I have no idea if what's in there from the factory can be made to work or not. I've never torn that stuff apart, but I seem to remember the factory setup being some not-round pieces that are molded into the rubber. Have to look under there to be sure.
I've not had any problems so far. But I will tell you this. One time on my way back from Colorado, I had it in 4wd on the highway because the ice was so bad. When the speeds picked up a bit, closer to 40, I got some bad vibration and it literally grumbled and popped itself out of 4wd while I was driving.
Perhaps that could've been avoided with things being lower. But honestly, I'm not racing and I tend to drive off road on the more conservative side, meaning not attacking the skinny pedal so much. That's helped keep the breakage to a minimum.