Front Diff Lock Issues

[hecks]

I was wondering if anyone else w/ a Bruteforce has had any problems with their front diff locks ? As I have had some problems. First off, my front diff lock would stick on in 2-wheel drive, and not come off, seems that the lever into the case would hang up, keeping it engaged. Dealership thought they had the issue fixed after having it for a month; upon getting my quad back in late fall, the issue had not been fixed. I went for a day ride and ended up blowing it apart. I mean 4" to 5" cracks all over the housing. Took it back to the dealership again, and they replaced the diff under warranty, keeping the quad most of the winter to repair. I've since put on a day's riding this year and same issue is still happening with the diff lock being on in 2WD. Maybe the cable is hanging it up ? I should try some cable lube, or mounting a spring on the case lever to hold it down from engaging. Just looking for any suggestions, as riding for a with your diff lock on for the summer is a little hard on the old arms.!

[KDX MIKE]

Cable Lube Would Definitly Be A Start And There Is Also A Cable Adjustment At The Diff. Just As Another Tip You Can Get A Pin Diff Lock From Highlifter So You Dont Have To Hold The Lever The Whole Time You Are In Dif Lock.

[ApexMtn]

Ya, friend of mine blew his up too! Same issues, but Kawi Dealer claimed Front diff was full of water. Hmmm, guess they should have tightned everything up after they serviced it .. !! Kawi ended up replacing it for few hours labour..... !! BS in my mind but better than nothing!

I have the opposite problem with having to adjust the cables tighter. Not many miles yet, and it's getting to the point where the stretch seems to be gone now!

Hope you get er solved!!


CHEERS!!!!!

[slvrbrt]

Tightening the fill and drain plugs will not keep out water, it gets sucked in past the seals as the diff heats and cools. I generally check mine after most rides, and there is almost always water.

The front diff is the weak point on the Kawi quads, but they hold up ok if treated right. That said, I have blown up a couple of them. I no longer try to launch out of mud holes with the front end slamming back onto the ground at full throttle.

Also, started running the wetbrake fluid in the front, same as in the rear, seems to make for nicer action on the difflock.

[kerryw]

Originally Posted by slvrbrt

Tightening the fill and drain plugs will not keep out water, it gets sucked in past the seals as the diff heats and cools. I generally check mine after most rides, and there is almost always water.

The front diff is the weak point on the Kawi quads, but they hold up ok if treated right. That said, I have blown up a couple of them. I no longer try to launch out of mud holes with the front end slamming back onto the ground at full throttle.

Also, started running the wetbrake fluid in the front, same as in the rear, seems to make for nicer action on the difflock.

that's an interesting bit of info.

[fargineyesore]

Originally Posted by slvrbrt

Tightening the fill and drain plugs will not keep out water, it gets sucked in past the seals as the diff heats and cools. I generally check mine after most rides, and there is almost always water.

The front diff is the weak point on the Kawi quads, but they hold up ok if treated right. That said, I have blown up a couple of them. I no longer try to launch out of mud holes with the front end slamming back onto the ground at full throttle.

Also, started running the wetbrake fluid in the front, same as in the rear, seems to make for nicer action on the difflock.

Do you replace the oil after every ride?

[barrone]

I just had my diff apart on my 05 brute force. I have the manual, and verified this.
The brute force has clutch plates in the diff which act as a limitedslip, in addtion to the diff lock which is operated by your lever.
So, when your lever is not pulled, the clutch plates are operating, this is a limited slip, and in the manual it states that if you make sure its in 2wd, lift the front tires off the ground and hold one tire from turning, take the other tire off and put a tourque wrench on the cv shaft nut, it should take 11 - 14 foot lbs with the diff lock lever released, and over 116 ft lbs if the lever is pulledFull lock), to turn the tire.
\
I found this out because I tried to hold one wheel and turn the other, and found I could do it by hand with tires on,but it felt stiff and it took a bit of effort. . This is the limited slip clutch plates at work in the diff, and is normal. When I pull the locker lever, there is no way I can spin one wheel and hold the other one by hand.
So you will feel some tension when steering, but it should be much less than when the lever is applied.
If you find the torque mentioned above is correct and the steering is still too difficult , you could add a limited lip additive or limited slip oil as mentions above in this post. YOu may lose some of your limited slip action when the lever is not pulled, but you can still pull the lever and lock it whenever you want.

If you cannot turn one wheel by hand while holding the other one still, I would suspect the dealer did not get the clutch preload right, and future damage could occur.

The info is on page 12-45 of the manual, you should be able to still download it at this site.