Trac-Lok

Who here has the most knowledge on the Trac-Lok?

We recently picked up the '98 Grand and the rear differential is doing interesting things. I suspect that the clutches are not releasing which is causing the symptom. I am also suspecting that is is a Trac-Lok back there... It was the only limited slip that was available, right?

What symptom you ask? In a tight turn (wheels hard into the turn lock) the outside rear wheel will chirp as though it is being dragged.

My question is:

Can this happen? I have heard of the clutches refusing to engage but, not let go?

Will appreciate responsible replies that do not include the "It is just junk throw it away" sort of theme. The Grand is the Wife's Street Jeep replacing the '96 Full Size Bronco she had before. At least I have her in a Jeep after nearly a decade of Ford...

Thanks in advance. I do not have experience with this limited slip as I tend to install Detroit Lockers.... Like what is in my XJ.

And yes, it is not an XJ question per se but.................. The silly diff came in the XJ as well.

friction modifier.

if you've not changed the fluids and added it, you will get weird clutch stuff.
I loved the LSD in the rear of the XJ for winter/street time. The locker is fun, but the LSD was transparent and just flat out worked.

We have not yet changed out the working fluids. Will give that a try and see what happens from there.

We have replaced the following:
1) Alternator (I always do on a "new to me" vehicle...)
2) Battery (see above...)
3) Both shafts in the front end as at least one of them were binding.
4) Fog lamps (broken so...)
5) Headlamp bulbs (see #1)

I realize that I have a very aggressive PM list for used vehicles but... I get peace of mind knowing that all is well under the hood. Which makes any vehicle purchased from me a real bargain as I only install new parts.......

Just curious, where in Ohio? We lived in Elyria for 8 years and liked it a great deal. But, the job that put us there moved us to Minneapolis. 2 years later.... I said good-bye to the job and moved back to Colorado Springs.

Yes, change the fluid and add friction modifier first.

One thing common you should also check on the 5.2L is for the leaking intake manifold pan.

We got lucky on this one, apparently, no oil leaks to speak of. Those that know me, now only too well how I feel about oil on my concrete...

IMO, the 5.2L (318) is just possibly the best Small Block out there. Back in the day, an amazing amount of Hp was produced out of these engines. Fun Fact: The Jeep version is the "Magnum" engine which means a roller camshaft. As far as I am aware, Jeep never did advertise this. Guess they felt that the sort of person that bought a Lead Sled would not care over much...

This is our second ZJ. The first got creamed in a parking lot "accident". Completely totaled by a bubbled headed bleached blonde driving Daddy's car. That one was a '93 Limited, this one is a '98 (so as to match my XJ...) Laredo SE which is almost a Limited but not quite... The important toys are there with the exception of the Vehicle Information Center.

O-Gauge Steamer said:

Just curious, where in Ohio? We lived in Elyria for 8 years and liked it a great deal. But, the job that put us there moved us to Minneapolis. 2 years later.... I said good-bye to the job and moved back to Colorado Springs.

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I know Elyria well. I grew up in the next county over. Living in Ashland now.

I've been kicking around getting a ZJ or WJ for fun.... not that I need another physical black hole of time and money, but nonetheless.

WE lived on 6th Street, just a block down from the High School. The house was built in 1865. 10' ceilings, transom windows over all of the doors, wrap around porch...

We would have moved it to here it it had been possible. Honest to goodness dimensional lumber. Could still see the saw marks on all of it. A real slice of history.

O-Gauge Steamer said:

WE lived on 6th Street, just a block down from the High School. The house was built in 1865. 10' ceilings, transom windows over all of the doors, wrap around porch...

We would have moved it to here it it had been possible. Honest to goodness dimensional lumber. Could still see the saw marks on all of it. A real slice of history.

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when did you leave? Cause that whole area has become a hole.

well, most of Elyria has become a hole if you want an honest opinion.
meth and heroin are a damned epidemic in lorain and cuyohoga counties.
Now that econoline production was shut down it's going to only get worse, but I did hear that Ford was going to bring truck production up there. Nice that they shut down the econoline plant a year after the state/county made a whole new interchange for them that cost a gajillion dollars.

Sorry to hear that.

I guess it was a good thing then that we were pushed out. Had we stayed, the house would have been paid off in '99... As it is, the house we are in now will be paid off by my life insurance if you catch the drift...

At any rate............... I will take the Heep to the shop and get the fluids changed. It was on the "list of things to do" and now it has gone to the top of the list.

Will advise as to the outcome.

O-Gauge Steamer said:

Sorry to hear that.

I guess it was a good thing then that we were pushed out. Had we stayed, the house would have been paid off in '99... As it is, the house we are in now will be paid off by my life insurance if you catch the drift...

At any rate............... I will take the Heep to the shop and get the fluids changed. It was on the "list of things to do" and now it has gone to the top of the list.

Will advise as to the outcome.

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you got out at the peak. They shut the ford plant in 06 I think. Nothing but downhill since. No tax base, no associated manufacturing, nothing. The city is literally falling apart.

http://www.morningjournal.com/gener...cus-on-promoting-job-creation-business-growth

I had been wanting to get off of the road (Field Engineer) and so answered an ad for Brown & Sharp. they were wanting to install an on site Field Engineer in the Ford Engine plant to keep the Metrology tools in shape.

Once we sat down and spoke, they offered me a job basically the same as what I had, just paying way better. Had to turn it down as the Kid had shown up and I thought it a requirement for both parents to be involved.

I left Excellon Automation to go "back inside" as a Process Engineer. Turned out OK as my salary nearly doubled in the course of a couple of years. Good times and that helped more than can be said to position me where I am now that I am retired.

O-Gauge Steamer said:

We got lucky on this one, apparently, no oil leaks to speak of. Those that know me, now only too well how I feel about oil on my concrete...

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No, the leaking intake manifold pan will not leak outside the engine. The pan is on the bottom of the intake and isolates the intake from the engine oil. Its common for the gasket to fail. Remove intake tubing, open throttle blades and take a look at the bottom of the intake for oil. I also know how you feel about oil in the intake.

IMO, the 5.2L (318) is just possibly the best Small Block out there.

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5.2L, 225hp, 300 tq. stock form, not much so.

Fun Fact: The Jeep version is the "Magnum" engine which means a roller camshaft. As far as I am aware, Jeep never did advertise this. Guess they felt that the sort of person that bought a Lead Sled would not care over much...

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or even know what a cam is much less what a roller lifter is.

The important toys are there with the exception of the Vehicle Information Center.

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Does it have the cubby instead of the VIC?

No, it has the Graphic Display Module. Cute but not very helpful...

And you are right, I hate oil being anyplace it is not supposed to be.

When I alluded to the 318 being a good engine, I meant reliable and long lived. Nothing out of Detroit ever was an efficient engine. For that, you have to go to the Continent. See Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mercedes, BMW....

You get the idea. Even the British built efficient engines but then, gas prices being what they are and were, you need an engine that can produce tons (relatively speaking that is) of power whilst sipping at the fuel.

One of the biggest complaints the Europeans have about American Iron is that they gulp fuel only to deliver meager results. Well.... That and the fact that the average American car can only go in a straight line. Heaven forbid a turn in the road.

The 5.2/318 does have a few problems, notably cylinder head cracking issues between the ports (iirc, it does not cause oil/coolant mixing except in extreme cases, most people only discover the cracks when they have the engine apart for some other reason) and the intake plenum gasket issue that's already been described. Decent motor otherwise though, I wish more people made go-fast parts for them.

The 360 has the same issues, AFAIK.

Quick update.

Not a Trak-lok issue. It is the Viscous Coupler in the Transfer Case. Jeep dropped the oil out of it, pumped in the friction modifier and topped it off with oil. All is just fine now.

One disturbing thing here and this applies to all of the "AWD" TCs out there. The Coupler is no longer being made. So, be advised. If it goes out, unless you can source a NOS part from someplace, the entire TC will have to be tossed and replaced.

So, anyway, thanks for all of the hints and conversation.

As fate would have it... I just got an email from a fiend of mine telling me that Crown is making the coupler. So, not too bad then as it is only a $540.00 part...

OK, is is bad. But, cheaper than installing a new TC...

Crown makes it, but I have heard that that one fails in short order. One other option is a 242 swap. Although the VC issue typically effects steering in the front, not so much the rear.

Honestly, a 242 or even a 231 can be had for cheaper than 500$

Talyn said:

Although the VC issue typically effects steering in the front, not so much the rear.

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I know right? This is what took me down the Trac-Lok path to begin with. It was a strange issue. From what the good folk at Jeep told me, it looked like the working fluid had never been changed in the TC. Was some sort of a sludge in actuality. Nasty in any event.

Well.... ALL of the fluids are now good with the exception of the coolant which I will deal with here at the house. A good chemical clean followed by a nice mixture of Distilled water and antifreeze will be just the thing.

Any "new to me" vehicle I get under goes some basic part replacement. Alternator, Battery, Brake Pads, Coolant Clean, Headlight bulbs (yes, I know but he is an Engineer after all) and, if I do not already own one, an FSM is located and purchased.

Expensive? Depends on how you look at it. With the new parts installed, I get some peace of mind. This Heep is for the Wife so, I really need it to be dead reliable as she is a night worker. You know, start work at 11:00 and gets off at 7:30. Then she trundles off to the part time day job.

Kind of funny really, when we first married, I started work at 6:00 in the morning, got off at 2:30 and then went to the part time job where I worked until 6:00. Then, I would come home and work on the vehicles that were profit producers. Now she is the one doing the long hours. Must admit, it is better to be on this side of the long hours than the other.

Way back when, I was in the habit of picking up vehicles that had "issues", resolving those issues and selling them on. Usually (to be honest about it) the title was not changed into my name as it was not here for very long at all. 2 or 3 days at best.

And yes, Title Hopping is illegal in Colorado. Did not much care back then...