i dont understand LSD's
Turbo Mini Forums

hello all

please would someone be able to tell me the advantages if i were to fit an lsd to my car

personally i dont think it needs it as it seems quite tractable, although it sometimes will wheelspin in 4th whilst thrashing it and going round a corner (but would this be down to suspension set up?)

will it gain me much on my 60ft times (2.3 best so far at retro cars)

oh and im running a 4pin at the moment (3.44)

i dont think i need one, especially as it still gets used a lot on the road, but if it were to give me super gains i could consider it

if your suspension is setup perfect then your 60ft times will be exactly the same. It will help get rid of wheel spin out of the bends, but will make torque steer worse.

Edited by Jimster on 3rd Oct, 2005.

Team Racing

Just what he said...

I was going to go for one - but £500 is best spent elsewhere...

bugger that, the money can go on my van then!

I put an LSD in my track car, it was the best improvement I have ever made to it. Without it, in the wet it would tend to spin wheels easily, but mainly it has made it loads more sure-footed when accelerating round corners. Where as before it would understeer under power, the diff now pulls it in to the bend, meaning you can use less lock (less speed scrubbed off) and also get the power down earlier (better corner exit speeds).

If you only use your car on the road I wouldn't bother though, but if you are serious about some circuit work, I'd say it is a must.

ah yes - I was thinking from a road / drag racing slant...

Yes totally agree, the LSD has made little difference to "emergency starts", its benefits are seen mainly in the corners. I must say that it has also made the car a lot more sure-footed and less likely to lock one wheel when braking hard in the wet.

To drive the car fast enough on the road to get the diff really working is dangerous anyhow IMO.

ahha, ill wait a few years until it becomes more of a track car, then imagine it will become more of an important tool

your thougts on driving lsd dave ,??

Everyone knows that instructions only have to be read if the thing doesn't work....

My thoughts on driving a salsbury LSD equipped equipped mini:

No thanks. That is no longer a car I'd like to drive on the road.

Edited by turbodave16v on 3rd Oct, 2005.

what you can`t handle the power.lol.or the none turning feeeling as you head for the cliffs.lol

Everyone knows that instructions only have to be read if the thing doesn't work....

That was not pleasant!!!

LOL!

wasn`t for me either..... watching

Everyone knows that instructions only have to be read if the thing doesn't work....

personally i dont like lsd`s on tarmac / road, as i normally find it more of a struggle, in straight lines when i boot it, i like to go straight, not sideways lol ! of course they are a god send on loose stuff / snow / mud / any shail car park but nasty on hot sticky tarmac.. nowt wrose than belting into a bend and the car wants to go straight on......make sure you put a bin liner (or even bin laden) on ya seat !

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MikeRace, Mini13

each to there own I guess, But I found mine was bloody awesome when going around combe with slicks on.

Team Racing

Also it depends on the type of LSD you have fitted. Some of the older plate type diffs will cause the "straight on" sensation, these IMO are not really suitable for road use. The more road biased LSD's, such as the Quaife ATB are an excellent bit of kit, and do nothing to alter the balance or turn in of the car until you start to lose grip from a driven wheel.

The setup of a plate type diff is what gives it its charecteristics. The ramp angles in the diff play a huge part in this. These controll how much force is applied to the friction pack when accelerating or under engine braking. You can also adjust the shimming to give you an amount of prelaod in the diff, so the diff has resistance to rotating before any drining loads are applied. F1 these days probably rallying) have active diffs. Computer controlled and driven by hydrolics. These adjust the the stiffness of the diff on the fly.

The quaife looks to be a thorsen. But looking at it it may hace a friction pack in there.

Quaife diff uses spiral helical gears, when there is a continuous yet dynamic difference in torque between the driven wheels, these move across in the casing until they contact each other. This gives the locking effect, however it also means the diff inherently wears itself out over time. However to qualify this, I have checked the one in my track car last winter after a busy season with it, and also plenty of road miles, and the wear was barely measurable, no where near disasterous. Will check again when the box comes out this year.

Sounds a nice bit of kit tom. Have not had a look at them, but will do when i see one in the flesh. Do the gears that rub run of the planet gears in the centre of the diff ? I've only got the tiny pic on the quaife site to go on.

I think the picture on this link shows it quite well, the spiral helical moves 'across' the diff, until it engages the other 'input' gear for want of a better description.....picture and a 1000 words and all that....

http://www.quaifeamerica.com/differentials/diffs.htm

Useful:

http://www.gr8website2.com/calverst/articl...s_available.htm

Thanks thats a better pic, i found one on their uk site, was only half the size.

The atb feels like a normal diff under normal driving, but drive the car hard and it springs to life. It pulls the car into the bends, you can put the power down sooner and standing starts are exelent. One of the best things I've ever bought.

Its only a bit of metal. If it blows it blows!

http://www.putfile.com/mini300bhp