Limited Slip Differential
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From: Palos Verdes Estates
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correct me if im wrong here, but I think LSD is when a tire loses traction it routes around 25% of your torque power to the tire with more traction. (usually it's around 25%... it can be configured differently depending on what your uses are)
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From: Gaithersburg, MD
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You could have just searched on google. Would have gotten quicker results.
one link: http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jk/at_010410.htm
From here: http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Flats/3877/lsd.html
What is a limited slip differential?
Most vehicles come with a 'peg leg' open differential. The biggest problem with this is when one of the drive wheels slips, an open differential sends more power to it, not less (it is the path of least resistance). This is most noticeable when one is stuck in the snow: one drive wheel will spin, and the other one will just sit.
From a performance standpoint, this means when one is cornering and the wheel on the inside of the turn is being unweighted, much of the power will go to it, causing it to spin, which may cause understeer (a frontend push to the outside of the turn) in FWD cars. The wheel on the outside of the turn, which is being weighted and therefore has more traction, does not receive as much power, so the power is wasted on the spinning inside wheel. Also, when launching aggressively off the line, when one wheel begins to spin, it will receive the bulk of the power, causing it to spin more...
Now, limited slip differentials (LSDs)(they come in all different configurations, and not all are called LSDs [torsen diffs for example] but we will call them all LSDs to simplify things) use a mechanical, hydraulic and/or electronic mechanism to supply power to the wheels that grip, not just the wheels that slip (yes, just like in the Subaru ads). So, when cornering, the outside wheel will get its fair share of power, lessening understeer and allowing one to power out of corners better. Torque steer is also lessened, and wheelspin on aggressive launches is minimized.
One key feature of LSDs is that they still allow the drive wheels on either side of the vehicle to turn at different speeds, which is why we have differentials in the first place. When a car goes around a corner, the outside wheels must turn faster than the inside ones. A drag racing trick is to weld an open peg leg differential together so that both wheels are locked and receive equal power. This makes for great drag launches, but trying to go around corners, even very slowly, is extremely difficult, and can break axles as the outside wheels fight the inside wheels.
So the end result with an LSD is better handling and accelleration. And a much lighter wallet if you are buying one for a car that does not have one already. Quaife seems to be the most popular for FWD Honda/Acuras.
one link: http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jk/at_010410.htm
From here: http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Flats/3877/lsd.html
What is a limited slip differential?
Most vehicles come with a 'peg leg' open differential. The biggest problem with this is when one of the drive wheels slips, an open differential sends more power to it, not less (it is the path of least resistance). This is most noticeable when one is stuck in the snow: one drive wheel will spin, and the other one will just sit.
From a performance standpoint, this means when one is cornering and the wheel on the inside of the turn is being unweighted, much of the power will go to it, causing it to spin, which may cause understeer (a frontend push to the outside of the turn) in FWD cars. The wheel on the outside of the turn, which is being weighted and therefore has more traction, does not receive as much power, so the power is wasted on the spinning inside wheel. Also, when launching aggressively off the line, when one wheel begins to spin, it will receive the bulk of the power, causing it to spin more...
Now, limited slip differentials (LSDs)(they come in all different configurations, and not all are called LSDs [torsen diffs for example] but we will call them all LSDs to simplify things) use a mechanical, hydraulic and/or electronic mechanism to supply power to the wheels that grip, not just the wheels that slip (yes, just like in the Subaru ads). So, when cornering, the outside wheel will get its fair share of power, lessening understeer and allowing one to power out of corners better. Torque steer is also lessened, and wheelspin on aggressive launches is minimized.
One key feature of LSDs is that they still allow the drive wheels on either side of the vehicle to turn at different speeds, which is why we have differentials in the first place. When a car goes around a corner, the outside wheels must turn faster than the inside ones. A drag racing trick is to weld an open peg leg differential together so that both wheels are locked and receive equal power. This makes for great drag launches, but trying to go around corners, even very slowly, is extremely difficult, and can break axles as the outside wheels fight the inside wheels.
So the end result with an LSD is better handling and accelleration. And a much lighter wallet if you are buying one for a car that does not have one already. Quaife seems to be the most popular for FWD Honda/Acuras.
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From: Zulu Alpha Tango Foxtrot
Rep Power: 312 Has anyone ACTUALLY bought a Quaife LSD for their 7th gen yet? I see that they say (according to a few people here) that you can actually use the older style 88-00 style LSD that they make for our cars. I'd like to see a review if anyone has actually used one in our cars.....Its not that bad for such a big improvment (only $895)...
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From: Zulu Alpha Tango Foxtrot
Rep Power: 312 http://www.midatlanticmotorsport.com/quaife.htm
Whoa!! P/N 60.309.155 for only $695!!!
This is the cheapest place I found for the LSD!
Whoa!! P/N 60.309.155 for only $695!!!
This is the cheapest place I found for the LSD!
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From: Zulu Alpha Tango Foxtrot
Rep Power: 312 The actual price isn't too bad - but from what I understand installation is a beeyatch....You have to tear the whole transmission apart to get at the differential.....
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From: Tee Dot Ohh
Rep Power: 0 LSD basically changes the amount in % of the car's power or torque to the wheels on turns, it's purpose it to keep the outer and inner wheel rotating at same speeds so you can grip and accelerate out of the turn ...Seen some 4wd behave like a RWD with some LSD changes... also civics can mimic a drift using the throttle if it has a LSD and had toe and camber adjustements
bottom line... in and out of turns quicker, and better acceleration coming out of a turn
bottom line... in and out of turns quicker, and better acceleration coming out of a turn
Last edited by Macko; Sep 12, 2003 at 12:02 AM.
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