CU Zcar Posted June 26, 2003 Share Posted June 26, 2003 I got in a little too deep with replacing my LSD R200's bearings, I got to torquing the pinion in and the preload is waaaaay high. Now I'm trying to find a shop to set it up/get the shims right for me. A friend recommended a mechanic who recommended an ex-Nissan mechanic who does work for "race teams" and quoted me $400-600 to correctly shim my differential. Obviously, I'd do better to find a useable used diff. Have any of you ever found places that will set up a diff for something like $100-200? I'm thinking of trying some 4x4 shops or something before resigning to guess&check the thing together myself. Thanks, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j260z Posted June 26, 2003 Share Posted June 26, 2003 from what i've heard it's the shims themselves that cost the money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike C Posted June 26, 2003 Share Posted June 26, 2003 Are you sure you didn't get your carrier shims swapped left to right? If all you changed was bearings, the setup should not have changed. If you failed to get all of the shims back in the right place, that is where your troubles came from. Since the Xterra has an R200 in the front, it may be possible to find some 4x4 shops that are familiar with its setup and have shims and etc. Most places want a minimum of $250 for diff setup. I do them on the side and get $150 for a housing out of the car and $200 in the car while a front diff on a 4x4 is $200 out and $250 in. And that is for diffs that I do a lot such as 10 and 12 bolt Chevy's. Diffs like the Dana 44 and 60 which require a case spreader are slightly higher as the tool has to be paid for somehow. It takes about 4 hours for me to do a 12 bolt. That includes disassembly, cleaning the housing and axle tubes, installing new bearing races, installing the ring gear (I put the gear in the oven at 150 degrees and the carrier in the fridge for 30 minutes-this allows them to slip together as they are a slight interference fit and you can warp the drive flange trying to pull them together with the bolts not to mention damaging bolt or gear threads), setting pinion depth, setting backlash, then installing a new pinion nut and seal after final setup. Axle bearings and seals are next, then axles. It is not really difficult work, but it is precision work and should not be rushed. The Nissan diff can prove to be problematic because of the thin shims that are needed are a dealer part. It may require multiple trips to the dealers parts counter or buying extra shims that will require the cost to be passed on to you. GM used thin shims in some of its mid 60's 12 bolts and an assortment of them might prove sufficient for r200 setup. Someday I'll be able to answer that question if I'll suck it up and buy the Preciscion Gear Nissan diff. If you are willing to spend a little money and some time, the Nissan shop manual will work you through the diff R&R. I would not be hesitant to do my own, but would be extra careful trying to bid the job. Proform makes a universal pinion depth checker that Jegs sells for $99. It mounts to the carrier bearing cap surface and indexes off of the carrier bearing bores and you do some math to extrapolate the axle centerline. A magnetic base can be paired with the Proform indicator to check backlash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CU Zcar Posted June 26, 2003 Author Share Posted June 26, 2003 Are you sure you didn't get your carrier shims swapped left to right? If all you changed was bearings, the setup should not have changed. I haven't even installed the carrier yet, only the pinion, and when I checked the torque required to turn the pinion I knew I was already in trouble (it's something like several ft-lb, rather than the 10 in-lb spec). I do have a FSM, just not all the measurement tools it describes using. I also don't have my own press I had gone over to use a friend's. Well, I'll probably call around to the various 4x4 and drivetrain shops and see if I can find someone who will do it for a price I like, otherwise I might pull it back apart myself and see if I can't thin out the pinion adjusting washer some (or guess at the correct thickness and buy one). I might check the gear contact pattern first to see if that's also way outta whack, though at this point the diff is near worthless to me anyway (I can't see anyone buying a taken-apart R200 for much $, except maybe the carrier itself...and that won't be hurt by my screwing with this stuff) I might just throw it all together. A friend of mine with a V8 280Z did this once, never got his gears set up and they whined but it lasted quite a long time for him anyway. Thanks for the help so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike C Posted June 27, 2003 Share Posted June 27, 2003 Once you get it apart, make sure that the bearing races are fully seated. If all you did was replace bearings, NOTHING else should be out of whack. Before modifying, I would try to find exactly where the error occurred. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CU Zcar Posted June 27, 2003 Author Share Posted June 27, 2003 Yea I would have, I'll be checking everything before I try to change anything...washers in correct places (though I'm quite sure of that anyway), bearings fully seated, no crud behind the races...etc. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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