Hi garbage,
I have done this mod and would do it again & again & again & again etc etc ( you get the picture
)
Driving goes something like this:
If it gets in the way then just drive over it without fuss
Mud and dirt - don't even notice is there until you lift a front wheel and you just don't stop
Rocks and rutty ( and I mean severe ruts
) - pick your line and go for it. Your vehicle will climb until it falls over if you want
. If the traction is there it is damn hard to stop a locked up Kick really ( I am assuming you drive in an appropriate fashion of course, eg: you drive around things that will belly you out ).
My only gripe - when you are descending down a really tight trail and it is pretty steep the locker tends to resist your steering input because the force being applied effectively locks it slightly ( a lot of weight is transferred to the front end in descents ). Solution: Give it a small amount of gas to unlock it temporarily OR drop back into 2WD for the turn ( I have not had to do this yet on my Kick though but it will work if needed. Had to do it on my Sammie occasionally because of no power steering ).
So far we have been running front lockrites with the aluminium and stock cv's etc with no breakages, so the front end will last for a while. HOWEVER we will be upgrading to steel pretty soon because we know the alloy will eventually break apart. We drive to survive but if you saw some of the trails we run you would not think so - lockers, a mans best freind
Our vehicles are 135hp V6 Kick autos running 33" Wranglers. The auto is very kind to drive train components and this helps keep the alloy together. If you are running a manual tranny then consider steel and cv / half shaft upgrades sooner than later.
Hope this helps.
ZeusZuki
