The Welded Differential Discussion/Questions thread

[ILoveMyRHS13]

f*** dropping a diff just for an event.

Sorry the welded hurt your poor little hiney.

Can't remember if it was your welded diff. But didn't someone recently have a welded diff go bad on them?

That wasn't the welded diff's fault. It was mine, haha. I didn't torque one of the R&P bolts down enough and it launched LOL.

[240lookis]

if you want to drift, welded diff is good. if you want to mob around town and grip the road, it is not.
however, my car is low enough that i cannot drive super fast all the time, so when there IS a corner that is smooth, i slide around it. so, in the end, going welded has impaired my daily driving very little in contrast to the fun and dangerous benefits it has given me.

[DamonDread]

I know Im prob gonna get a few different answers. But when i get my s13, its gonna be 85% DD, and 15% drift. Should I drop the money on a 2 way? Or just weld it and suffer the days of mobbing around town? And does anybody know what comes stock on my 95 s14? I really plan on building up the 95 with KA-T and selling it. What would be more appealing to a buyer as far as diff goes?

[ILoveMyRHS13]

Eh, I'd say buy a 2 way. I'll be going back to welded once my car become track only... If it ever does.

[motoman399]

hey guys i have riddin in both a 2 way and welded diff car and they feel the same... so ya buy a 2 way and get the same performance as a welded lol

[CJH]

hey guys i have riddin in both a 2 way and welded diff car and they feel the same... so ya buy a 2 way and get the same performance as a welded lol

x2

my buddy had a Kaaz 2 way and it was just like my welded.

[DamonDread]

hey guys i have riddin in both a 2 way and welded diff car and they feel the same... so ya buy a 2 way and get the same performance as a welded lol

Hmmm is that sarcasm, or did you just tell me to needlessly waiste money? LOL. If the ride really is that similar then im gonna get a welded and save the money. Thanks for the input!

[motoman399]

no i was actually serious lol. just weld it. if you want to waste the money on a 2 way for the same effect then go ahead.

[DamonDread]

Welded it is! Thanks! But im not gonna weld it lol! Gotta find somebody that can do that. I hate being new to an area on top of being very anti-social. Yellow pages!

[motoman399]

lol go see if there is any 240 meets in your area. also make sure they dont just pull the cover off and lay a bead in it. i HAS to be disassembled entirely and preheated then welded. you dont want all the spatter in your bearings!

[DamonDread]

lol go see if there is any 240 meets in your area. also make sure they dont just pull the cover off and lay a bead in it. i HAS to be disassembled entirely and preheated then welded. you dont want all the spatter in your bearings!

Ive only seen one other guy with a 240 in my area, its riced. Im sure there are more though, just dont know how to find them. I have one friend with a z32 and he just bought it, and i have been doin all the work to it lol. There are a s*** of honda douches around though.

I read the whole post and took in alot of good info. I talked to one guy that builds twoforties one county above me (craigslist), i might email him and see if he knows anybody to help with the diff. He has two extremely clean koukis.

[motoman399]

go enable your pm's man you have to do it in the user control panel

[spooled240]

if you want to drift, welded diff is good. if you want to mob around town and grip the road, it is not.
however, my car is low enough that i cannot drive super fast all the time, so when there IS a corner that is smooth, i slide around it. so, in the end, going welded has impaired my daily driving very little in contrast to the fun and dangerous benefits it has given me.

with my coils and rear sway bar i spin the inside tire on really tight hairpins so i don't think open diffs are good for anything anyway lol

all i know is i'm done w/ a vlsd

1.5 way would be ideal but they are expensive and are not full locked on decel which is pretty important in drifting from what i understand

[thefro526]

I've had 3 cars with welded diffs, 2 S13's and 1 FC, and have driven (drifted) 2 cars with 2-Way Clutch Type Diffs and this is what I've come to.

Pros of a Welded.

Cheap
Predictable
Reliable
Good Forever
Easy to install (Does not require removal of the ring gear, or at least I never have)

Cons of a Welded.

Requires you to pay attention to your driving in the rain.
Magnifies any bad bushings in your rear end.
Causes Chirping at low speeds
All of your friends with 2-Ways will hate you.

IMO, a welded differential is the way to go if you're on a budget. It's far more predictable than any LSD out there because it's always locked.

I never noticed extreme tire wear on any of my cars with welded diffs, though I did notice that the edges of the tire tread do wear a bit more than with an open.

I also Daily Drove my first S13 with a welded diff for 8 months before selling it. I never thought it was a hassle for daily driving. If anything it saved me on multiple occasions where an open diff car would've gotten stuck.

(Haha, this is my first post on NICO in like a year and a half.)

[rsmithdrift]

Thead revival... but a question. When I had my welded diff I had a stock car attached to it. lol that sounds wierd but you know what I mean. The soft stock suspension was able to suck up the inside rear wheel and allow the car to still turn proplerly while attacking the mountains and I could manipulate wieght dristribution (ie braking while turning and manipulating throttle) to take the weight off the inside rear in the turns and allow it to corner almost as well as when it had the open in it. I had to switch back to open due to it breaking in an accident involving a ditch on a blind hairpin.

But now my car has coilovers and corners very flat and handles like it's on rails. I've had the option of welding my current diff for a while now and I just havent been able to bring myself to do it. I'm afraid it'll make the car useless in the mountains which is where I like to drive it the most. But I want to be able to drift in the dry again sooo bad and can't afford a 2 way (only other real option in my book)

So my question is, how bad will the understeer be in the mountians if I weld the diff with my current setup? I have no front sway bar to correct understeer problems with stiff suspension so I KNOW that helps take weight off the inside rear wheel, and I run grippy front tires and bald rear tires to create oversteer, but it still corners way flatter than it did before the Coilover install, So I'm just worried about ruining my cars excellent handling. Do you think what I've done already will be enough to make it still handle properly with it welded again?

[ILoveMyRHS13]

You'll get oversteer from a welded, not understeer. Oversteer is always better than understeer, even while gripping.

[rsmithdrift]

You'll get oversteer from a welded, not understeer. Oversteer is always better than understeer, even while gripping.

I got understeer before. Mild mostly but if I gassed it too early it'd get wicked bad understeer. I just feel it'd be worse now. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened. Nothing like driving the mountains around here on or near full attack at 4am.

If I knew i'd get oversteer i'd of welded this diff a long time ago. lol.

[PEZi]

my opinion has been skewed quite heavily on al this die to autocross...

basically, there is nothing better than a GOOD 2. or 2 way diff... but you'll shell out high $$$$ for that s***

if on a budget, welded is the way to go plain and simple

my truck will be getting a welded diff for 2011, just be aware it has worse effects on wheels bearings and such

[J14cm7]

I have had a welded diff for about a year now and i dont notice anything on winding roads. Like If anything i feel like it has more control and is alot more predictable when it comes to breaking traction. Alot easier to feel when the a** end is gonna kick out.

P.S. pezi720 would you recommend keeping the welded diff for autocross or would you recommend me finding a J30 rear diff? I am on a budget.

[motoman399]

welded is awesome as you may have read previously in this thread. i love it. and ya, it may not be the best for everything, but it is cheap and functional for most activities. i also have taken mine in some twistys and not had a problem. and when it does break free its a lot more controllable than an open (cant speak for a vlsd, never owned one).