When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
HI bryweb, I would be more than happy to help with your questions!
1.) 4WD Systems was our manufacturing vendor from 2003 to 2012, we hired them to make our gears. They also manufacture Lokka, and for some time they manufactured Lock Right as well.
2.) The exclusions are in their install manual - which you receive After you purchased the product:
From Facebook:
3.) We are confident in our products and have been considering a 3-year warranty. Now that we moved manufacturing to the USA our quality has increased substantially. We have a 2 year limited warranty, the limited is lawyer speak for 'limited to manufacturing defects' which means we don't cover any collateral damage. Right now the only company I am aware of that covers collateral is on the Yukon selectable lockers. For auto lockers, Lock Right and Spartan have a 1 year warranty with tire size and horsepower exclusions.
"RECORD AND SAVE THIS INFORMATION. FAILURE TO DO SO MAY VOID WARRANTY"
Yes, you need to know the center gap installation measurement for your specific installation, we ask our customers to record this information. If you install the locker improperly we will know by this measurement. If you install the locker improperly it can fail, which is a result of the poor install, not a manufacturing defect.
4.) You are correct on the pricing for the Dana 30, some of our other differentials are closer in price. As with so many other situations, 'you get what you pay for' These are two completely different companies, product lines, materials used, manufacturing quality, warranty, customer service, etc. I have American jobs to protect, so it's important to clarify that these are two very different companies and products.
Last edited by AussieLocker; 11-27-2015 at 02:40 PM.
Please don't get me wrong, I personally think Aussie makes a great locker, but I also think so does Lokka (which I have), Spartan (which I had), and Lockrite (which I would love to try). I have read very few issues with any of them that are unique to the individual product.
I hate to keep going round and round on the subject, but your answers are like a polished politician in the middle of television debate, carefully calculated out so the answers really don't answer the question but you think it was answered.
1) Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't 4WD Systems own and manufactures LOKKA, so therefor until 2010 AUSSIE was manufactured by the owners of LOKKA right? Didn't Aussie simply have the license or similar rights to sell the 4WD product in the USA, Honestly was there any difference in the actual product? besides packaging? until you started manufacturing your own in the US.
2) Maybe I am wrong, but "Not Suitable" in "my opinion" doesn't necessarily equate to Warranty does not cover it. (and yes it does say that in the instructions I checked), But what was your point of the Facebook post? There was no response to the post from LOKKA confirming, I just went back 3 years and could not find that post, so I am guessing its older than that, but hard to tell since the year is not part of the date like it is now on pages.
In "my opinion" both companies make great Lunchbox Lockers, the fact that Aussie is produced in the USA is a big plus for supporting the country manufacturing I give you big KUDO's for that. If you research "Lokka Failure" or "Aussie Failure" you will find very little on either. Those that I did find were "Shaft Failures" which both use the stock shaft, where Spartan includes a hardened replacement shaft with their locker (but I think Lokka and Aussie engage/disengage quieter and one of the Lockrite models is even quieter - forget which one at the moment)
"My Opinion" If you are running 350HP engine or less on 35" or less tires a Lunchbox is an option in a Jeep XJ, ZJ, WJ, CJ, YJ, or TJ once you go bigger you should start looking at full-case lockers. If you are not willing to compromise the quality of your street driving you should look at Limited Slips (which then you compromise some traction off road in certain situations) or Select-able lockers which can get costly and not quite as reliable (although rare air hoses get torn, cables kinked, locking mechanisms don't work)
I appreciate your interest in our company and quite frankly I'm flattered that you are investing so much time into the history of these two companies. I'll go into much more detail for you.
1.) Aussie Locker has always been owned by Torq-Masters, an American based company, founded in 2003. Without Torq-Masters there would be no Aussie Locker. Aussie Locker has always been built to our specifications, no matter who is doing the actual machining. Aussie Locker has never been licensed or rebranded - as claimed on the Lokka website. If it was a license deal, we would have been sued when we decided to move manufacturing away from their facility in 2012 - which we were not. 4WD systems was a contracted vendor, just like we have contracted vendors to make our springs in Utah, our pins at a screw machine facility in Rochester NY, our boxes in Victor NY, stickers, install manuals, t-shirts, etc. This is how much of the industry works, outsourcing. Take Ring and Pinions for example, 90% or so of the ring and pinions on the market are made in a few facilities in India. Does this make them all the same? Not necessarily. The parent companies that contract with these manufacturing vendors set the rules and specifications. So just because Aussie Locker, Lokka and Lock Right were once manufactured on the same machines, and lock similar does not equate to Lokka owning the rights to/ being better than/ being equal to/ Aussie Locker or Lock Right.... but this is all quite frankly ancient history, and has no relevance to our current designs or specifications, which was completely redesigned in 2012.
2.) Any company that clearly states exceptions like'Not Suitable for On-Road Use'is making a very important statement that they will be able to interpret however they want - including a warranty claim, or more importantly Liability and injury claims. Paying for warranty claims is expensive, liability claims are exponentially more expensive and can bankrupt a company. I personally would not feel comfortable driving with friends and family in a vehicle that has clearly stated warnings like 'Not Suitable for On-Road Use' that would certainly raise some red flags to me.... Aussie Lockers are ALL suitable for on-road use, we stand behind our products.
- FB Post, It looks like negative comments have been cleaned from their page.
With all of these questions, have you asked yourself, why did Torq-Masters pull their Aussie Locker from the manufacturing vendor in Australia, to have it made in the USA at a higher cost and considerable effort?
Our specifications require 9310 alloy steel, which was becoming very hard to source on the international market. Towards the end, we were purchasing steel from Germany, shipping it to Australia, then waiting for our parts, for sometimes months on end. The quality control went down, our out of pocket warranty expenses were increasing as a result and we were forced to make a move. After we moved our products to the USA, which was a very sizable account for our former vendor, we saw the emergence of Lokka on the US market, claiming to be the same thing as an Aussie Locker, using our hard earned brand reputation and trademarked name on their website (without our permission), and trying to undersell everyone in the industry.
There are many auto locker companies out there, some products are better than others. Things to consider, not just price tag: - 9310 Hardened alloy steel - Aussie Locker is the only company using 100% Made in USA, certified 9310 Hardened alloy steel. While other alloys are less expensive and used in the Auto Locker market, these alloys don’t have the durability and long life for the gear teeth and overall structural integrity of the parts. - ISO9001 Certified Machining Facility - Aussie Lockers are manufactured in a certified ISO9001 facility which means we have to meet the most rigorous quality control levels and ensures the highest tolerances and quality. For example, we've tested competitors locker gears for hardness - achieved through heat treat, and found variations across the part. My quality control would have scrapped that part because of the inconsistencies of heat treat. This one made it to market. - Warranty - we've discussed this at length - Customer Service - very important with Auto Lockers, there are many drivetrain issues that can cause an auto locker to misbehave. We do our best to take care of our customers, nights and weekends too. Our phones are answered 24/7. - Cross Pins and Thrust Washers - Another common subject when comparing locker companies. Our Cam Gear design does not tend to break cross pins, like other designs have historically. That is why we don't supply a cross pin with our lockers, and we can pass that savings to our customers. Some of our customers, especially high mileage (150k+) want to replace their cross pin, so we are rolling out a new line of 100% Made in the USA Torq-Cross Pins. Thrust washers - we are rolling out a line of custom thickness and stock replacement thrust washers. Sometimes you need to fine tune the install as carrier castings are an imperfect beast. These should be available soon as well. - Made in USA - Aussie Locker is the only auto locker manufactured in the USA from 100% USA raw materials. We choose to manufacture in the USA, at almost double the cost of manufacturing in China, because this is the ONLY way we can ensure the highest quality products, least amount of warranty issues, and timely delivery of products.
Auto Lockers have a long and convoluted history, as do many other offroad products and companies. There is outsourcing, engineers moving to competitors, blatant patent infringements, deplorable company practices etc. While this drama may be fun to learn about, in the end we are talking about jobs, companies and livelihoods.
Hope this helps, let me know if any other questions come up!!
~Cora
Then I apologize for constantly questioning the connection between Aussie and Lokka!
I was always under the impression, and not from Lokka website but from what I read on the internet (which we all know is always right - LOL) -even before Aussie moved to the US that Aussie Lockers was a Lokka Locker branded for US sales.
Everytime I tried to get you to answer the question in this forum I felt you tapped dance around the question, instead of just clearly saying NO. Today you cleared up my concerns.
It is now clear I was wrong and for that I apologize for my constant questioning you on the subject.
As I have always said, I think Aussie is a great product, I know many friends that have ran your lockers on their jeeps and have been very happy. I think it is even a better product these days being made in the USA.
Honestly glad for the questions I've seen posted. There is a lot of information available, and only a small portion of it legitimate. This helps clear the waters for many of us who might not have thought to ask, or been satisfied with the first answer. Thanks to both of you being direct and honest; we now have very good information on the products! Internet points all around!
WOW! To have a company take this amount of time and effort with us (CherokeeForum) is great. I have an Aussie locker in my front HP Dana 30 and it has operated flawlessly throughout the years it's been installed. My Chrysler 8.25 rear axle with the factory limited slip carrier has a Powertrax locker only because Powertrax is the only company that makes an automatic locker for that application (I think). Anyway, both lockers have been great for over three years of on and off road use.
oh man now my head hurts.... so the aussie is the only one fully built and sourced in the USA? what about the power trax? that any good? i'd like a lunchbox style for my d30 lp front diff. i think the noise would drive me nuts in the rear. probably go with a truetrac or something.
I have a powertrax no slip and I have no complaints so far. Mostly quite an occasional pop if I'm like backing my trailer into tight spots and stuff but a lot better than most auto lockers.
If you are planning on going to 35's at some point, AND you plan to wheel it HARD (i.e. serious crawling) save yourself a bunch of time and energy and install selectable lockers.
I've known too many guys who have gone the "cheap" and "easy" route of a lunchbox or two, and ended up blowing up their whole differentials. This generally involves a new carrier, new ring and pinion, as well as new axles.
So in the end, you end up paying for 1) the original lunchbox locker, 2) a whole new selectable locker when the lunchbox blows up, and 3) the equivalent of a new selectable locker in replacement parts when the lunchbox eventually blows up.
11-27-2015, 10:57 AM
