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Subaru WRX STi R180 Side Axles


johnc

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I'm crossing my fingers for you.

 

Let me know if you need a tester. We are planning on going to The Streets (Streets of Willow) in February. This will really put the rear-end through it's paces. This will be a driving school run by the Alfa Club (AROSC). No official link yet, just this forum chat.

http://www.alfabb.com/bb/forums/arosc-alfa-romeo-owners-club-southern-california/157940-high-performance-driving-school-feb-27-28-a.html

 

The date and time are correct. All are welcome.

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Got 'em!

 

ProtoType-3.jpg

 

ProtoType-2.jpg

 

Two minor issues:

 

1. The hole for the studs are a bit big so I need to tack weld the styds in place on these prototypes. This will be fixed on the production run.

 

2. The splines were cut about .400" to far into the axle. Again this will be fixed on the production run.

 

The axles are 4340 and heat treated to 46 Rockwell. Should be strong enough for anything put through an R180. The half shafts will got before these.

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Let me know if you need a tester. We are planning on going to The Streets (Streets of Willow) in February.

 

I know I missed your October event. Is February your next planned outing with the car? If so, that's a bit too far for our for testing. I hope to have the production run done by then.

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OMG! They're beautiful!

 

I know I missed your October event. Is February your next planned outing with the car? If so, that's a bit too far for our for testing. I hope to have the production run done by then.

 

That's our plan. There is a January event on the big track (Willow Springs), but we can't afford to go to both. The car is drivable, we can test around town, and up in the hills.

 

Let me know if you need / want our help.

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I have a tester in Alabama that's going to drag race his car a half-a-dozen times through the end of the year and go to one or two autocrosses. He's even got his wife and daughter involved in the testing. The side axles really only deal with torque and shock loads (no lateral loads like the stub axles) so drag race testing is very appealing to me.

 

Thanks for all the volunteers. I'll keep you folks updated on the progress.

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the stock z driveshaft works with the r180 right?

 

I have seen the STI driveshaft and the WRX driveshaft. The WRX and 240z driveshafts will not properly fit the STI R180 LSD. The mating flanges are all similar, yet different. At 100 MPH, I would not trust anything except correctness.

 

I got a quote from http://driveshaftmasters.com/index.html on steel and aluminum, "A steel shaft $340.00 Alu. shaft $500.00". These are made with ALL NEW parts. I have not yet bought anything. Considering that a used STI driveshaft is $200 plus the mods, $340 sounds reasonable.

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I have seen the STI driveshaft and the WRX driveshaft. The WRX and 240z driveshafts will not properly fit the STI R180 LSD. The mating flanges are all similar, yet different. At 100 MPH, I would not trust anything except correctness.

 

I got a quote from http://driveshaftmasters.com/index.html on steel and aluminum, "A steel shaft $340.00 Alu. shaft $500.00". These are made with ALL NEW parts. I have not yet bought anything. Considering that a used STI driveshaft is $200 plus the mods, $340 sounds reasonable.

 

ok, no problem...my local shop only charged me $50 to modify my current driveshaft to work with my r154 supra trans..

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Some installation pictures from the person testing the side axles:

 

ProtoType-4.jpg

 

Comparison.jpg

 

DrvShaftFlange.jpg

WRX STi R180 is on the right.

 

Diff3.jpg

The CLSD inside the STi R180.

 

Installed-1.jpg

Side axles installed.

 

Installed-2.jpg

Notice the front diff mount. Let's see how long that front crossmember lasts now that both wheels get traction... :-)

 

Installed-3.jpg

Old vs. new.

 

Installed-4.jpg

 

Installed-5.jpg

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I have not sourced the proper M10 x 1.25p studs new (damn hard to find actually) so I'm going to install some used ones from the dozens or side axles I have on a shelf.

 

I think I've sourced 100 of the correct Nissan studs. At least my credit card has been charged, I have yet to see them all arrive. In the pic above I installed 8 news ones for the testing.

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Look at the top post in this thread. I'm going to start making a list of folks interested in purchasing these side axles. No money up front. I'll make a production run and then offer the parts tot he people on the list in the order that the names are posted. If you don't see your name on the list, send me a PM or an e-mail.

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These are beautiful pieces. So pretty, it seems a shame to hide them under my car where nobody can see them! I may start parking over a mirror. The stubs slide in by hand, then a light tap with a hammer sets them past the internal c-clip. Fit is perfect. They came un-painted; I painted the part of the flange that would be exposed after installation. I swapped the input flange from my original R180 onto the STI diff. Needed a flywheel/gear puller to remove each input flange. The input spline count is the same for both diffs. So, if you change the input flange, the stock driveshaft works. Everything bolted right up, easy as pie. All my old hardware fit and there were NO installation issues. The studs on the diff cover are longer on the STi diff, so it is easier to swap them or remove them and reinstall them once the front diff was seated. I have only driven car around the block and did a few donuts in a parking lot; hope to go to 1/8 mile on Thursday if the weather is good. The first thing I have noticed is that new parts (2004) are better than old parts (1972). My old diff sounded like a box of rocks. The new diff is quiet as a mouse. The car used to power oversteer at a whim, and accellerating out a turn was met with severe wheel spin. Now, the car simply hooks up. More to follow after first trip to the track. Motor is stock, but will be "dropping" stock 2+2 clutch from 5000 rpm. I'm really pleased with the quality of the part and how simple the install was.

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These are beautiful pieces. So pretty, it seems a shame to hide them under my car where nobody can see them! I may start parking over a mirror. The stubs slide in by hand, then a light tap with a hammer sets them past the internal c-clip. Fit is perfect. They came un-painted; I painted the part of the flange that would be exposed after installation. I swapped the input flange from my original R180 onto the STI diff. Needed a flywheel/gear puller to remove each input flange. The input spline count is the same for both diffs. So, if you change the input flange, the stock driveshaft works. Everything bolted right up, easy as pie. All my old hardware fit and there were NO installation issues. The studs on the diff cover are longer on the STi diff, so it is easier to swap them or remove them and reinstall them once the front diff was seated. I have only driven car around the block and did a few donuts in a parking lot; hope to go to 1/8 mile on Thursday if the weather is good. The first thing I have noticed is that new parts (2004) are better than old parts (1972). My old diff sounded like a box of rocks. The new diff is quiet as a mouse. The car used to power oversteer at a whim, and accellerating out a turn was met with severe wheel spin. Now, the car simply hooks up. More to follow after first trip to the track. Motor is stock, but will be "dropping" stock 2+2 clutch from 5000 rpm. I'm really pleased with the quality of the part and how simple the install was.

 

Wow!! Thats fantastic news!! I just finished my Z32 transmission swap last year or so and had a custom driveshaft made, I was worried I would have to have it modified "again". Good to know I can just swap the input shaft flange!!!

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