a1990camarors

been throwing this back and forth and dont know wich way too go. This will be a street driven vehical a DD in the summer. Should i go with a Eaton posi or a powertrax locker for a daily driver? Are is either one a fine? bc theres def a diffrence in price lol I have a 9inch with a spool in the other car but thats a drag only car of course lol.

ryan91rs

iTrader: (1)

the powertrax is nice. i've heard good things. Plus it's easy to install and you don't have to worry about setting up the rear again like if you put in a new carrier.

a1990camarors

ya ive heard alot of good things about powertrax i also know eaton has always been a proven name. I def like the easiness of install on the powertrax especially since my gearing is fine for right now its a v6 car so its probably a 3.42 wich is just fine until i do a ls1 swap.

joshh44

yeah i heard good things about them as well.
do you know how much it costs?
i was thinking of picking my self up with one of thos.
only if the price is right.

a1990camarors

well im looking at a older year one magazine and theres a powertrax lock right and a powertrax no-slip traction system dont know wich one lmao ill search it when i get home today. first one is $397 other is $439 so theres a diffrence lol

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Man, no wonder they're still selling those things. You guys really have no clue how miserable it is to run a Powertrash unit in a street car huh? Take it from someone who ran one for quite a few years. Just say no. I put one in for the same reason that you guys posted, to get out of having to mess with the carrier setup. Trust me, it wasn't worth it. From the prices quoted above, it's worth every single penny more to go with the Eaton. Back when I bought the Powertrash, I only spent about $200 for one, and it was still a waste of money. If you like your car to jerk, bang, and make ratcheting noises all the time, then you might actually want the Powertrash unit.

a1990camarors

lol that makes me lean towards eaton lol. Plus ive never had a problem with eaton lockers ive had a few one jeeps just dint know about powertrax i guess ill see wut a few more ppl have too say before i decide

//<86TA>\\

iTrader: (15)

i ran a powertrax for a little while, i got it second hand, so i got it cheap, i would never again buy one, way to jerky, snaps and pops and weird times, though i broke an axle once cause it banged so loud, not worth it, just get a posi.

If you mash the gas when turning, and the powertrax is "separate", you will do a great 1 wheel peel, and thats it, and i had it pop open in a straight line launch, because of a little wheel hop

a1990camarors

ya thats too touchy for me im not going too have a locker screw me in a corner and flip me are make me lose control sounds like ill just go with eaton thanks for the input.

ryan91rs

iTrader: (1)

powertrax runs fine, just install it right. i know peopl running them in their g bodies and have heard no compliants. if they ratchet then you got a bad one.

a1990camarors

Think ill just go with eaton at least i know then for sure then theyv proven themselves too me.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Dude, get some experience before dishing out any more advice. How the hell could anyone manage to install one wrong? They only go together one way, and since they all "ratchet", that means they're all bad. In other words, a shitty design to begin with. 86T/A just described the EXACT same symptoms as mine had, along with just about everyone else who's actually used one. If you mostly drag race, they're fine, but if you use your car mainly for street driving (i.e. lots of turns), you'll hate it. Mine launched hard and straight when racing. Hey 1990RS, you don't want the Eaton locker either, they like to grenade when used on the street, hence the nickname "grenade-lock". The correct name is Gov-Loc, but the nickname fits better. The Eaton clutch style posi is the one you want in a street machine. The Gov-Locs survive in the dirt since there's a lot of slippage, but when they lock up hard on dry pavement, BOOM! If you're set on using a locker, you might want to give the Detroit True-Trac a shot. I've never used one, but there's a few guys on here running them that seem to be happy with them.

a1990camarors

My bad Pat Hall. I am planning on using the clutch style posi. I was just refering too Eaton lockers i have in a jeep for offroading. Ive never been a fan of trusting them on street drivin cars. Ive been looking at detroit too i like em also just depends on wut i feel like when i make the purchase lol.

KrisW

iTrader: (5)

I hate to see parts get bashed too bad without at least one detractor.

I ran a lock-rite for years myself and was quite happy. It was in a 4 wheel drive and I actually broke a driveshaft in half while racing it. The locker is tough. I didn't care about the noise.

The reason Powertrax has another design out besides the lock rite is because of the complaining. It's okay, but not as tough as the original.

Me, personally, I dont' care about the noise. I like lockers. I don't like clutches and crap that wear out. I have never had a lock rite come loose and give me a one wheel peel.

I prefer the old cone-clutch detroit locker to everything. The lock-rite is an alternative that I have used.

THEY'RE NOT ALL BAD and sometimes clutch type posi units fail as well. The gov-lock should never be considered. They all come apart under my right foot...

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Hey 1990RS, I feel better now. Lol. Just wanted to make sure you weren't actually considering the Grenade-Lock. Hey Kris, I do agree that the Powertrax unit is damn tough. I ran mine for 10 years, and it didn't even have a blemish on any of the teeth or the center pin. Mine was the "performance" unit that's made of zytanium. I don't bash on them at all from a durability standpoint. They're just too clunky, jerky, noisy, etc. for most people to deal with in a daily driver. When it comes to clutch style units, I always recommend the Eaton due to the fact that it's easily rebuildable when the clutches wear out, unlike the Auburns. I'm running the factory Auburn unit in mine right now, and I'm sure it'll bite the dust eventually, especially once I get the new, badass motor in there next spring. The next posi I'm going to try is the factory Zexel-Torsen unit from a 4th gen. There's no clutches to wear out, it operates smoothly, and there's 4th gen guys running in the 11's using them with no issues. Paid a hell of a lot less for one compared to a brand new Eaton too. I snagged one on ebay that came out of a '00 T/A with only 40K on it, and it even included a 3.42 ring/pinion, and only paid about $140. It really boils down to what your budget is, how smooth you want it to act, and what the primary use (drag, street/strip, etc.) of your car is going to be.

ryan91rs

iTrader: (1)

wow someone has their panties in a bunch and by installing wrong i mean i know people that have misplaced one of the small springs and had to compromise with a different one. and before you feel high and mighty again, remember, i don't come down on people like that so just chill.

I'm here for fun and i was just giving my 2 cents.

heaven forbid i say something without consulting an expert like yourself. next time i will ask you majesty for permission to speak.
i lied.

BTW why give advice on a posi you have never used? hmmmm.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Which posi are you referring to? As stated above, I ran the Powertrax unit for about 10 years, so that should more than qualify. Never personally ran the Gov-Loc, but I've seen tons of posts on here, including pics, of what they look like after an explosion. Nothing getting bunched up here. Just trying to help a fellow member not spend a lot of money on something that's so annoying in how it operates, that you usually end up regretting it. I'm willing to bury the hatchet if you are dude. Definitely not all high and mighty on this end, just been toying with these cars for almost 20 years now, and trying to give sound advice from what I've learned in all that time. Peace out.

KrisW

iTrader: (5)

I'll go with that.

I first started fixing them in HMMWV trucks in the Navy. They are tough with not many parts to break. We used to call them the "meat grinder" posi unit.

I still think lockers are tougher. I DID have to replace Zexel-Torsen units once in a while; I never had to replace a Detroit locker...

I think if the price was right I would use the "meat grinder" as well...