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Locking Rear Diff in auto '00

1495 Views 12 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  AdamF
Greetings fellow 4runner owners. I just picked up a '00 SR5 with 82,000 miles. I intend to use it for light off-roading and as a daily driver in the winter.

My question is whether the Locking Rear Diff comes standard on the automatic SR5 in the 2000 model year? Was it an option? If optional, how do I check if my rig has it?

I only go 4 wheeling when I'm at off road parks that I haul my quads and dirtbikes to. I'll usually unhitch my trailer for a few hours and tool around in the sand or gravel. I really don't like destroying my paint, so I keep it pretty basic and safe when I hit the trails. Is it worth upgrading to the locking rear diff if thats all I plan on doing?

Thanks.
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i am pretty sure it doesn't come standard cuz i have an 00 SR5 4runner and it doesn't have it.

I doubt you'd need one for what you're talking about doing.
I'm 99% sure that it is NOT an option on the 00 and later 4Runners. Toyota changed the 4wd system to include a center locking diff and eliminated the rear e-locker. And I agree with the above poster - you don't need a locker for what you are talking about. I do far more difficult stuff in my rig without a locker.
If there is no button left of the steering wheel that says RR DIFF. then you don't have it.
It WAS an option in 2000 4x4 4Runners. If you don't have the switch, you don't have the locker.
my gf just got an 01 sr5 4runner and it has the center lock button can someone explain why this is good and what it does exactly???
yota4me said:
my gf just got an 01 sr5 4runner and it has the center lock button can someone explain why this is good and what it does exactly???
a locking center diff is one type of 4wd system - it "locks" the front wheel in, so they pull full time, just like the rears, as compared to the all wheel drive systems that are gaining popularity (where the rear push all the time, the fronts only kick in when the rears slip/spin).
Correct. But more importantly, the center diff lock, when UNLOCKED, allows you to drive in 4wd on pavement, because it can differentiate the speed the front and rear axles travel, to allow a change in speed for turns.

If your truck doesn't have a center diff lock button, you CANNOT drive on the street in 4wd without binding the system.

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