Is a Quaife LSD worth it for the road? I havent driven my 16v for 25 years now, but its coming together now. I dont want to race it but I remember the slip and slide I used to feel when accellerating compared to my mates RS turbo with a LSD, especially in the rain. Should I go the whole hog?
I’d never own another mk2 without one, or any fast road car for that matter. It totally transforms the car.
Morning. Questions like this, usually yield answers answers without the refevent conditions to which one made a judgement. The actual ATB diff does change the cornering characteristics of the vehicle, depending on the engine load and steering angle of the vehicle before and into the corner. The extent to how it executes that is subject to some placebo, the rate at which the corner was navigated and approached and the driver's confidence. I like a spirited B or A road blat also. However the true benefit of an ATB can only be really experienced on a closed track. I once owned a Quaife diff in my MK2 ABF car. A car I drove daily. Running an 020 gearbox with a very short 4.25 FDR, I also regularly tracked the same car. Compared to an open diff, the ATB allowed earlier application of engine load into a corner. Similar to left foot braking on an open diff. On the road at lighter loads you would be hard pressed to tell. Can tug a bit in the wet or snow, depending on the ATB.
Thank you everyone for the variety of opinion, passion and information! I think it sounds like the way forward, and may help reduce what remember of the understeer, esp in the wet, and help me get more power on the road when Im pressing on a bit. Aside from the dosh, I dont see or hear many downsides.
There's a staggered crossroads 5 mins from home, that I drive through very regularly, with a real good surface on it, but a bit of a ridge as the roads meet. Before LSD, it was a 90 degree right then almost immediately 90 degree left, plant it, and the inside front tire would light up with understeer, and usually push the nose wide. Now, same car, same box, same Tires, and it just drives away without drama and holds the line. And bear in mind my car is only a modded 2.0 8v. And it made the car feel more planted and stable on track. Now look, Toyotec Eddie has vast experience and knowledge of mk2s (and loads of other cars!) and he's 110% spot on. It's really only noticeable when driving hard on track. If you don't plan much of that, you could invest the money in better suspension and Tires. I'd already done that, to an extent, and a HotGolf box came up for sale at a good price, with the LSD already fitted, from a well known CGTI member. So I treated myself. And I like it.
