I've driven a lot of trucks with Lockrights and Detroits. Always manual trans. They lock and unlock with the throttle.

I finally tried one with an automatic. Did not care for that. Might as well have installed a spool. The auto never lets up on input torque, so it doesn't release. Swapped that whole diff into a cummins truck (5spd) where it works 'properly'.

IMO, go with a Ford 9", and run a $30 mini-spool.

 

An auto locker will unlock any time the outside tire tries to spin faster than the carrier. Doesn't matter if you are on the throttle or not, I have them in manual and auto transmission vehicles they work great in both. The auto makes it less noticeable.

 

Sounds good in theory. I could not effectively jockey my trailers around tight quarters with an auto and lockright. BTDT.

 

Yours might have had something wrong with it, I have no problems backing trailers with my auto Jeep and Spartan locker.

 

No. It works perfectly... the whole rear end (Dana 60) went straight into a 5spd truck where the lockright behaves just like its supposed to.

Auto and stick don't work the device the same. Input torque with the auto is continuous.

 

If it acted like a spool the whole time you had the auto in gear then it wasn't working correctly, that isn't how an auto locker should work.

 

I have another Lockright in another truck, also 5speed, works the same - like its supposed to. Just like the Detroit I had in a 5spd F350, and a Ptrax No-Slip in a 6spd Jeep.

Buddy put a Detroit in his chevy 14bolt. Auto truck... same beef about being a spool 99% of the time.

 

What makes you think it's acting like a spool? Sometimes it's easy to chirp the inside tire on a turn, but that is because all the torque is going to the inside tire since the outside tire uncouples during a turn, it isn't because it's staying locked.

 

The cross-pin in the diff engages both sides of the lockright simultaneously (i.e. both axle shafts) on torque input.

With a manual, you let off the gas; push in the clutch, and/or shift to neutral to remove the torque input - and it unlocks.

 

An auto locker is always locked reagadless of torque, the springs keep it engaged, the cross pin is what transfers the torque to the side gears. In a turn the slack in the locker will allow the outside axle shaft to uncouple and turn faster than the carrier while the inside tire is the one being driven by the engine torque.