THIS LSD is JUNK!!!!!!

[Gary - K7GLD]

"limited" slip, means "limited" slip ... ... ... ... ... . emphasis on limited"





YUP! That's it!



Yer only gonna get just SO MUCH off-side power with these stock setups - I thought mine needed a lube change, since it slipped "excessively" with one wheel in ice/snow - or so I thought - but jacked up one rear wheel and tried to physically get it to rotate to check LSD clutch operation, and couldn't budge it! I've been quoted that about 95 lbs. torque is the spec for the LSD before one wheel or the other should spin, and mine certainly seems well within that spec - so no need for further attention, lest I get TOO much LSD action, and then get differential chatter on harder dry surfaces...

 

[lil red cummins]

in my 1974 gto i have a fricion clutch design that is always working to keep both wheels turning the same speed. it slips going around corners as it should, but would never let one wheel spin on ice. all my previous vehicles have had a variation of this clutch design and i have never had a problem with one of them. i have rebuilt differentials with this design and never had to replace the clutches. they normally had a bearing failure or a gear failure. it must be a reliable and inexpensive design or GM would not use it.



jim

 

[dodgerep]

well, i have a 4X2 with LSD and factory tires, I am from Texas and Live in WISCONSIN... While I admit that up hill jaunts from a stop can be a little tricky, the last 12 inch snow storm did not make me the lease timid about venturing out into the snow and ice. . and the guy in the Jeep CJ7 with those big tires, was glad to see that I could stop in the snow as well... . How else was I gonna pull him out??

 

[stoutrv]

I have a 4X4, or I should say 3X4 as well. Mr rear diff won't seem to lock. I got stuck the other day in a mud whole slick as snot and thought I was going to have to call a wrecker. Can someone tell me what to look for if I pop the cover and see what's in there? I have a feeling I got ripped.

I just bought Colorado property and would like to know that I can depend on getting back and forth.

 

[JHayden]

LSD question

For a quick LSD test use floorjack on rear pumpkin & lift rear tires off ground. With trans in neutral roll 1 rear tire. If it has a LSD the tires will roll in same direction.



'00 2500 CTD Auto w/LSD



-John

 

[peternarvaez]

'04 diesel Limit Slip Diff'tl fault from standing start.

(I will be willing to join some legal action to get this corrected or our LSD cost and two fees corrected. )



The Post by CAKUZ is correct! This LSD problem has nothing to do with wieight or tires. Check the the service book and you will see that the diesel has a different title for the LSD. Reading between the lines gives a lot of room to see that if you are stopped and one wheel has traction and the other does not the low traction wheel will spin - NO TORQUE is sent to the non spinning wheel. THIS MAKES THE LSD USELESS IF STARTING FROM A STOPPED CONDITION.



The design of this "limited slip differential" requires both wheels to be turning befor the limited slip begins to work.



I feel the design is for the purpose of preventing the differential lock sometimes experienced lwhen rounding sharp turns. I feel the design is to give equal torque to both wheels while allowing them to turn at different speeds. The LSD we all are familiiar with locks the differential so both tires turn at the same speeds. This means that one tire will slip and a slipping tire has less traction. This could imporve handeling and total tractive effort once the truck is moving.



This design has some good points BUT it dose make useless for the more frequent function of starting from a standing position.



I would not have bought my 2004 had I know this. I have had the case where the left side of the truck was on dry level pavement and the right wheels on grass. Even in 4 wheel dirve I could not move the truck. The right wheels slipped.



The owners manual obtusely admitts this by suggesting skillful use of the parking brake to get both wheels turning so the LSD contron can be brought in to aciton. I tried this on my 8% grade drive way with an old drip pan with some soapy water on it under the left rear wheel. I had only limited success and the use of the parking brake was very tricky. I do not think it work in anything like mud or soft soil. I feel it only partialy worked on my driveway because the spining wheel dried the soapy water. Surely any one with out mechanical skill and knowledge would be able to use this remedy.



I will be willing to join some legal action to get this corrected or our LSD cost and two fees corrected.





With kind regards,



Peter N.



2004, diesel, 4x4, quad, Parked going down hill!

 

[rbattelle]

For a quick LSD test use floorjack on rear pumpkin & lift rear tires off ground. With trans in neutral roll 1 rear tire. If it has a LSD the tires will roll in same direction.



'00 2500 CTD Auto w/LSD



-John

This is not true on a Torsen-type limited slip system like we have. It only works on the clutch type. Such a test on a Torsen type will make you think you have an open diff (wheels will spin in opposite directions).



Peter,

First of all, welcome aboard. Second, what basis for legal action are you proposing? Sue them for the LSD working precisely the way it's supposed to? Failure to understand the nuances of a Torsen-type limited slip differential prior to purchase is not grounds for suing an auto maker. If you buy a blender but don't realize it was never meant to be used as a curling iron, that doesn't make it illegal for the company to have marketed it as a blender. Know what I mean?



A Torsen limited slip arrangement relies on the beneficial horizontal load generated by the helix angle on the side gears which drives them into a set of pinion brake shoes. The catch is, it is a torque multipler. Anything multiplied by 0 is still 0. The torque bias on these axles is probably between 3 and 4 (I should contact AAM to ask for sure).



My only complaint with the LSD is I wish the helix angle on the side gears were larger, which would result in a higher torque bias.



-Ryan

Disclaimer: I am not trying to be mean-spirited in this post. The blender comment is simply a little joke. I am not being condescending, nor am I trying insult any individual or group of individuals. I am not a powertrain engineer. The information in this post should not be assumed to come from any basis in fact, truth, or any proven theory. Please do your own research and come to your own conclusions about whether I'm full of you-know-what.

 

[DPKetchum]

I've been on wet grass and wet red Georgia clay numerous times with mine and 10k of trailer and horses. Never had a problem with both rear wheels biting and spinning etc. Seems to work good for me. Of course I don't horse it(no pun intended)I let it do its job.

 

[stoutrv]

Load?

My problem is that the LSD is no good unless your carying a load according to all of you guys. I carry plenty of heavy loads but, when I'm empty I get stuck! That's a load of crap and they should of said I "really" am buying 2 three wheel drive vehicle unless I modify to a locker. I would have saved the expense when I ordered my truck and modified it right after I bought it. Obviously the majority of you have not been embarrased by a wrecker and every Ford passerby that your truck is stuck with two wheels on dry pavement in 4? wheel drive. I now carry my mud/snow chains with me full time :-{}

 

[lil red cummins]

as the originator of this thread, suffice it to say, I (we?) am (are) dissapointed with the way the LSD works on these trucks. if it were not for my previous knowledge of my GM and FORD clutch pack type LSDs, i guess i wouldn't be as mad. i probably would have accepted this design as OK, figuring that it was the best that could be done.



because of the weight on the front of these trucks and the lack of weight on the back (assuming unloaded), this setup is completely useless.



i am now waiting for someone to offer a locker design retrofit for these axles.

as of yet, i have not found one. are there any?



jim

 

[Tim]

Back on subject, we don't have a limited slip differentials. We have torque biasing differentials that are different from what most are used to (been covered). I think most of you would rather have an automatic locking differential anyway but they're not yet offered for these trucks. When they are, get one. You may hear it ratchet and bang, but by God, you let that clutch out, and those axles are locked together.

 

[thejeepdude]

i am now waiting for someone to offer a locker design retrofit for these axles.

as of yet, i have not found one. are there any?

NOPE! Just got off with Randy's Ring & Pinion (great guys, highly recommend!). The tech on the phone has a new chevy with the 11. 5 AMM axle and is in the same scenario. Basically, we probably will end up waiting another 3 years or so until the demand goes up high enough for them to think it worthwhile to build. Eaton is just now coming out with the 14-bolt e-locker by the end of this year. Perhaps they start R&D on the AAM11. 5 after that? Only time will tell!

 

[ENordstrom]

My complaint is that it is stated by Dodge as a "Limited Slip Differential" NOT "Limited, One wheel turns unless you have your e-brake partially on, have a great weight in the back, or play foot games with all the pedals Differential"



It all comes down to the fact that we want the wheel that is NOT spinning to grab and give us some traction.



What use is all this fancy rear end stuff if it doesnt help push the car when we need it ?



From all the reading I have done on this differential, it sounds like a failed Rube Goldberg device. Just give me a decent REAL Limited Slip Differential that will transfer power to the wheel with traction.

 

[evldsl]

Install the oem electric locker that dodge sells and installs on it's 4x4 2500 powerwagon truck's.

 

[thejeepdude]

Install the oem electric locker that dodge sells and installs on it's 4x4 2500 powerwagon truck's.

Won't fit. That's not a 11. 5" that comes in the CTD trucks. That's one of the reasons they don't allow the Cummins in the Powerwagon.

 

[JHardwick]

Just give me a decent REAL Limited Slip Differential that will transfer power to the wheel with traction.

There has never been one built to date ... ... . my AAM works way better than my old Danas though.

 

[Diesel Dually]

I picked up my '05 in Feb. and had a chance to check the function of the LSD in many different situations. So far I have not seen this problem with my truck and I have purposely put one tire on ice and the other on dirt. The truck moved out nicely and both tires spun. I put my '96 (open dif. ) 3500 in the same spot and had to engage 4WD to move.

I wonder if there isn't an issue with certain production runs of the LSD. I sure would be ticked if mine worked the way some of you are explaining.

 

[JHardwick]

Mine works way better than any Dana rear I've owned ... ... ... ... except a plumb wore out Dana that has locked itself :-laf



I changed all the fluids with my last oil change. I put Mobile1 in the rear and have been looking for a difference, but with all of the muddy weather, fields, ditches, uneven terrain ... ... ... ... . it still bites on both rears

 

[ENordstrom]

There has never been one built to date ... ... . my AAM works way better than my old Danas though.

I do know that my old 1968 mustang with limited slip, worked far better than this new dodge. My mustang did not have four wheel drive and yet I could drive in muddy conditions ( I lived in the Santa Cruz, CA mountains at the time ) and not get stuck. My new truck though got stuck when one rear wheel dropped off the pavement and luckily the 4-wheel drive button helped me out.

"Limited Slip" means just that, "LIMITED", as in not all the time, "SLIP", as in spinning freely. Myabe they should have called it just "Slip Differential", that would be more appropriate.

By any definition, this new rear end is useless when you need it. At least it has failed the few times when "I" needed it.



That being said, there is not much I, or anyone else, can do about it. I still love my truck and feel the Pros outweigh the Cons.

I just keep hoping that Dodge will come out and say " Whoops ! All you Limited Slip owners need to come back in because we forget to put the farfugnator in the rear end that really gives you limited slip capability "

But then my wife keeps telling me I am a dreamer !

 

[DPKetchum]

If I'm not mistaken autos back in the 60s and 70s also had a notation in the owners manual about applying the emergency brake on slippery conditions to get both rear wheels to bite.