How Do you tell going diff pin?

[Mysticle31]

I'm looking at buying a SHO, and I'm curious if you can tell weather or not the diff pin is going. One of my biggest scares is the tranny. I don't plan on doing any burnouts, I don't think the previous owner did, but I don't want to be afraid of letting the clutch out at 1500 or 2000 to get going in spirited driving. Note that I didn't say dump the clutch at 3K or even dump the clutch at idle, inasmuch as a quick blip and a fast let out. Just how fragile is this thing? Or it is much like the revere where it's not a quick transition into or there is problems?

 

[jessemachone]

FWIW, I abuse my SHO as I see fit and haven't had the tranny blow on me yet. The key is not letting one wheel spin faster than the other for an extended period of time. Just rev it up high enough to get them both going. (right now, Tom and Mikey are shaking their heads)

Have fun - J

 

[jelloslug]

There is no way to tell without taking the tranny apart.

 

[SHOtime2511]

its not a tooth pick,enjoy the car.
just don't be stupid.

 

[St Louis SHO]

You'll know when it goes---- SHOBOOM!

 

[JoesSHO]

I refuse to read this thread until there is a reply from NeedAPartsCar- it'd be like Christmas without Jesus...

 

[1995mtxsho]

I refuse to read this thread until there is a reply from NeedAPartsCar- it'd be like Christmas without Jesus...

:laugh_ti: :corn:
Nice...

 

[Mysticle31]

The key is not letting one wheel spin faster than the other for an extended period of time.

So how does this pin work exactly? Is it the spider gear shaft that brakes or whatever holds the spider gears in?

(Not a SHO diff)

 

[0V3RC10CK3D]

Theres a tiny metal pin thinner than a toothpick that holds the horizontal bar in the picture below in place, the one that goes through the center of the differential, this one is welded so it doesn't rely on just that pin to keep it there.

 

[TYSHO]

You can't tell, just replace the pins and have it reinforced if you feel like it. All these people saying they don't bust must drive like grandmas. I went through 4 or 5 before I came up with a solution [picture in above post] that didn't required buying a Quaife.

 

[SASHO91]

Theres a tiny metal pin thinner than a toothpick

It's not that thin.. c'mon now.

 

[Mysticle31]

I'm not really sure what I'm looking for as different on the diff pictured. You have to pull and disassemble the tranny to get to the diff, correct (like most FWDs)? You can see why I'm worried about it. It's an expensive deal, and some people say they break all the time, and some say they don't

If I have to disassemble the tranny, might as well rebuild the sucker and do the clutch while your there right! Not saying I'll break mine, of course.

 

[LJRuddy]

I'm not really sure what I'm looking for as different on the diff pictured. You have to pull and disassemble the tranny to get to the diff, correct (like most FWDs)? You can see why I'm worried about it. It's an expensive deal, and some people say they break all the time, and some say they don't

If I have to disassemble the tranny, might as well rebuild the sucker and do the clutch while your there right! Not saying I'll break mine, of course.

Some transmissions will go for ever without a diff failure. Some will break 5 miles into your first cruise. Its a matter of luck. Nothing more. However, you can prevent this failure from happening 95% of the time (i say 95% because there is still a very small chance it will happen still) by welding the differential pins. Take a look at the SHO differential picture posted above. Notice how the 4 holes where the 3 diff pins (1 goes straight across the diff from side to side and there are 2 other pins that run into the 1 long pin) have an "L" shaped piece of metal welded from the pin down to those round metal heads that are sticking out from teh differential housing. This will help prevent the 2 smaller diff pins from ejecting from the diff housing and causing such named differential pin failure.

 

[justin mccluske]

i have a few friends that go through tranys like water, one of them went through 3 in 2 months and the one thing they all seem to have in commen is they all down shift to slow the car witch i have never done .

 

[Racer X]

Pull an axle and get a light in there. You'll see one shaft going all the way across, and 2 half shafts. If one of the two half shafts are beginning to walk away from the center further than the other, it's a bomb with a lit fuse. If they're both in place, then your good, but would be advised to at a minimum replace the tension pins retaining the diff pins. I just did mine and the tension pins were showing some wear. Nothing significant, but more than I was comfortable with.

 

[Mysticle31]

Oh well, I"ll just have to hope it doesn't go. Maybe someday, when it rains money, I will pull the tranny and get a quaife and a rebuild and not worry about it.

I don't know about this downshift business causing the pins to break. My VWs, which the other lighter ones used rivets to hold the diff together, never broke on me and they break all the time too! When you have more horsepower in them at the very least..

So the reinforcements are the little metal Ls that I see welded to the diff in the pic?

 

[TYSHO]

So the reinforcements are the little metal Ls that I see welded to the diff in the pic?

They're not as little as the blurry picture shows, but those are the reinforcements. They're what finally let me get more than 5k miles a transmission. Been burning the tires 70k miles since then between two reinforced differentials.

 

[Sammy~D]

i have never had a problem with mine ever and i do down shift to slow down i had the tranny out when i did the flywheel and clutch i put in drain plug put in and the tranny cleaned still works great looks great....just have fun and like said before dont let one tire spin longer thant the other for a long time...and not around corners

 

[Mysticle31]

I can't roast the inside front tire around corners? Man, who drives these!? I have to pull and tear apart the tranny to get to the diff, as in most front wheel drive trannys, correct?

The only FWD car that I can think of that has factory LSD is the Maxima in certain years.

 

[TYSHO]

I have to pull and tear apart the tranny to get to the diff, as in most front wheel drive trannys, correct?

Correct, but it's easier than you think it is.