Front locking hubs - cannot turn locking/unlocking dial

Hi Guys,

I have just bought a 2009 DX which is immaculate and I love it, but I have just noticed that the front locking hubs appear to be siezed up or permanently locked. (It's an ex mine managers car) I can't turn the black locking/unlocking mechanism at all, even with a pair of vice grips. Does anyone know if the mines lock them in somehow so they can't be disengaged? Considering they are in the LOCK position, can I unbolt them and take them out to clean them or replace them? I noticed they have been getting a bit warm after a drive, so should I be replacing them and is it a drama to have them locked all the time? They are the older style GQ locking hubs.

Cheers,

Scotty

Hi mate,

6 Allen Key bolts and it will be in your hand! take it off and strip it down. Really simple and you wont wreck it bud. Wash it out and clean it up then repack with clean grease.

You might consider in the very near future giving the front end a full kit, seals and bearings mate.

Good luck.

i would pull them apart and service them and it should be ok for a little while to drive with them locked youll use a bit more fuel though

Not hard to do and should not be to serious.... you'll understand how it all works once you get in there and have a look...

Thanks guys, yeh I have taken hubs off on my GQ before to do wheel bearings etc, i just wasn't sure if they were going to be different when in the locked position. Thanks again :)

mark it first with a white marker then remove them, wipe all the crap out & dose it with WD40 & let it sit overnight, clean it thoroughly & fill it with grease inside the hub, not the large centre area, turn the lock on & off several times as your loading the grease, this will help it get right into everywhere, dont load the large centre area full of grease as this can cause it not to operate correctly, just put a smear in there, bolt them back on in the same location & same side with some gasket goo or a smear of silicone, if it is difficult to access with an allen key put a ring spanner on the end for leverage, if its still difficult to access take the tyre off & have someone apply the brake as your cracking each bolt, make sure the allen key is a snug fit otherwise it will damage the key or bolt or both, this should see it last you a good 2 years before you have to do it again, basically this should be done everytime you repack the bearings, you have it all apart anyway

Rather interesting.
Why are the older GQ manual lockers installed? Having had both, I'd prefer the GQ's so I guess the mine mechs must have agreed and done a change over.
My current ride is a GQ ex Highways Dept. out of Pt.Augusta and it's given me a few frights (the auto lockers that is) but I've never had either type lock up on me.
The advice above is good but it's interesting to note that the manual says the lockers should be in the LOCK position before removal (manual ref FA-13) and yet on the very same page, if when reinstalling, there is a clearance problem, it may be caused by the hub assembly being in the lock position. Go figure!!!!
I guess you've got the manual pages printed off in front of you so it should be pretty straightforward. Good luck and please keep us posted on the result.
Col

Thanks guys. I've taken the hubs off and tried everything to clean them and free them up with no luck, so I have bought brand new ones and waiting for them to arrive. For the time being I have swapped the ones from my GQ as they were in good condition, until the new ones get here. Now, as I took them off when the hubs were in lock position, I took the gq ones off and set them them to lock before installing on the new truck. They went on fine and once on I turned them to unlock. My question is though, does this essentially mean that they are actually unlocked? Short of finding a track and waiting to check for loss of traction, is there anything else I can do to check for lock/unlock operation?

Thanks,

Scotty

That should be fine mate. They will be unlocked.

Sent you a pm

I think the hubs have been loctited into the locked position so they couldn't be taken out of lock, as I cannot even budge them in a vice with a serious pair of multi grips etc. Someone suggested soaking them in Kero or diesel. Kero hasn't worked. Will keep them as spares if only I can free them up!

Scotty