I just bought a LSD diff. out of a non turbo. Is there a way I can tell if its actualy an LSD without opening it up and looking for the clutches.

 

An LSD will have a tag on the drain plug, unless someone has removed it. You can also tell by the year/model it came out of (assuming it is original). The S4 GXL and GTU had LSDs, but the S5 versions did not.

The other way I've heard (but not tried) is by spinning one of the halfshafts. If the shaft on the opposite side rotates the same way, it's an LSD. If the shaft rotates backwards, it's an open diff.

 

Are there multiple LSD types for the the 2nd gen? Aka clutch and/or torsen?

 

Should be able to put one wheel on the ground and the other up on a jack stand. Spin the one in the air. If the one on the ground wants to turn too...it's an LSD.

 

On my gxl lsd when both wheels are off the ground and I turn one tire the other tire turns in the same direction.

 

^what he said.

 

I called mazda trix and they said The 89-92 (S5) non-turbo(Normally Aspirated) LSD units were viscous, not clutch type. There are no parts available to "rebuild" them, and they never worked very well.

The 90 convertible should have come with an "open" style diff.

If you have a clutch type LSD unit then it came from an 86-88 S4 GXL -- it is the one you want.

The stub axles are the same for ALL NA 86-88's, AND 89-92 S5 NA open diffs, so your '90 convertible stub axles should work fine in a clutch type S4 NA LSD diff. And, it will bolt directly in to your car.

Also Thanks everyone for the advice, Im gonna open this thing up wednesday and see if its viscous or clutch, will let yall know either way.

 

thanks for all the help. I picked up the diff today and it has a tag on the plug that says LSD on it and when I spin one side the other spins in the same direction. Im gonna open it up to see if its viscous or clutch and will let you know

 

Hi, I posted a while back about how to tell if a diff. is lsd or not, well I got that far, so now how can I tell what car it came out of. Is it a N/A or Turbo II diff is it viscous or clutch. And can I do this without opening it up. I asked the guy I got it from and he said he doesnt know what it came out of.

Please help.

 

I merged your threads. There's no real need to have two about nearly the same thing.

TII diffs use an 8" ring gear, while NAs use a 7". NA halfshafts and driveshafts (except automatics) will not fit a TII diff. Externally I don't know any way to tell a viscous from a clutch-type, but if it came from an NA car it's virtually guaranteed to be S4 (clutch-type). Almost every S5 NA had an open diff from the factory, but two different models of S4 NAs had clutch-type LSDs: the GXL and the GTU.

 

I just got back from Pulling a Diff out,,and we had BOTH type of Diffs on the ground and out,so here is another way to tell if the Diff is "what it is".
LSD Diff: spin one side forward motion,the other side will Spin in the Same forward motion.IF you try to stop the spinning of the "other side" you should not be able to.
OPEN Diff: spin one side forward motion,and the Other side will move in the Opposite direction(backwards).If you try to stop the "other side" from spinning,You WILL be able to stop it.

 

Thanks for the info, but Ive figured out its an lsd. Now what I want to know is if there is a way to tell if it came out of a turbo II car or a n/a car without opening it up.
I know I posted earlier about opening up but I decided against it. I just dont want to go to swap out my diff for the new one and it not bolt in because its from a T II.

 

Thats how I verified my LSD...caveman like but it works !

 

If you want to know if it will bolt in why dont you just try to see if the bolt holes match up? That should tell you if it will fit right.

 

Ill need to get it on some jack stands or on a lift. and im bein lazy. I was just wondering if anyone could tell me an obvious identifier from a turbo to non turbo lsd so anything would be nice.
Thanks for the comments. keep em comin

 

I believe that even if it is from a Turbo2 you can still use it with the exception of getting a custom driveshaft made. I could be thinking of something else though.

 

you need to get the TII half shafts too,as the N/A shafts are smaller at the Stubs.they wont fit on the diff stubs.( to the wheels).The shafts will however just slide into your hub/Bearing assemblies so there is no Modification needed there.You Can run a 4 or 5 lug wheel setup with either the N/A or TII setup.
Therefore the TII Rear and Shafts need to be Used IF changing the *** end out.
The conversion driveshaft can be used if the trans is gonna be N/A..www.Mazdatrix.com makes them or get both driveshafts and get a driveshaft shop to make one for ya.
Also.IF you decide to use the TII trans,then you will need the TII Flywheel, TII Clutch and pressure plate,TII starter, and TII Clutch slave.
I hope this clears up things for ya a bit,
Cheers STYX.