NOOB! Diff question.

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walkintree

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So i'm used to my differtial bein up in the air and spinning one tire forward, the other tends to go bckwards. well i had my dart in the air for some wheel cylinders, and i was turning the wheels, to see the other side do NOTHING. The shop teach mumbled something about non-slip somethin somethin. but was a lil busy. I've got a lil mini 7.25, as its originally a /6 273 car. So wat is up? Sate my curiousity.
 
walkintree said:
So i'm used to my differtial bein up in the air and spinning one tire forward, the other tends to go bckwards. well i had my dart in the air for some wheel cylinders, and i was turning the wheels, to see the other side do NOTHING. The shop teach mumbled something about non-slip somethin somethin. but was a lil busy. I've got a lil mini 7.25, as its originally a /6 273 car. So wat is up? Sate my curiousity.
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Means nothing, Just that your diff is a open carrier.
 
...open carrier...... wow. i've learned more new terms here then i did in my bio 30 class today. cept there they explained wat the difference was between them.
 
Peg leg , crazy wheel, one wheel wonder. Just nicknames we give open differentials.

A limited slip is not the same as a open differential. The term limited slip is a GM term for a differential like a sure-grip unit. Some people call them posi but a true positive differential is a spool. So calling a open carrier a limited slip is incorrect.

If you had it up in the air and the trans was in park and spin one wheel the other will spin the opposite way. If it's not in park and you spin one the other may not spin but the driveshaft spins. That's the way an open differential works.
 
fishy68 said:
A limited slip is not the same as a open differential. The term limited slip is a GM term for a differential like a sure-grip unit. Some people call them posi but a true positive differential is a spool. So calling a open carrier a limited slip is incorrect.
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Fishy, I am going to have to disagree with your definitions. Positraction or shorted to posi is a GM term like Sure Grip or Anti Spin are mopar terms. Both of these describe a limited slip differential. Limited slip is a generic term.

Walkintree, the reason for an open carrier differential is to allow the outside wheel to spin faster than the inside wheel when going around a corner. If this could not happen the inside tire would have to skip and slide across the pavement when going around a corner. Not good for tire wear and puts a lot of load into the drive train that will wear out parts faster.

The down side of the open carrier is when power is being applied all the power will be routed to the tire that has the least amount of traction or the least amount of finternal friction (and it doesn't take much of a difference, it happens on dry pavement) resulting in the one tire spining and the other sitting there.

A limited slip puts clutches, clones, gears or a ratcheting mechanism into the differnetial that keeps the wheels locked together until the torque difference between them exceeds some design in level then you get the diferential action that will allow one wheel to turn faster then the other going around corners. It's the limited slip differentials that use clutches or cones that require a friction modifier be added to the gear oil so the clutches or cones can slide smoothly across each other.

There is also another type of differential that is generically called a locker (not to be confused with a Detroit Locker which is a limited slip that uses a ratcheting mechanism). This type of differential uses air or electric solenoids to open or lock the differntial, there is no intermediate slipping action like a limited slip. The driver has control of this action and they are primarily used on off road vehicles.
 
dgc333 said:
Fishy, I am going to have to disagree with your definitions. Positraction or shorted to posi is a GM term like Sure Grip or Anti Spin are mopar terms. Both of these describe a limited slip differential. Limited slip is a generic term.
Click to expand...

Your right Dave. I reversed the definitions. My bad.#-o
 
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