It seems to me they would be much stronger due to the reduction of the diff (resistive force created by kinetics from moving vehicle goes backwards through diff so ...) but then you would have an increased likelihood of diff explosion. It looked to me like these things use a standard open diff with spiders (but then I may not have been looking at the pieces correctly) which would seem to allow one wheel to freewheel with a pinion lock up (reverse of traction loss).
As a bonus, the loss of critical mechanicals and rotational weight at the wheels would seem to provide in increase in responsiveness (albeit small) and longevity.
That is just from the outside looking in though. I would still think an automatic would be prefered to keep the drivetrain happy in a panic situation. That won't fix any related diff explosions though.
Smike, when you getting some? [size=78%] [/size]
