Why Strong Diff Housings Are a Must for Your Next 4WD Adventure

Summer is here and wheeling season is in full swing! Nothing beats blasting up the beach for a day of sand and surf with your family or mates (or both) or heading for the A-grade tracks to test out your new rubber and suspension upgrades you bought over the winter. However, nothing ruins a wheeling trip quicker than failed parts, especially when you're in a remote location with no phone signal and you're on your own.

One of the common causes for failure is the humble differential housing. They're a critical part of your driveline but are often overlooked on most people's mod lists, which is a shame, because if your stock housing fails, the consequences can be severe. A heavy duty diff housing upgrade is not just a modification for increased strength, better suspension geometry, increased cooling and easier serviceability, it's also an essential insurance policy against catastrophic failure when you're somewhere roadside assistance has never heard of. Superior Engineering not only has the solution, but also the expertise and decades of industry experience to provide you with the strongest axle solutions built for serious off-road and long-distance driving.

The Threats Your Diff Housing Faces Offroad

Driving off-road, while more fun than just about anything else, is a series of tests of your rig versus the harshest conditions mother Nature can throw in its path. Factory parts are commonly overwhelmed and left bloodied and bruised by any combo of the following:

Physical Impact and Rock Strikes

Rock crawling is the most technical driving for the off-road faithful. Rutted tracks, off-camber sections, boulder gardens and steep ledges are the stuff of crawling dreams, but they're also where the lowest hanging part of your rig (your diff housings) can make contact, often with more than enough force to result in serious damage.

The problem is that factory housings are made from thin steel that's easily dented, pierced or cracked on impact, leading to oil loss and eventual diff destruction. If you've lost all your oil and your diff has overheated to the point of self-welding itself together, you're not going anywhere soon. Not great if you're a few hundred kays west of Karratha.

Extreme Torque and Torsional Stress

Your diff housings also have to absorb all of the resultant forces generated from climbing steep inclines, hauling out of a bog hole or climbing a rock ledge with the lockers in and the right boot planted. The low-range-amplified torque, which is given another boost through upgraded engines, can easily cause the weak factory axle tubes to bend or break at the welds. Next minute you're wondering why your axles and suspension arms no longer line up properly and you're up for new bearings, seals, shafts and side gears on the diff.

Excessive Heat and Oil Degradation

High load driving, which is when you're towing heavy vans and boats or driving sustained low speed terrain (crawling) can and will lead to your diff oil overheating. The stock housings have very poor heat dissipation so they can't effectively cool themselves and as the heated oil breaks down it loses its lubrication properties and increases wear and tear on the internal components. Next stop: diff failure.

In short, factory housings are simply not built to handle heavy off-roading and touring and in tough conditions is likely to let you down, leaving you both stranded and out of pocket.

The Critical Benefits of an Upgraded Off-Road Diff Housing

This is why an upgraded heavy-duty diff housing is the solution to the above problems.

Diff Housing With Unmatched Strength and Protection

By using high strength Chromoly and thicker plate construction, the Superior Engineering upgraded diff housing has the ability to withstand severe physical impacts without damage, so you can tackle the rocky sections with confidence.

Superior Rigidity and Driveline Alignment

With fabricated diamond centres and thicker, internally reinforced axle tubes, you can safely and confidently put your vehicle's maximum torque loads through these housings without concern for bending tubes or breaking welds. They also maintain precise axle alignment and keep the shafts, gears, OEM bearings and seals exactly where they're meant to be.

Thermal Management and Component Life

The materials used in the construction of the Superior Engineering housing upgrades transfer heat much more efficiently than the factory units, keeping the fluid and the internals much cooler and prolonging their life. Cooling fins are often used to make this process even more effective. The oil lasts longer, there's less wear and tear on expensive gearsets and the maintenance is quicker and easier.

Secure Your Differential Before Your Next Offroad Trip

Superior Engineering have been around for decades and have always been among the best quality brands available in Australia and all over the world. The heavy-duty upgraded diff housings continue that legacy of brilliant engineering coupled with a deep working knowledge and experience of what works in a 4WDing context and what doesn't.

Superior Engineering have built and driven everything from super-tourers to hardcore Ultra-4 rig and everything in between giving them a unique industry position and making them the market leaders in driveline solutions. If they sell it, you can be sure that it works, simple as that.

The chromoly steel used in the diff housing upgrade is superior to any factory diff's metal (it's why the same stuff is used in top-spec roll cages) with much higher strength and more fatigue resistant than the thin factory steel. The diamond centre design is the ultimate solution for rigidity and structural integrity for the diff pumpkin, which is crucial for extreme use. It also has easily accessed plugs for quick and easy services, making it practical as well as functional.

Superior Engineering offers a huge range of options for these diff housings, building them to suit virtually every popular make and model with custom track correction and optional additions to suit everyone's needs. The Superior Engineering housing is the guarantee that a major driveline component won't fail and end your trip on the bed of a very expensive flatbed.

Your Checklist for an Off-Road Ready Driveline

• INSPECT: Always check your diff housing for any leaks, dents or stress cracks before a major trip.
• ACKNOWLEDGE LIMITS: Understand factory components are not designed for repeated heavy impacts or high stress. Drive accordingly or plan to upgrade ASAP.
• PRIORITISE: We've all heard the adage 'lockers over lightbars', and this is a continuation of that theme. A heavy-duty diff housing should be a higher priority than some flash rims or that LED whip aerial you've been eyeing off.
• INVEST: Think of the expense of a tow home from the middle of the Simmo or Bamaga. It's not a pretty figure (unless you're the towie). A diff housing upgrade is an investment against expensive trail failures.