Review:
Toyota 8" Differential Guard
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| Http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/reviews/diff_guard/ |
Short Cuts |
| Author: Scott
Wilson June 2000 |
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At one time or another I think each of us has gotten distracted
while wheeling and regretted it. My most memorable time was on a relatively easy
trail, I took my eyes off the trail while chatting with my passenger. I had just
taken a quick look at the trail ahead and didn't see anything exciting, so I went
back to talking. What I had overlooked was a diff-eating rock. WHAM...and I
was suddenly at a dead stop.
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| Dented axle housing |
I got out to see just what I'd hit, and found that the rock I
overlooked had put a fist-sized dent in the axle housing, right where the ring gear
and differential are located. I was fortunate that the dent wasn't deep enough to
cause the ring gear to scrape. If the ring gear was hitting I would have had to tear
the entire front end down to pound the dent back if I wanted to continue wheeling that
day. It is also possible to make a dent deep enough to break or chip the ring gear.
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| Right out of the box |
Very simple design! |
The only piece of steel on a Toyota axle housing thin enough to
bend like this is the piece that covers the differential. Westec has an elegant
solution to protect this vulnerable spot. Westec sells a one piece, weld-on
differential guard.
As you can see from the pictures, the piece fits perfectly over
axle housing. This piece also keeps a very stock-look for the axle, almost as if
it was always meant to be there.
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Welded into place
Notice the large drain hole |
Top View |
The guard is made from 1/4" thick, mild-steel. 1/4" thick steel
is extremely beefy, and will stand up to a serious pounding in the rocks. The drain
hole is very large to help prevent mud from sitting behind the diff guard and causing
rust.
Installation requires a welder, but only takes minutes to do.
If you don't have a welder, a shop could weld this on for you, for a minimal fee.
The only prep-work involved is removing the paint right where the diff guard will
be welded in place. Both metal surfaces need to be clean before welding the diff
guard in place.
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| Already doing its job |
The Westec differential guard sells for $35 (US), that's about half the price of many
differential guards on the market. This product is great
insurance to make sure you spend your time wheeling instead of making repairs.
- Westec Equipment International Ltd.
Email
Dept ORN
1481 Dominion Street
North Vancouver, BC
Canada V7J 1B3
Phone (604) 988-1130
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