The key is to use a floor jack with wheels, that way if the car pulls forward it'll just roll on the jack. Obviously I wouldn't use the jack the car comes with, it has to have those steel wheels. Also you're just raising the wheel about an inch off the ground and of course there's no need to floor the gas, it will either roll slightly forward with LSD or it won't if it doesn't have it. I have LSD on my Mini but I haven't tested it that way. I did test my Jeep, it has LSD on the rear wheels. It worked as advertised.

 

What if it shifts and the jack goes through the bottom of your car? Or it shifts and rolls OFF the jack onto the floor, or the jack twists and ends up jamming into something else...this one just sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. It violates a few safety precautions that are the basics...i'm not trying to be mean, just don't want to see someone damage their car, or worse hurt themselves or someone else. You'd be hard pressed to find a mechanic that would be willing to do this even on a four post lift...any dealer should be able to find out from your VIN what options were put in your car from the factory.

 

I totally agree, it's unsafe but that's how I did it on my Jeep with no problems. And I also agree the safest thing to do is just go to your dealer and have them find out for you.

 

$500 to much for lsd on the mini . You are joking right? That's the first thing I added that wasn't in a package on our car best $500 spent on it in my opinion. Adding lsd to any car is going to cost a small fortune if you have it done at a shop. Heck the unit is going to cost more than $500 more than likely upwards of $1500 before the shop has even touched the car.Add another 2 to 4grand to remove the tranny and install the lsd and reinstall. $500 looks like a bargain.

 

Is there any truth in if you turn off the dsc the lsd works better. . .or something like that

 

well if dsc is off then the astc is also off so there won't be any braking that will take place. i don't know if this is better though.

 

+1, the front wheels on my MCS with LSD spin in the opposite direction. Minis have the GKN Driveline’s ‘Super Limited Slip Differential’, see this other LSD thread... https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...3&postcount=18

 

After owning cars without a LSD, I promised myself years ago, that I would never own another car without a limited slip. That's why I ordered my Clubman S with one.

 

So did you get it? What do you think about it? Would you do it again? I just ordered my new MCSm with LSD, and now I'm wondering after reading this thread. I don't like the idea of additional torque steer as well.

 

Anyone know the locking ratior for the OEM LSD?

 

30% 0n the 2009, YMMV...

 

What bout for the '07 R56?

 

Not much has changed from 07-09, so I would assume it is 30% but someone else may chime in to verify...

But with the 2009 if you order LSD and DTC w/eLDC you now have a 30% mechanical in combo with electronic slip control, so really it's a variable percentage on the 2009 with these options... Like mine!

 

My car has the LSD and DTC. I'm not sure what the LDC you mentioned is...

With the DTC off, powering our of corners still generates alot of wheel spin (inner wheel). I honestly can't feel te LSD working.

 

where did you get the 30% number? I'm pretty sure it's 25%.

 

The GKN Super LSD for the MINI looks to be unchanged since offered, so all LSD's should have the following specs as copied from article on Motoringfiles.com... http://www.motoringfile.com/2004/12/..._differential/ I've read this same info from other sources as well as being told directly by a MINI Tech I AutoX with...

"The unit, manufactured by GKN Driveline, is a torque-sensitive differential that manages torque output under acceleration and offers a 30% slip rate. This means, there is no loss of torque if the difference in grip between the two wheels is 30 % or less."

My mistake it's eDLC not eLDC (I always screw that one up) ...
eDLC= electronic Differential Lock Control
Used by BMW on their cars for awhile now to eliminate exactly your complaint and other reasons. When an unloaded tire begins to spin it applies brake force to that wheel to help shift torque to the loaded wheel. In reality it's a software based LSD and only functions when DTC is disabled. So "SPORT" mode with DTC disabled w/eDLC on AND an LSD make for a very spirited MINI...

PS: DTC w/eDLC was not an option for the MC/MCS until the 2009 model built after Dec 1st 2008...

 

looking at bmws parts cd it shows 25% as LSDs lock up value not 30% and that is right on the parts cd itself which is why i was wondering about the 30%.

 

I have installed Quaife LSD (helical gears torsen) at my other car (not Mini) and can compare and tell the difference open diff\LSD while working on one of the jacked front wheels.

1. If the gear is not engaged the front wheel in the air rotates in any direction free.

2. If the gear is engaged I could torque wheel nuts and another wheel - the wheel on the ground does not try to rotate the opposite direction and roll the car off the jack.

I think different types of LSDs might behave differently.

I do not understand what the exact type of Mini OEM LSD is. They say it is torque sensitive, but does that really mean torsen helical gear type?

 

To each his own but this is not deadly at all, though if you have never done an e-brake turn you are missing out it is easy once you practice a bit and make "pulling a U turn" a thing of the past........... now of course one should as i said practice in a wet parking lot and off teh street first, but it is great......

 

i believe it's the clutch pack type. I don't know of bmw lsd that used helical but my bmw knowledge only goes as far as E21.

being as such, it could wear out with use over time but it also means if someone wanted to, they could probably get it rebuilt for a higher lock up value than 25%. I know in the M coupe community a few people have had their lsd rebuilt for 70% lock up value for autox use.

 

From GKN Driveline's site

MINI Cooper LSD
Super Limited Slip Differential (S-LSD)
A torque-sensing limited slip device where gear separation forces react through a conical friction surface (taper ring).
The reaction force is amplified by the taper angle of the conical clutch and the resulting torque bias resists differentiation.

 

See, they say gear (torsen?), but they also say friction (clutch?)... So go figure....

 

GKN implies it is a hybrid, one of a kind technology and seems to be very proud of it... hmmmm?

 

It wold be nice they also explain how it actually works in real life situations.

I selected torsen type for my other FWD car as I decided it was the best LSD type for FWD.

It kind of combines two things -

1. does not allow one wheel to slip against another which is simply good for straight acceleration.

2. It is transferring torque to the outer wheel while accelerating (in\out of) turns\slaloms. This creates effect very similar to the famous Honda's Active Torque Transfer System (ATTS) did. ATTS is just a little more proactive. And I really feel like this type of LSD kind of pushes the front end of the car into the turn reducing\eliminating udersteer. Can say this for sure autocrossing both open\lsd types of differentials.

I also selected LSD option in my Mini simply because I liked LSD in my other car that much. It does make difference. Also, $500 for OEM LSD is just very inexpensive versus the aftermarket path. Just Quaife LSD itself is just around $900. And the installation was around $1500. And it took me years to actualy commit this.

 

The Super LSD (S-LSD) like that in the MINI was an invention by the Tochigi Fuji company. The S-LSD was/is used in many Mazda applications since Tochigi Fuji was a Japanese company which was taken over by GKN. GKN also contributed to the independent transaxle Four Wheel Drive (4WD) featured in the New Nissan GT-R and has been making components for Mini's for over 40 years.

GKN Corporate anouncement 2005 http://www.gkndriveline.com/drivelin...icle_0005.html

What is a Tochigi Fuji Super LSD (tm). It is a spring preloaded, cone clutch, torque sensing differential. In this differential, the normal separation forces created by the spider gears drives the side gears apart. Instead of being entirely constrained by bearings, this force, proportional to the torque transmitted, pushes a cone clutch on each side together.



Below is write up for award won in 2002 from SAE International