May I ask what the common failure is with the disconnect system? I've kept my vacuum lines clear, but otherwise never messed with the axle end or transfer case side of things and never had an issue with shaft breakage, disengagement, or failure to engage. I've wheeled the thing fairly hard on 32" tires and used it in the snow many, many times. Its nice to have the front diff. free-wheeling when you're highway cruising, though I'm not sure exactly how much MPG is gained (it has to be something,) not to mention maybe slightly less wear and tear on the big parts of the differential. If it were easy or cheap to utilize the old-fashioned manual "lock-out" hubs of yesteryear on our stock HPD30s I might consider doing away with my factory disconnect feature, but who actually likes having to get out and manually lock/unlock the hubs...:P