LSD differential impressions

[Kregiel]

Hi Guys,

I ordered quaife LSD and wondering what are your impressions. I heard that in the corner the feeling is hard to describe as the car is kind of dragged to a side and could be difficult to push harder as it's against human nature???

Paul

[TT-Turbo]

It's just that getting used to the extra traction is tricky as you would expect to back out the throttle but the best thing is to keep it planted and the thing keeps nailed to the road. It's a amazing piece of kit and haven't heard 1 comment against the handling of a LSD diff, apart from maybe Mike who feels the difference isn't as much as he expected (should of gone with a Quaife  )

[Kregiel]

Come on boys, there are more LSD out there!

Red Robin I was hoping you would want to contribute 

[Tfsi_Mike]

Subscribed 

[PDT]

LSD's are awesome on any car, FWD or RWD. RWD just helps with traction in straight line and under cornering and doesnt massively alter the feel. With a FWD car you get a feeling of being pulled around the corner and you feel as if it should understeer but it doesnt. It will take a while to get used to as your brain tells you you are about to skid sideways and to lift off, but keep your foot on the power and it will grip. Lifting off mid corner with an LSD makes the car feel unbalanced.

[Tfsi_Mike]

It's just that getting used to the extra traction is tricky as you would expect to back out the throttle but the best thing is to keep it planted and the thing keeps nailed to the road. It's a amazing piece of kit and haven't heard 1 comment against the handling of a LSD diff, apart from maybe Mike who feels the difference isn't as much as he expected (should of gone with a Quaife  )

I am a little underwhelmed by my Peloquin but perhaps not driving in a style or hard enough to feel the benefit. 

[muckipup]

With a FWD car you get a feeling of being pulled around the corner and you feel as if it should understeer but it doesnt.

I agree completely with the above and it is not a subtle feeling either - the car just sticks a lot better and goes where you point it in a situation where the car would otherwise be struggling for control.

I have to say that my Quaife really comes in to form when the car is being pushed hard in a corner and those mini-roundabouts with a bit of a bump are just great fun to put the foot down in a low gear and keep it down through the curve and the bump on the outside wheels  

However, I have not found it to be any kind of miracle cure for traction in a powerful FWD car nor will there be too many opportunities on straights to show its worth and would otherwise be a silent modification when the car is driven normally. I think it fair to point these things out as it is not a cheap modification and therefore consideration needs to be given by the individual as to how they are prepared to drive and on what roads when they try to understand if it is a trully worthwhile modification.

[Squeeguk]

The only real input I can give on this is from a car that was uniquely South African, Opel Kadett 200TS(Hatchback Astra in the UK). It was a 250+bhp (slightly tweaked) turbocharged front wheel drive monster with no traction control. If you went really hard into the corner and tried to turn in, you got masses of understeer to the point where you wondered if it would ever turn. You had to get on the power and then it was as though someone had tied a bungee cord to you and it just pulled you through the corner.

Took a while to get used to it, but when you do there is no going back. Highly recommended if you're into driving hard. Having said that, it did not cure the chronic torque steer these cars suffered from.

[RedRobin]

Come on boys, there are more LSD out there!

Red Robin I was hoping you would want to contribute  

....I'm always glad to contribute - I just hadn't seen this post earlier. Mat_Ed30 is another Quaifer (and the rest!).

It's very much as PDT and muckipup say. It comes into its own when the car is driven more enthusiastically. This is partly why some folks say it's not worth installing a diff unless you do trackdays. Obviously it's going to get actioned more often on a track but your car never knows whether it's on the road or the track and only ever reacts to how its driven. And there's nothing wrong in driving enthusiastically on the road either, just as long as you drive safely and responsibly with total focus and awareness of other traffic and road conditions.

You have to learn to be brave. Be aggressive towards the road (not other road users!).... Be confident but don't go crazy by carrying far too much speed into a corner. Get on the power earlier than you are used to on bends you already know and you'll feel the difference. When you keep your right foot planted, do it in a smooth progressive way.

Inevitably, in the early days of having the Quaife I was once a bit too confident going into a tight bend on the Nurburgring but fortunately I remembered to stay on the power and I felt myself being rescued! That's when I first realised the diff's help but the Nordschleife is not really the best place to experiment!

As with all roadholding mods, you can still make mistakes, so the trick is to be confident but not over confident. I must say that being utterly focussed (not even a radio or music playing while driving) gives me a huge buzz and is why I enjoy driving so much - I love to feel and hear what's going on all the time - Rather like playing a musical instrument.

[R32UK]

There was a diff on my old mps... as explained above it did work but inital understeer was still apparent. The best place to really feel it working would be long sweeping bends where it had time to really work and you could make throttle adjustments as required.

So in short... yes it does help, but its no AWD/RWD. In fact I found there to be very little difference between and electronic diff and a mechanical one for road use... but there is a difference no doubt!

[RedRobin]

So in short... yes it does help, but its no AWD/RWD. In fact I found there to be very little difference between and electronic diff and a mechanical one for road use... but there is a difference no doubt!

....I've driven mine with Quaife mechanical diff and a Mk6 GTI with electronic diff, back-to-back on the same 40-mile lap (which I always use for testing because it has every kind of road). I've also driven the Scirocco with electronic diff. I could definitely feel a difference: The electronic diff is less constant - It doesn't jerk but you can almost feel it continually re-assessing and re-adjusting what it needs to do. It just felt more electronic and I liked it a lot less.

I think that VW have now gone back to mechanical diffs? If so, that surely tells us something.

The Ford Focus RS has a Quaife diff too - Though it feels like driving a very fast van and, in white, looks like a cross-Channel ferry (I don't like it!) the mechanical diff always feels more positive and reliable to me.

[alackofspeed]

Fitted one to a 1.8t K03s Mk2 Golf years ago, and later a 1.8t K04 Corrado. Day and night difference in traction. The only thing to remember with an ATB diff is they don't work if the inside wheel is airborne (clipping a kerb mid-apex on track), or one wheel is on a very low friction surface (ice, snow, road verges).

Would love one on the Mk5, but can't justify it 95% of the time.

[TT-Turbo]

I had a bit of a blast in my TT today on dry roads and found a few more interesting things out about the diff (only had the car back 2 days). When accelerating hard round bends the steering gets a fair chunk heavier as the car really loads up, the tyres too seem to be working harder and the difference for me was a lot more than I would of expected. As other's have said it does feel like it's being pulled really hard into the corner and is a great feeling. Even if you aren't really pushing on and just accelerating at a steady rate but with more steering lock on it seems to give a more planted car.

After 4 years of having my TT I really wish I did this sooner! If I ever get a FWD car again it will be in the top 2/3 things to do on the car.

[alackofspeed]

....I've driven mine with Quaife mechanical diff and a Mk6 GTI with electronic diff,

MK6 is just an evolution of the Mk5's (and earlier VAG cars) wheel braking combined with an open diff' attempt at torque vectoring? Still pretty poor from all accounts I've read, and ultimately it puts too much energy into the brakes. A proper electronic diff has electronically controlled torque vectoring outputs from the diff flanges, not wheel braking.

Give me a proper ATB differential any day over the bean counter designed wheel braking guff.

[RedRobin]

....I've driven mine with Quaife mechanical diff and a Mk6 GTI with electronic diff,

MK6 is just an evolution of the Mk5's (and earlier VAG cars) wheel braking combined with an open diff' attempt at torque vectoring? Still pretty poor from all accounts I've read, and ultimately it puts too much energy into the brakes. A proper electronic diff has electronically controlled torque vectoring outputs from the diff flanges, not wheel braking.

Give me a proper ATB differential any day over the bean counter designed wheel braking guff.

....Then I haven't driven a car with a 'proper' electronic diff. I thought that the Mk6's type of duff was called 'electronic'. The Mk6's wheel braking etc method is clearly why I could feel it's method as lots of multiple pulls instead of the uninterrupted smooth strong pull of a mechanical Quaife.

Either way, like you, it's a no-brainer regarding which is preferred.