Okay, I finally got to test my 1999 off-road.
I had been told and have read that the 1999 TT4 technology wasless than optimal for off-roading.. And, now I have first hand experience! I was hoping to be pleasantly surprised with TT4 in action. I abosultely was not impressed! My truck needs a diff locker bad! Currently, with only TT4, its a little embarrassing..
Thanks for the advice a couple weeks ago when I asked about the Auburn locker.
After this weekend my locking diff project has been bumped up the list.
Is the TT4 in 1999s really that bad or am I being unfair?? Did it really get better in 2000 - 2003?



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1998 H1s are very popular and one reason is that they were the most refined H1 before TT4 was introduced.A lot ofpeople don't care for the TT4.

 

tt4 blows -- that's why amg put lockers in the trucks starting in '03. The t-1 torsen diffs ('98 and before) are great for btm -- the t-2 diff (starting in '99) have a much reduced bias ratio to accomodate the abs system. I heard the bias ratios improved over the years, but never got as good as the pre-99 diffs. If you wheel alot lockers are the way to go, at least in the rear. I have a rear detroit and love it. As the trails get tougher I'm wanting a front locker to ease the stress on the t-case during heavy btm'ing. I haven't decided on which locker to put in the front yet -- a detroit or auburn.

rb

 

Glad I'm not the only one who thinks tt4 blows.
I'll likely be putting an Auburn locker in the rear as soon as possible.
Until I get that locker in I will be keeping my truck on the "low down" as far as off-roading goes. Right now it is not impressing anyone.. Hmmm, maybe some of the problemscould be the driver... but right now I am going to blame tt4!

 

I don't have a tt4 truck but know several who do. The trick is to keep a steady throttle and give the tt4 time to engage -- your instincs will tell you to let off just before the truck engages. Once you let off the gas it cancels it and the whole process starts over again.

 

ronb tackles some stuff most of us mere mortals shy away from. Get a rear locker and you will be fine. You can blame the TT4 but we know the truth. LOL

 

don't give me too much credit -- my butt puckers just as much as the next guy. I was on a run this weekend with a gent who had a rear detroit, and stock t-2 torsen/ tt4 in the front. He ended up breaking a halfshaft on a rock climb -- probably because the rear was doing all the work with little to no help from the front. In the truck's defense it was a heavy truck (decked out '01/'02 wagon, roofrack with all the goodies, 39.5 iroks) and he might have been letting off the gas before the tt4 fully engaged. He was being pretty gentle too, not heavy on the gas at all. It was a rebuilt halfshaft so...?

rb

 

Were you at Big Bear this weekend or somewhere else? I know some guys that went to Big Bear and was talking to them Sunday. Someone broke a half shaft climbing up a rock shelf. Anyway they sounded like similiar circumstances.

 

yep, same trip. It was fun, but too many trucks (15 total -- it's nice to keep it at 8 or less) and we got a pretty late start.

There were holes dug by other vehicles in infront of these two rocks. Got the front up fine, the back was just slipping. He was being pretty good about not spinning the tires/hammering the gas. I think it was a combo of the wagon's weight, the halfshaft being a rebuilt one (maybe there was a problem with the cv not apparent to the rebuilder?), and the tt4 sucking **** and not helping. The rear was doing all the work.

 

rb, there was a batch of rebuilt halfshafts out there that had some problems a while ago - did the shaft itself break? I had a couple of rebuilt shafts that snapped when they shouldn't have, and you could see the flaws in the metal where the shaft broke.

Oh, and yes - TT4 is terrible, especially the earlier iterations. A locker will improve the capability of the truck significantly -- there is a big difference between systems that prevent wheelspin, and those that respond after they sense wheelspin.