[TheOtherLeft]

I changed my rear (airlocked) diff oil today and found this stuck to the magnetised drain plug:



It's only about 2mm thick so looks pretty light duty.

Does anyone know what it is?

A clip or something?

[Scrawny]

Yep, looks like a clip

[atari4x4]

looks to me like a locking tab to me, i'd be either taking it back to who ever fitted it or remove it myself.

[joeblow]

its a locking tab for the seal housing bolts.

[TheOtherLeft]

It was installed about 3 years ago.

What would have caused it to come lose - poor installation, shock loading, wear and tear?

If the tab is gone does that mean the housing bolt will be lose?

[want33s]

In my locker those locking tabs were an extra to Loctite on the bolts.

I wouldn't be too worried about it.

[TheOtherLeft]

want33s wrote:

In my locker those locking tabs were an extra to Loctite on the bolts.

Sorry, I don't quite follow. Are you saying without the Loctite the tabs would come off anyway?

[want33s]

In my locker the bolts were Loctited AS WELL as having the locking tabs.
Loctite alone should hold them in place, so a missing lock tab shouldn't be a problem.

[atari4x4]

but being a locking tab shouldn't it be UNDER a bolt head?

[Fatzook]

atari4x4 wrote:

but being a locking tab shouldn't it be UNDER a bolt head?

Bingo!!

[TheOtherLeft]

How does this locking tab actually work? How does it stop the bolt from loosening, as in the ARB diagram it sits on top of the bolt head?

[atari4x4]

the diagram is wrong, they sit under the bolt head meaning the bolt isn't where it's ment to be.

you can sort of see them in this pic


i would be pulling your diff apart ASAP.

[TheOtherLeft]

Well if it goes under the bolt that would mean my bolt is completely out then.

What's weird is that the diff works completely fine, there are no strange noises, the airlocker works etc. I would've thought if the bolt is completely loose then it would make one helluva racket. Also when I changed my oil and stuck my finger in through the drain hole there was nothing loose rolling around.

[TheOtherLeft]

I just spoke to Luke at ARB Kilsyth-Technical and yes the locking tab goes under the bolt head (ie like a washer) and for the tab to be lose the bolt must be fully out... and there's no way I could miss a lose bolt floating around the diff when being driven.

Maybe the installer didn't install the locking tab at all and it dropped into my diff during assembly???

[atari4x4]

TheOtherLeft wrote:

Maybe the installer didn't install the locking tab at all and it dropped into my diff during assembly???

from my understanding there is no reason for the installer to be undoing the bolts that have the locking tabs on them when fitting the diff.

i'd say the bolt is somewhere inside your diff.

[Fatzook]

atari4x4 wrote:

TheOtherLeft wrote:

i'd say the bolt is somewhere inside your diff.

Not sure about that. But its definately worth pulling the centre to be sure. If the bolt had been floating around for any amount of time you would expect it to have made contact with the CW&P by now......= big mess!

[tanshi]

unless they are different to the sierra ones, they punch down over the top of the bolt head. They dont sit under

[TheOtherLeft]

atari4x4 wrote:

TheOtherLeft wrote:

Maybe the installer didn't install the locking tab at all and it dropped into my diff during assembly???

from my understanding there is no reason for the installer to be undoing the bolts that have the locking tabs on them when fitting the diff.

i'd say the bolt is somewhere inside your diff.

That was my next question... so the retaining bolts should've been tightened at ARB during assembly of the locker and then doesn't need to be undone when installing into my diff. Is it in anyway connected to the ring gear? I'm just trying to work out when the bolt would've been loosened.

Wouldn't a bolt floating around my diff cause a helluva noise?

[TheOtherLeft]

tanshi wrote:

unless they are different to the sierra ones, they punch down over the top of the bolt head. They dont sit under

So which one is it? Over the top of the bolt head or under? I assume the lockers across the board will all be the same design.

[Fatzook]

tanshi wrote:

unless they are different to the sierra ones, they punch down over the top of the bolt head. They dont sit under

Jimny are the same as this. They get tapped down over the bolt head after tightening

[tanshi]

either way. i would pull the diff out just to make sure its not a loose bolt.

[joeblow]

Fatzook wrote:

atari4x4 wrote:

but being a locking tab shouldn't it be UNDER a bolt head?

Bingo!!

no, these sit on the head of the bolt and lock into the grooves of the double hex head and the casting of the locker. one may not have been instaled correctly and yes they have lock tight on the bolts also. have a look at the ring in the tab and see if you can spot where the double hex has bitten into it. if you can'r see a double hex pattern than i would be worried the bolt may have come loose too.