The vanishing manual locking hub

Following earlier items on the Land Cruiser 70 Series wagon and on forgetting to lock manual hubs, it occurred to me that this device has all but disappeared from new vehicles, replaced by various types of automatic locking arrangements. The only vehicles I can think of still offering manual front hub locks are the members of the Land Cruiser 70 family. And you could probably include the Nissan Patrol, whose hubs can be locked manually or automatically. Have I missed any?

About the hubs: Wikipedia has a good article on the subject here.

Wanking up the Wrangler

What a difference a year makes. Take a look at the top photo, the dash of the just-out 2011 Jeep Wrangler, and compare it to the second photo of the 2010 model. What do you see? I see in the top photo an attempt to direct the Wrangler further from its off-road core. I see it as a wanked-up, suburbanised dash designed to appeal to people who will never take the vehicle's tyres off the tarmac. The 2010 (the same dash design that has been used since 07) is functional and tells me I'm in an
off-roader. It's one of the best dashboards of any "proper" current production 4WD, especially after Land Rover ballsed-up the Defender in 2007.

I guess it's an evolutionary thing and while I really don't like the new design 4wdnewz is not arguing that Jeep should (quite) go back to the CJ-5, an early 1970s example of which is at left.

Everything you ever needed to know about the JK Wrangler and how to modify it is right here at this excellent US site, including information that's worth having if you ever have to fight Chrysler on a warranty issue.

The warm glow of superiority

Just back from a rain sodden trip along a track south of Auckland. Came across a stuck Toyota Surf. The driver had done this and that, tried it in low range, tried it in high range, and it just sat there spinning its wheels in the slush. I studied the situation for a minute, went to the front wheels and locked the manual hubs. "Try it now." The Surf drove out like it was on tarmac. How common a mistake is that? How big a prat do you feel when you've made it? How superior do you feel when you've fixed it for someone else? I can now answer both the second and third!

About the hubs: Wikipedia has a good article on the subject here.

Winter's mud and slush … who needs words?