Limited slip. Should i even bother?

I have a daily project 1968 firebird it has 300 hp, disk brakes, restored but stock suspension and its a Cali car. I plan on it being a quick daily but nothing i would take to a track (maybe a drag strip). Needless to say it wont be off road except a small segment of dirt road that leads to my house. I dont think i can install the new carrier myself and the install can be quite pricey. (Quoted 1,500) it got me wondering if the benefits of LSD would ever justify the cost. Thoughts?

Do it bro! Or drop in a Spartan locker for da cheap traction. Heavily modded 79 camaro here and open diff literally killed all my power

I cant imagine why an open diff would make a difference in the power transfer on a paved road

Never heard of 1 tire fire or peg leg? It fucking makes a hiyuuuuge difference

It's pretty annoying driving anything with a bit of power and a peg leg. It will be way more fun spinning both rears...not to mention if you drive in the rain, it's difficult making turns across traffic with an open diff.

Its California. It never rains and if it does everyone is going 20mph

t. bus rider

Bro do it your self, as long as you keep that ring gear and pinion all you need to do is get a dial indicator for 60 bucks, check your current backlash and when you put the ring gear in the new carrier make sure you get the same backlash if not get a shim pack and a 60 dollar set of dial callipers and you are set. Make sure you keep the same thickness as oem carrier shims and you can either remove from one side and add to the other one, to either increase or decrease backlash. One you have it the same you are set.

Forgot to add 1500 for a carrier swap is too much. 4x4 shops usually do it for 200~400 around here and thats with a new ring and pinion set up which takes more than a simple carrier swap, all you do here is bring your shit to the shop amd they do the rest.

Is it that simple? I could give it a try im just worried about fucking it up

Is that $1500 going to include a rebuild of the axle? Because if not I wouldn't pay more than $500 for a lsd and install. And yes if you plan on keeping this car as a track car LSD is very worth it.

Torque is like lightning, it finds the easiest way to go through the power train. With an open diff, that means it'll go the the tire with the least traction, and when that happens potentially 100% Torque goes to that tire. LSD will make sure the torque split never gets more than 50/50 to each wheel. Also the lsd will give you donut and drift ability

Im not really looking for a track car. I just want a fast daily

Before you commit watch some vids, learn about backlash/carrier bearing preload thats all you really want to learn for a carrier swap if you keep the bearings. All you need to do right is get the same backlash that you had with the current carrier so the ring and pinion mesh properly. You get it the same and nothing changed. Now if you were regearing thats a total different animal. Thats why i would only get dial and calipers. 120 for a decent set. Make sure you get analog dials otherwise when you try to get shim thickness you will get frustrated with electronic calipers. They always give you 3 different readings. If you go ahead with it you will find it hard to find shit about carrier preload so I would just make sure that once you've got everything done as long as you cant remove the carrier by hand and only using a pry bar thats good enough, watch some vids there is plenty by yukon on you tube. Once you get a feeling for it it will be easier.

Tool list would be.
Dial indicator
Dial caliper
Shimpack for carrier get the super one lots of shims diff thickness to make them easier to get the same oem thickness.
Torque wrench for the ring gear bolts
Red locktite for carrier bolts
New ring gear bolts they are right lose left tight inverted.


Nice to have would be;
Shim driver for the carrier ebay has them for 15 bucks. That way you dont damage the shim pack you make them for both sides.

Well shit. I have some good calipers. Ill give it a shot. Ill put in money for a good carrier and do it myself

Yup, I used a fowler magnetic base dial indicator from fowler that i found on amazon for 60ish dollars to measure backlash. If you ever need help make an acc for ls1tech forums go to the gear and axle section and make a thread with whatever you need. They can guide you in the proper direction if you get stuck. Pretty useful community for anthing f body related. That 67 has a gm 10 bolt right?

Power going to both wheels is necessary for a fast car

Ive used the LS1tech forums when i did the engine swap. I didnt know they'd have info on diffs

I installed a g80 unit in my suv rebuilt it with new everything and regeared and it makes such a difference in sandy terrain both wheels just hook once it detects slipping. I didnt feel like getting a proper locker at the time because they were 500+ as opposed to 200 for a gov lok.

Oh yes they do. Once you get the principles and have the tools everything makes sense, i started knowing jack about rear ends now i can rebuild them my self. Its a nice extra skill to pick up. I'm by no means a mechanic but I can still learn and do my own work. My next challenge is a 4l60e rebuild. I have an idea of how everything goes but nothing beats hands on experience.

Because my 150hp FWD torqueless daily can easily spin the inside tire when accelerating through a sharp corner.

Ive actually rebuilt a 4l60e for my transmission class. Youd be amazed at how straight forward it is as long as you keep the parts in order and take your time with the seals and have patience getting the clutches and steels to sit right

I've always thought they last less than their ford counter part. Have had 3 cars with a 4l60e's and they have all crapped at around the 180k mile mark. Meanwhile uncles 4l60e had 275k idk how that is even possible when he treats his cars like shit, and only fixes them when they cant move anymore. My dad in the other hand has had his ford vans all go past 200k np. My 60e has been leaking from the pump so I havent thought if to replace pump or just do pump seal and bushing. This one was rebuilt 45k miles ago so i might just slap a new pump and keep it as is.

You can weld the diff you’reself Harbor Freight or some shit save tons of $$$ don’t let the mechanic fucc you like sum bitch desu

>drags yu’or tire

Everything these people say is a lot easier said than done fyi. differentials are extremely picky. if you do one thing wrong you pretty much have to redo everything. 2nd you need to figure out how much backlash your differential should have. 3rd if you don't torque everything down to the proper settings, you are fucked.

Do not take this persons advice. do not weld anything.

Jalopnik pls

I only drove one car with a LSD in it and it was by far the most easy to control car I've ever been in.

dude really? lol
Have you ever driven the car in a sporty manner before?

Its just i havent driven an open diff before and i dont know what its like

Do you wanna leave 1-wheel burnouts? Are you some kind of gay??

What am i? A miata owner

After putting a Detroit locker in my truck, I have come to realize that everything rwd deserves a locker.

Tires are $36 ea. on Amazon with free 2-day shipping.

You’d have to burn though hundreds of tires before you start to approach the cost of buying/installing a meme differential.

>this

Even my shitty 4cyl s10 should have had one.
>try to dump the clutch and merge onto busy road
>inside tire lights up and you're basically not moving

An LSD is on my short list for my '69 firebird. I'm not sure if I'll do it myself.

Remember if you order parts op, you have a BOP axle and not a regular Chevy 10 bolt.

What is a BOP axle?

>BOP
Buick, Olds, Pontiac, therefore a premium axle

Shit. Ok. Atleast the after market support is there