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Kaaz and clutch shopping...

RacerJason

CEG'er
Joined
Aug 23, 2004
Messages
58
Location
Newmarket ON/Fairfield CA
Well, I know I have to do my clutch in the spring and figured I'd drop in an LSD/Locker at the same time. Where have people found the best prices online for:

Quaife? Grab one from Leo or who for the best price?

Kaaz LSD? ( I think I remember seeing one for about $679)

Spec Clutches? ( I found a Stage 1 Spec shipped for $269)

Thanks!
 
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Torsen LSD = $558 at Capaldi Racing...i don't know if it is a DYI job because you have to open the trans...and shim and other crazy stuff...
 
a Kaaz LSD appears to be the imports LSD of choice...they don't make any domestic products...they do however make LSDs for Honda's :) cuz that 90whp D16 needs all the traction help it can get....
 
Ford: Focus MTX75, Mondeo MTX75

they say they make one for our car. if this is true then we have 3 brands. but it uses clutch disks and they can wear out. that mean the torsen is a better option.
 
..etc from users on various sites. I think it should be noted that a plate LSD does NOT behave as an ATB diff(Quaife/Torsen) and may need some setup/adjustments Vs the 'out of the box' setting.Just so owners know...These are the comments/observations etc.TH

I just put a 1.5-way KAAZ in my car since I blew up my last Torsen. From all I had read, the KAAZ was suppose to be the **** for racing. However, my first impressions are very contrary. First, let me preface everything by saying that I replaced the trailing and toe links at the same time, and I haven't gotten a chance to have the car re-aligned yet, so maybe that's part of the problem...

However, what I've noticed so far is that the car seems to want to understeer horribly when the KAAZ is locked, and then as soon as you let off enough to hear the telltale click that it has unlocked, the car swerves into the turn drastically. With the Torsen, I had taken a driving style of getting into the gas early coming out of a corner to help stabilize everything. However, if I drive the same way with the KAAZ, I'm going ot be pushing off the outside of the track. But this thing IS supposed to be better/faster, right???
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I was just surprised at the marked understeer when the diff is locked. Was hoping that wasn't due to the KAAZ....

It is due to the KAAZ. Once any diff is locked the axles are turning at the same speed and this will always promote understeer since the inside and outside drive wheels cannot rotate through the corner at different speeds. Alignment is not going to fix this.

A Torsen loads much more progressively and doesn't completely lock, a KAAZ goes from a functional diff to *click* 100% locked. You're not imagining things between the two diffs; your impressions are 100% correct. People switch to the KAAZ because they have the power to break the Torsen. If you're not breaking stock diffs I wouldn't use a KAAZ for road racing.

In order to cure the understeer problem you're going to have to get more of your turn in done with the diff unlocked and be patient before getting hard on the gas because if you power it too early before the car has rotated through the corner you're going to go off the outside. This means you're going to have to turn in earlier but in a straighter line towards the apex, brake hard and lift while getting all your turning right around the apex done in a very short time and then back on the power hard. The idea is to spend as little time as possible off the gas with the steering turned and it would essentially be like the parabolic line (http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=330669).
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Unless you're making huge amounts of power and having problems with wheelspin on corner exit I see no reason to trade the Torsen for the KAAZ. The KAAZ is physically stronger and so works great for drag racing in a straight line when you drop the clutch from high rpm but road racing with any 100% locking diff will create problems just as you've encountered. A locked diff will insist you have to be willing to rotate the tail of the car in order to turn and that means braking very late and very hard and pitching the car into the apex while letting the lightly loaded rear tires to slide a little to turn the car. Contrary to popular belief a Torsen doesn't lock (neither does a clutch type diff).

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As far as tuning it and adjusting to the new diff, you should read the Sport Compact Car Project 350Z. They added a Kaaz and had it set at like 75-80% at first too. They commented that it still made a push in the car that wasn't there before, and took a good long break in to let it seat in. I am not remembering verbatum, but the long and short of it is that they too had to tune down the diff to make a difference. They took it apart and showed the internals and how the changing of the diff plates made a difference in the lockup of the diff. IIRC, they ended up with like 40-50% lockup with remarkable turnin compared to out of the box after playing with it. One specific comment was as a baseline before tweaking the diff, that turn-in was horrible, with a bad push through the whole corner, ala stock settings like a locked diff = trying to go straight. This was over two installments, and unfortunately, cannot remember the issues that this was in, but usually online.
In a nutshell, though not easy, may take a test and tune, though, this could eat up a day just changing twice. I would ask around a little more or see if someone has a setup solution.
However like Damon was saying, the only reason they went to this one was with the BFG KDs and larger footprint, along with a little more power, doing peg leg burnouts. They commented that the stock diff was getting the job done, as long as it was in stock form. Hope this helps, just my .03 ( my .02 adjusted for inflation)
 
yeah and like they said, it can wear out. ive heard about the diff a little bit, but mostly about the quaife and the torsen. the quaife has always been praised, i'd love to drive a contour with one before i make a LSD choice.
 
So it's a Quaife I want then? Advantages over stock? This car see's 2-3 lapping days a year, I'm just looking to make things a little more bulletproof while I have it apart for the clutch anyways. I'm not building a straightline car. Thanks for any advice.
 
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So it's a Quaife I want then? Advantages over stock? This car see's 2-3 lapping days a year, I'm just looking to make things a little more bulletproof while I have it apart for the clutch anyways. I'm not building a straightline car. Thanks for any advice.

Yeah, it doesn't break with stock power and up.
 
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