💯💯💯💯👌
I can't get over the man bun 😕
Lol good or bad? It’s gone now
@@lexus_offroad_adventures lol. Love the channel. As a official fan of yours I just had to say what everyone was thinking