superloaf

so i saw this cheap LSD recently and just wondering if anyone knows anything about these products?

http://www.phantomgrip.com/catalog/p...roducts_id=216

pretty reasonable @ $499 but i'm sure the installation is fun. (they also have a $299 version for my scirocco.)

also, just in general, can anyone provide a general comparison in driving feel with a LSD on our cars to the standard diff? just wondering how much of a difference they make since they seem to be pretty highly sought after & expensive. is the difference mainly on the track or do they feel different in sport street driving?

thanks.

Cory M

no bueno

Darwantae951

I like my stock LSD. That looks kinda gimmicky to me.

fbgh2o

I agree with ModdedEverything951S ... do you think that they know what a rockwell is?

gt37vgt

i think it's a pretty reasonable idea for most cars a 944 works pretty good with an open diff so even a bit of dif lock would be cool just that the work of getting the dif in and out kind of justifies spending the extra $500. perhaps with a filter in the oil line i would feel ok about it ..the work outweighs the money that is "possibly " saved
if it was cheaper and easier i would give it a go

CurtP

Is that a lunchbox locker?! For a Porsche? Wow.

fortysixandtwo

After a quick read of their web site I give it the official Complete Piece of Crap seal of approval.

Aside from being a poorly implemented design of a slip type differential, I find the following amusing

"Every Phantom Grip is constructed of only the highest-quality hand selected materials"
Are they buying steel or fruit? You don't go to the mill and select the billets you want. Maybe they squeeze them to make sure they're fresh.

Out of their installation manual:
"If excess material is evident, use either a mill, table sander, or bench grinder to remove excess material from the spider gears. The flatter the better."
OMG where to begin with this one.
-If they cannot controll the contact surface area, they cannot properly select spring rates.
-The front and back faces of the spider gear is being used as the friction (wear) surface.
-Grind the gear face! For a company that mentions their grasp of heat treating and rockwell (...um I think they mean hardness) testing. They don't appear to know what this actually does to the grain structure of metal, especially at the parts surface.


Assuming you have a transmission that is in decent enough shape to sell and get a few dollars for, sell it and with that money buy one with the factory unit for only a few hundred more than this would cost to purchase and install.

gt37vgt

I don't think it's that much of a horrer show or abortion as you make out .but I don't feel it's a worthy gamble either if you end up with a pile of aluminum oxide in the trans and as I said its not a big saving and not likely to last a long certainly not in car that gets any work.

daigo

A lot of budget racers used to use these. They are very limited in their ability to provide good performance. They work, sort of. But certainly not what I would call an efficient LSD.

CurtP

If you search for phantom grip lsd in Google images, you can see it installed. It is, indeed, a lunchbox locker. They're very popular in the off-road community for budget builds. They work, but I'm curious how well they'd work on a street car. I'm tempted to try one just to see.

I've been trying to find some reviews of the unit, but all I've been able to find is posts from boy-racers who don't know much about anything.

fortysixandtwo

CurtP, True. The lunchbox lockers are widely used in the off road community, but most of them are true lockers with teeth sets that engage. The offerings from Lock Right or Detroit for trucks are more reliable than this setup, but would give some funky handling characteristics that I don't think anyone here would want to deal with.

At least the company name matches their product!

phan·tom Audio Help /ˈfæntəm/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[fan-tuhm] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun

1. an apparition or specter.
2. an appearance or illusion without material substance, as a dream image, mirage, or optical illusion.
3. a person or thing of merely illusory power, status, efficacy, etc.: the phantom of fear.
4. an illustration, part of which is given a transparent effect so as to permit representation of details otherwise hidden from view, as the inner workings of a mechanical device.
–adjective
5. of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a phantom; illusory: a phantom sea serpent.
6. Electricity. noting or pertaining to a phantom circuit.
7. named, included, or recorded but nonexistent; fictitious: Payroll checks were made out and cashed for phantom employees.

-Yeah, I'm and A$$