My S13 Welded Differential Review!

[thefro526]

So, I finally decided to bite the bullet and drop my differential and get it welded. I researched through all of the bull on here and Zilvia and finally decided that I would weld mine and deal with it. I really like how it feels and it helps substantially with launches. Also on high speed turns that have a very wide radius the car accelerates much faster. The only thing that I've found that I don't like about the diff is that I can't roll into parking spots like I used to, which to me isn't that big of a deal. In the end I really like it and think it was well worth what it cost me ~$75 and the 3-4 hours of labor. I'm going out drifting tonight so I will update this thread tomorrow with my results.

I'm hoping that by keeping a log of sorts on here with all of my ups and downs with the differential more people will be more well informed about welded diffs.

[thefro526]

First Update!

For those of you with cement driveways or cement driveway aprons you might want to consider that sometimes when you pull in and out of the driveway you will be dragging a wheel so you may leave a mark or two. I just found that out but the marks wash right off with a garden hose.

[SketchyRollin564]

keep it updated

i really hate my open diff but i wont have the 150 for a j30 for a while, and i cant decide if i wanna weld my diff or not since its my daily

i can get a j30 with 55k for $100 for a local dude but its 5 bolt so im gonna need to do more work which will probably end up turning out to be $150 anyways

[thefro526]

keep it updated

i really hate my open diff but i wont have the 150 for a j30 for a while, and i cant decide if i wanna weld my diff or not since its my daily

i can get a j30 with 55k for $100 for a local dude but its 5 bolt so im gonna need to do more work which will probably end up turning out to be $150 anyways

I'm not going to give out any definitive recommendations until I've driven the differential under many different conditions but, as for dry driving then it's a worth while investment.

[MastaYu]

awesome review good job and keep it coming

[StandardProspect]

thanks a lot for the review!ive been debating if i should do it or not. the only thing in worried about is the snow in the winter. Its my DD

think i will still have good control of my car in the snow?

how is it in rain?

[thefro526]

As for snow, I won't know for quite a while. I should get back within the next day or two about driving with it in the rain.

[3cpeeo]

theres probably like hundreds of threads about welded differentials.

hot rod guys have been doing this waay back.

about the driveway deal, just ease up on it. i use to have a dumped s13 with a welded on some 10/12 spring rate coilovers, id be three wheeling but slipping the clutch the whole way up.

****-load easier to drift, oversteer when turning with decent speed everytime, and tires dont wear as fast as people say, given that your car's toe and camber are in near factory spec.

while raining, you'll have to drive slower. over-steer and ****ty stock brakes together are bad alone.

[Import_player]

Awsome review bro, you just might convince me to put my welded diff in (its been sitting cumfy in my garage for like 2 months ). Did you notice any performance improvement other than better traction, like faster acceleration, better braking, ect. Thanks bro.

[thefro526]

Awsome review bro, you just might convince me to put my welded diff in (its been sitting cumfy in my garage for like 2 months ). Did you notice any performance improvement other than better traction, like faster acceleration, better braking, ect. Thanks bro.

I would say it's much faster from a dead stop if I launch the same way I did with my open diff. As for braking, It's a lot easier to lock both sides of the rear up with the e-brake and it feels like it engine brakes a little faster but I'm not entirely sure on that one. Overall performance has greatly increased anything at speed feels much better to me and it feels like it accelerates faster through wide turns.

[Import_player]

yup, i think its about time i put mine in. If its kool with you op, id like to add my experiance to the thread after i put it in.... we'll see how it turns out im doin it tomorrow.....

[thefro526]

yup, i think its about time i put mine in. If its kool with you op, id like to add my experiance to the thread after i put it in.... we'll see how it turns out im doin it tomorrow.....

Go for it dude, I'm just trying to make a good resource for people who want to rock welded diffs so if you want help that'd be awesome.

[smocan]

Heads up... Don't buy/use good tires for the rear.

They will be chewed up in no time if you daily it.

[thefro526]

Heads up... Don't buy/use good tires for the rear.

They will be chewed up in no time if you daily it.

For me it's not really a big deal, my drive to work/school is only 5 miles both way. I have new tires on all four wheels and I usually rotate them front to rear every week or two anyway.

For the rest of you guys, I'll have an update up tomorrow morning with some more mixed driving including; high speed highway, city, drifting and some other mixed driving. And then tomorrow evening I should have an update about driving in the rain.

If anyone has a driving request that isn't me driving in the snow post it up here and I'll see what I can do.

[thefro526]

Second Update!!!

I went out Drifting last night with some friends in a big parking lot and a teardrop shaped truck turn around and the differential makes a huge difference. Honestly, I'm worse now than I was on my open but I need to learn more. The differential is much better for drifting but most of us will need a bit of a refresher once you switch from an open to a welded.

Also I drove through Philly last night on the way in and out of our drift spots and the differential isn't too noticeable for city driving. Low speed turns are still a little noisy but it should be expected. Highway driving is unaffected for the most part, the car may track a little straighter but it may be my imagination.

Now here's what everyone's been waiting for, the RAIN. I took the car for a quick spin in the rain today, I didn't go over 40 or so but it's not that bad. I launched very cautiously when I was making turns from a stop and the car was very predictable and civilized. Rolling through turns in 2nd and then powering out is a bit scary and you will get the rear end out even with new tires but, a gentle lift of the throttle was all that I needed to do to get the rear in line.

One of the most important things I'm noticed though is the difference in tire performance. With my open diff, tire grip wasn't too noticeable between different tires but once I started swapping between tires the difference was obvious. I have brand new tires on my car that are A rated temp and traction and 400 treadware which are my street/DD tires and then I have a pair of steelies with some used goodyears for the rear when I'm drifting. When I drove from one spot to another which is about 20-30 miles (south philly to almost delaware New Jersey) on my drift tires I noticed that I had much less grip on the rear and if I would've driven in the rain on my drift tires I would've had to do all of my launches in 2nd instead of 1st to keep the rear in line.

[MastaYu]

Awesome update! I was wondering about turns too

[thefro526]

Awesome update! I was wondering about turns too

Anything specific you want to know?

[MastaYu]

what about braking hard and normal braking any different with the welded?

[lrb_2000]

I've been running a welded diff for a few years now.. I love it.. much more control, very predictable since it's ALWAYS locked, where as my vlsd had to lose traction before it would lock. Launching is easier, and you get more power to the ground and take off faster, drifting is a breeze.. braking isn't any different, especially since your front brakes do the majority.

[thefro526]

what about braking hard and normal braking any different with the welded?

Under normal braking there isn't a noticeable difference. When E-braking it is much easier to lock up the rear end. Sometimes with my open one wheel would lock up slightly before the other or one would lock up and the other wouldn't.

When Braking on turn in you have to be a little more careful. I noticed on my drift tires when I would go to take turns at intersections on the way out of Philadelphia that the rear end would skip a little and slide a bit but not enough to really do anything. If you were to have bad tires and lay on the brakes to take a tight turn really fast you might start to drift if you stay in the throttle.
Modified by thefro526 at 4:43 PM 8/10/2008

[thefro526]

Third Update!!!! 8-11-08

Much of anything to report. I'm really getting used to the welded diff when the road is wet, it's not to hard to keep the rear in line. I love how I can power out of turns with my almighty dohc KA!!! Also the rear grip in wide turns is much better I feel more confident flying into turns. That being said, sharp turns are easy to loose grip in so be cautious and use good judgement.

[NFixed85]

ive been look at a lot of threads lately and i can find the torque specs for the differential bearing cap. All anyone puts is 112 for the ring gear spec but nothing else. I want to put a n/a 300zx lsd in my s13 but i didnt want to use the whole pumpkin cause the issue with the front bushings. So i figured i transfer the diff to the s13 pumpkin.

[vegita1647]

actualy any one selling a welded dif???

[Chris28]

Rain sucks, watch out for that. Boost only makes it worse. Don't try and accelerate through corners in the rain or you will get sideways when you don't expect it. Fist thing I hated about mine was how much it wanted to understeer. I got used to that really quick though. Did a drift event a few days after I put the welded in and you are correct, it is a lot easier to maintain the drift, you just need to h ave higher entry speeds.

Don't drift on the street, it's retarded.