Hi everyone,
So I thought I was going to have an easy day of dropping my e36 3.23 LSD Diff today to replace the cover gasket and flange seals...Unfortunately I was in for a HUGE surprise! 6 allen bolt heads sheared off had been sitting inside the diff for who knows how long. This is not the only problem...When I spun one flange, the other spun in the opposite direction. There is a giant S stamped on the diff case and it looks to me that the internal carrier and gears look like an LSD, so why the opposite direction? Is it possible that the LSD is not spinning the flanges in the same direction because the bolt heads have sheared off and torque is not quite right? I had no issues with the diff as far as drive-ability except for a bit of a whine which I thought was mainly due to a cover gasket leak.
Please help!
e36 LSD.jpg
No big deal. Probably worn out clutch packs and need new bolts.
I bought this kit for my car. 3 clutch upgrade. They have a 2 clutch kit also. Both have new Carrier cover bolts ( if that is what you are referring to as shearing off)
https://www.thayermotorsports.com/co...ade-street-kit
Last edited by guymandude; 11-15-2017 at 11:32 PM.
Thanks for the info...Do you think it's possible that I could get by with just replacing the bolts and that would get the LSD working properly again? I don't want to spend too much $ at the moment. I'm tempted to get the 2 clutch kit for $200 though if needed. https://www.amazon.com/Thayer-Motors...rential+clutch
Failed carrier cap bolts are not uncommon. Hopefully you found the problem before any damage. You might want to disassemble before buying parts to see what you need.
I had all 8 of mine break off. I bought a 3.38 to replace it and didn't even crack it open until years later. I actually just ordered just the bolts from BelMetric to fix my original diff (a whopping $0.79 each). https://www.belmetric.com/8x10-fine-...ad-p-5134.html
When the last bolt gave up it ruined the output flange bearing. But surprisingly, everything else was OK. I'm replacing output flange bearings, adding a third clutch plate and dog ring to make it a three clutch, and it should be good to go.
Those carrier bolts are what holds the LSD unit together - so yes, if they're mostly broken they're probably not holding the LSD tightly enough for it to function.
If you're not in a hurry but REALLY don't want to do anything else, I'd get the bolts first and then see if it holds torque. I don't know if you'll be able to back out the studs with the unit still in the carrier, but if you can, that would be easier than removing it and taking the whole thing apart.
If you DO have to remove it from the carrier, like I'm doing, you could also consider buying just one dog ring and clutch plate and converting it to a three clutch with Thayer's instructions. You'll need new output flange seals and likely also need output flange bearings (this is a likely source of your whine). None of this is very hard, or even too terribly time consuming. Just make sure you follow the instructions, note the location and position of things, and then put it back together exactly the same way.
-Josh: 1998 S54 E36 M3/4/6 with most of the easy stuff and most of the hard stuff. At least twice. 271k miles. 1994 E32 740il with nothing but some MPars. 93k miles.
Thanks for all the great advice! I bought the 2 clutch kit from Thayer...https://www.amazon.com/Thayer-Motors...rential+clutch
Would I see much benefit to keeping my original oem clutches and adding 2 of the thayers to make a 4 clutch? Or should I do 2 thayers and 1 original? Or just do the 2 thayers and throw out the originals? I'm not sure how the clutches wear over time, but the originals might be toast.
3 clutches is great. I did one a few years ago. 4 clutched really changes things noticeably. A friend did his with 4 while mine was 3. 4 hooked up nicely. Our cars are 500-600 rwhp turbos. 4 can be a little twitchy on development. 3 was much like usual but with better traction. But if I do it again with the power I have I will do 4.
I agree - you should at least do three. There's no reason to not use your originals to make it a three or four clutch.
If you don't use all 4, I'd offer to buy your final used clutch / dog plate, but I can't even find any used to see what the going rate is. I had a friend do the same thing as you and send me his extra clutch / plate to rebuild my old diff into a 3 clutch. We could work something out if you want to go that route...
-Josh: 1998 S54 E36 M3/4/6 with most of the easy stuff and most of the hard stuff. At least twice. 271k miles. 1994 E32 740il with nothing but some MPars. 93k miles.
Maybe we could work something out. I actually have two 323 LSD diffs. I'm now planning to fix up my diff which still has all bolts in tact. I'll just be replacing all the bearings on that diff...pinion front and rear def need replacing, sides don't really need it but I'm doing it because it's open and the perfect time.
I might consider parting out the other 323 if parts are needed by others. I can post pics if there is any interest.
To save money I'm thinking of keeping the two oem clutch system in the diff I'm fixing and returning the new thayer clutches.
-Josh: 1998 S54 E36 M3/4/6 with most of the easy stuff and most of the hard stuff. At least twice. 271k miles. 1994 E32 740il with nothing but some MPars. 93k miles.
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