Locker or Limited Slip... What's right for you?
Well, sorta…
And a locker? Seems a locker should be a differential with the axles locked together all the time… Makes sense, right?
Again, sorta…
Obviously, you can't have the rear axles locked together all the time. That would make turning a corner pretty tricky. And Eaton Posi? Well, keep in mind that's our trade name for the finest "limited slip" differential available on the planet.
Basically, the difference between the two is this: A limited slip differential sends power to the non-drive wheel based on input torque; that is, power coming to the axle from the engine.
So, when high torque comes to the differential and both wheels are on a high traction surface, like a drag strip or country road, and high torque is delivered to the axle, the clutch pack clamps the gears to the differential case. This clamping action is in proportion to the torque delivered. The higher the torque, the higher the clamping load.
The idea here is to prevent wheel slip -- at either wheel -- in the first place. If one wheel starts slipping before the other, the clamping force drops in proportion to the torque delivered to the slipping wheel.
The whole point of the torque sensing limited slip differential is to reduce the likelihood of wheel slip.
The locking rear differential locks the drive and non-drive wheels together based on wheel slip at the drive wheel, regardless of engine power input.
Standard Eaton Locker