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  4. New Guy Looking For Help On 1991 318i Rear End

New Guy Looking For Help On 1991 318i Rear End

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  • T
    T
    teamjunk58
    wrote on last edited by
    #1

    Hi, I'm new. Please go easy on me. I have owned plenty of cars but never a BMW. I now have a 1991 318i that I would like to put an LSD in. It looks pretty easy to swap, I just need to know what I can swap it with. I went through pages and pages on here and all I really found was a thread about how to pull one out with a forklift. Haha. This is not a street car, and it's not really a track car. Let's leave it at that. I just need to know what has an LSD that will work in my car. Or where to find one. And what they're worth so I don't get ripped off. If all else fails, I'll weld the thing together. Just looking for options. Thank you very much in advance.

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    • B
      B
      B C
      wrote on last edited by
      #2

      4cyl cars (with the exception of the M3) came with what is known as a "small case" diff.

      6cylinder cars came with a "medium case" diff. Replace the word "case" with "penis size" and you get the jist

      You will have a better chance of finding a medium case lsd than a small case lsd and you will not only have more variety of ratios, but they will likely cost less.

      I have removed and installed an e30 diff no less than 6 times and now it feels like something only slightly more technical than an oil change.

      Do you have plans to increase power?

      Also welcome to here

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        teamjunk58
        wrote on last edited by
        #3

        Thank you for the welcome wagon sir. I do not plan on touching the engine. It is already pretty nasty for what it is. I don't know what's been done to it but a previous owner liked this car way too much. I am just looking for a better rear end to help with traction. I assume the medium case can only be found in the e30 body style? And is there any kind of rhyme or reason to them? Such as ALL 6 cylinder cars had them. Or ONLY automatics had them. Etc. Etc.

        Again, thank you for any and all help.

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        • CMartC
          CMartC
          CMart
          wrote on last edited by
          #4

          How hard is it to swap from small case to medium case?

          Excursion 7.3
          E30 LS1

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          • B
            B
            B C
            wrote on last edited by
            #5

            The axles are the same, just swap the diff and you are good to go.

            Medium case can be found in the e30, and e28 (rear cover needs to be swapped)

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            • jc43089J
              jc43089J
              jc43089
              wrote on last edited by
              #6

              I have a 4.10 and 3.15 both med case but they are both open difs. I recently bought a 3.23 LSD from an e36 M3 for 300ish, not am exact price but I bought several things together. That seems to be an average price for that ratio. I assume yours is a 5 spd?

              Sent from my potato phone

              2/94 325i Sedan, Arctic Gray: UUC LTW FW, EVO 3 and DSSR, +.020 Maxsil pistons, ASC delete, Eibach shocks/springs, 16" contour reps 238k
              3/93 325i Coupe, Schwarz 2, Sketchy stance action, ebay turbo, 300k
              '89 325i Vert, Alpine White: 5spd swapped, sold.

              '04 Toyota Sienna: 24V to 24V swap in progress

              '05 Volvo V70R, 6spd.  200k
              '85 Toyota LandCruiser: Lifted, gas hog. 205k
              '99 Nissan Maxima: 5spd, Rusty but trusty winter beater. 252k RIP.

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                teamjunk58
                wrote on last edited by
                #7

                Yes, my car is a 5-speed. While reading on line somewhere, it stated that 5-speed cars had open diffs and autos had limited slip. But I don't know if that is accurate. I honestly don't care what the gear ratio is, I just need to get out of the hole and one tire is not cutting it. I just need a cheap solution that will bolt in.

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                • mkoeppM
                  mkoeppM
                  mkoepp
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #8

                  teamjunk58 said:

                  Yes, my car is a 5-speed. While reading on line somewhere, it stated that 5-speed cars had open diffs and autos had limited slip. But I don't know if that is accurate. I honestly don't care what the gear ratio is, I just need to get out of the hole and one tire is not cutting it. I just need a cheap solution that will bolt in.

                  The LSD was an option and available with either transmission. You have to be careful what you read online, not all of it is legit.

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                  • jc43089J
                    jc43089J
                    jc43089
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #9

                    http://www.e30zone.net/e30zonewiki/index.php/Differential

                    Here is some good info.

                    2/94 325i Sedan, Arctic Gray: UUC LTW FW, EVO 3 and DSSR, +.020 Maxsil pistons, ASC delete, Eibach shocks/springs, 16" contour reps 238k
                    3/93 325i Coupe, Schwarz 2, Sketchy stance action, ebay turbo, 300k
                    '89 325i Vert, Alpine White: 5spd swapped, sold.

                    '04 Toyota Sienna: 24V to 24V swap in progress

                    '05 Volvo V70R, 6spd.  200k
                    '85 Toyota LandCruiser: Lifted, gas hog. 205k
                    '99 Nissan Maxima: 5spd, Rusty but trusty winter beater. 252k RIP.

                    1 Reply Last reply
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                    • CMartC
                      CMartC
                      CMart
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #10

                      From your link:

                      Diff-comp-02.jpg

                      Does switching from small to medium or medium to small affect your needed driveshaft length? it looks so by the picture.

                      Excursion 7.3
                      E30 LS1

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                      • B
                        B
                        B C
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #11

                        The two-piece driveshaft has a couple inches of length adjustability via loosening the collar nut on the splined connection

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                        • i_love_carsI
                          i_love_carsI
                          i_love_cars
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #12

                          i want to make sure OP is talking about the same thing everyone else is:

                          we're talking about an LSD that's already installed to the pumpkin, which indeed is not that hard. 

                          But if you are talking about taking a pumpkin apart and applying an LSD, you better damn sure know what you're doing. There are a myriad of things that can  go wrong if you aren't good and have the right tools. A lot of people don't know how to properly install an LSD and end up with things like backlash being way out of spec. 

                          as long as you're talking about juts swapping in a new pumpkin with an LSD in it, then carry on.

                          IMG6593.jpg

                          2011 E92 M3 6MT ZCP - ESS 625 supercharged
                          2007 Z4MR 
                          2003 E39 M5
                          2002 E46 M3
                          2021 X5 40i

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                          • B
                            B
                            B C
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #13

                            Gear setup seems like as much of an art as engine rebuilding

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                            • T
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                              teamjunk58
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #14

                              Yes, I am just looking to swap the whole case. I dont know how these carriers differ from a chevy rearend as far as assembly but I'd rather not find out. Haha.should I just post in the parts wanted thread or can any of you guys point me in the right direction?

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                              • mkoeppM
                                mkoeppM
                                mkoepp
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #15

                                I found this awhile back. Looks like it is not too difficult. 

                                http://www.mye28.com/viewtopic.php?t=93418

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                                • T
                                  T
                                  teamjunk58
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #16

                                  That doesn't seem bad at all. Hopefully I can just find an lsd soon. Would save me a lot of work. Thanks for the info!

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