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Torsen diff


wcameron

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Just picked up a Gleason Torsen R200 LSD. Ring gear marked 37:11 which I assume is a 3:36. Any one have experience with these units? Going to use with 327SBC with T5. Thanks. WCameron

 

HELLO, I had a Gleason in my last Zcar. I was VERY happy with it. I doubt alot of people who talk crap about them EVER rode in a car with one installed. It DEFINITELY made a difference. I bought 1 of the last 8 Bob Sharp racing had at the time(1987) and was told it was VERY RARE. I had their tranny tech build it with a 3.9 R&P and it only pulled an extra 500-600 RPM at highway speed. I used Mobil 1 gear lube(90/145 I think?? almost 20 yrs ago). I don't know WHY someone said they were NOISY, mine was not AT ALL. I remember racing another Datsun on a bumpy Brooklyn street and my right rear wheel was in a huge puddle of water along the curb and I dusted him. When I looked back he was still sitting at the light trying to figure out how I DIDN't go sideways when I launched it. Took off straight as an arrow and the right wheel didn't slip an inch(as far as I know). Triple carb set up didn't hurt either. Did you get yours 2nd hand or new?? If not new do you know its' history?? I believe they were originally made for 4x4's and adapted to racing applications. Back then Bob Sharp Racing was putting 600HP to it with no failures BUT with an L28 not a torquey SBC. I think the fasteners used to put it together were GRADE 12. I've seen torsens with 4 worm gears, mine has 6. GOOD LUCK with it!

Edited by 280Zhunter
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I've had a Gleason Torsen in my 240Z since 1988 and I LOVE IT! I purchased the last one from Jim Wolf who installed it in an R200 3.54. I'm running 500+ rwhp, mostly street, some autocross and some track time with absolutely no problems with the Torsen. Is it bullet proof???? All I can say is mine has seen over 20 years of abuse with no issues.

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Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't sell mine. By noisey I mean it clicks. By no means am I knocking it at all. It's a great diff!

 

Joe

 

My Toresn doesn't click. I had mine set up tight meaning I had the ring gear shimmed to the closest tolerance Nissan recommended....just a thought. Of course the infamous Z rear clicking noise could come from just about anywhere in the rear suspension.

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I had a Gleason in my '77, also bought from Sharp. The car got destroyed, but was able to save the diff., plus some other parts.

Finally sold everything to a friend of mine, and it has sat in his garage ever since. I will be getting my 'new to me' '78 in a month or so and would love to get my old diff. back. Here is the question, what is a low...I mean very low... mileage Gleason worth

As others have stated, never any problems and no noises.

Also, I have never heard about the issue John mentioned about it going open. I have seen regular lsd's do it if a wheel is lifted(I think Chevy had a commercial about their truck rear-end not loseing traction if a wheel is lifted and the Dodge/Ford sat there and spun).

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Also, I have never heard about the issue John mentioned about it going open. I have seen regular lsd's do it if a wheel is lifted(I think Chevy had a commercial about their truck rear-end not loseing traction if a wheel is lifted and the Dodge/Ford sat there and spun).

Helicals have less ability to lock the wheels together than clutch LSD's do, so helicals are more likely to spin the inside tire. Softer rear suspension and eliminating the rear bar helps any car that will spin the inside rear to keep traction, so that is a generic recommendation that works in many instances. Any LSD will spin a tire that is off the ground unless it is a clutch style that is shimmed so tight it doesn't slip at all.

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What Jon said above. Helicals like the Gleason, Torsen, and Quiafe have a greater tendency to go open if you get less then 5% torque resistance on one of the wheels. I experienced it first hand when I swapped from a CLSD to a Quaife ATB in my racing 240Z. The Quaife makes a loud "grumbling/whirring" noise when it goes open and can get damaged if you get the inside tire spinning really good and then drop the weight back on that tire. Swapping springs around, adjsuting the slow speed compression valving, and going with a 5/8" adjustable rear ARB solved the problem. After that the car accelerated hard out of corners.

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To expand on the inside wheele spin issue regarding gear LSDs... (from Wavetrac)

 

ero axle-load is a condition that occurs during normal driving, but creates the most noticeable problems when driving in extreme conditions. Zero or near-zero axle-load is the condition that exists when there is ‘no-load’ applied through the drivetrain, when one drive wheel is nearly or completely lifted (often in aggressive cornering). It also occurs during the transition from engine driving a vehicle to engine braking and back, even with both drive wheels firmly on the ground.

 

Here’s how that loss of drive hurts you:

 

1) If you lift a wheel, all gear diffs except Wavetrac®, will NOT power the other wheel.

 

2) During the transition from accel to decel, all gear diffs except Wavetrac®, do nothing.

 

 

 

Why does this happen?

 

All gear LSDs (including Torsen®, Truetrac®, Quaife®, Peloquin, OBX, etc.) work in basically the same manner: they divide the drive torque between the two axles, applying drive to each side, up to the available grip of each tire. The amount of drive torque one wheel can get over the other is described as the bias ratio, a measure of the torque split across the axle.

 

Standard, open differentials have a bias ratio of 1:1. They can only apply as much drive torque as there is available traction at one wheel. When one wheel loses grip, the total available drive is lost as well (at a 1:1 ratio). All your power goes out the slipping wheel – along the path of least resistance.

 

Torque biasing differentials offer increased bias ratios over open differentials. For example, if a diff has a bias ratio of 2.5:1, then it can apply drive torque to the wheel with the most traction (gripping wheel) at 2.5 times the traction limit of the wheel with the least traction (slipping wheel). This is a significant improvement over an open diff… most of the time.

 

The problem is that when one tire has LITTLE or NO grip (zero axle-load), the other wheel gets ZERO DRIVE, because (basic math here): 2.5 x 0 = 0.

 

Lift a wheel (or substantially unload a wheel) and you get zero axle-load on that side – that means that during the time the wheel is unloaded, the typical diff will NOT power the wheel that’s still on the ground. No matter how high the bias ratio,you get no power to the ground.

 

During the transition from accel to decel, where you have near zero torque on the axle, even if the wheels are on the ground, the typical diff is unable to begin applying drive torque until AFTER the zero torque condition is over. While this condition is generally short-lived, the fact that most diffs can do nothing during that time means that there will be a delay once the zero torque condition stops – creating a reaction time in the driveline.

 

A lot of this can be minimized with suspension setup and adding a bit of preload within the gear driven LSD. None of the issues mentioned above are noticeable on a street driven car.

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To expand on the inside wheele spin issue regarding gear LSDs... (from Wavetrac)

 

 

 

A lot of this can be minimized with suspension setup and adding a bit of preload within the gear driven LSD. None of the issues mentioned above are noticeable on a street driven car.

 

 

John C:

 

Do you have any personal experience with the Wavetrac differentials? Please advise. Thanks.

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