Best lsd oil for 216,xxx old AU1 XR6 vct diiff?

[Maka]

Hi guys, just wondering which would be the best viscosity & brand lsd oil for my diff? Ive been researching a fair bit & i'm not sure which way to go, stock viscosity or go slightly thicker. My diff is chattering a bit & its got the stock oil still in it afaik, its due for a change now. The diff has 216,xxx on it atm & is working well.

I don't want to put the wrong lsd oil in the diff & the lsd stops working (read some members reporting their lsd stopped working after a lsd oil change apparently, until replaced with the correct oil)

Any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated!

cheer's, Maka

[Bill M]

Hello Maka,
I used Castrol SAF XA with the Sturaco 7098 already added in by Castrol for my LSD diff in the ute.
I think it is either discontinued or in the process of being phased out and replaced with something else.
I found it listed by Supercheap online -

http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/onl...ecommendations

Check it has the Sturaco 7098 written in the description on the label.
cheers
Bill

[Maka]

Hi Bill, thanks heaps for the heads up mate!!! I definitely want to go with a diff oil that's already premixed with the additive & ive read some good reports on the Castrol SAF XA. Its now on the short list along with Penrite Pro Gear lsd oil (85/140) atm, which is already premixed with the additive too.

cheer's, Maka

[XF_Pilot]

I used the penrite full syn. I think its 80w140. Not the cheapest stuff but when I was searching it came up again and again as being great.

[XF_Pilot]

Just read your reply. It's the pebrite one you mentioned. Works well in my XR8.

[Maka]

Thanks for your reply XF Pilot, very much appreciated! Plenty of members have happily used both brands i've listed above, nice to hear you are very happy with the Penrite lsd oil. Can i ask how long has it been in for & when will it need replacing - in 40k perhaps?

cheer's, Maka

[mik]

I dont think i need any friction modifiers in my 23x,xxx k`s old diff, i have given it a fair old hiding and done a bit of towing with the car as well, and its parts move around very freely in diff casing...... the special fuel efficient gears .

lsd was on strike doing union rules about 5 year ago , its been a single wheeler in my bus for a long time ,
im just about due for rear wheel bearings as well, probably suspension bushes etc as not one thing has been replaced in the back end other than one set of wheel bearings(love my old falcon ).
i have some of the lucas oil stabilizer (the sticky stuff) that im going to wack in it soon just to see if it quietens down the back lash a bit, surprisingly the diff itself as far as gear noise still sounds not too bad for 15 year old car, but the back lash in the diff on gear changes is noisier than a mother in law in the passenger front seat.

[Maka]

Hi milk, thanks for your nice reply mate! Sounds like your diff is just shouting out for a nice, cool drink! I reckon you might get away with giving your diff a drink of some nice strong Lucas stuff & it quieting down, nothing to lose hey! Would the Lucas stabiliser be compatible with what's in it now? Should be if I remember, not sure though?

cheer's, Maka

[XF_Pilot]

I haven't had it in the car for a long time I must admit. 12 months I would say.

40,000 is probably good for mineral oil, Syn should last a lot longer but I guess if you drive the car hard to tow then it is cheap insurance.

[mik]

Originally Posted by Maka

Hi milk, thanks for your nice reply mate! Sounds like your diff is just shouting out for a nice, cool drink! I reckon you might get away with giving your diff a drink of some nice strong Lucas stuff & it quieting down, nothing to lose hey! Would the Lucas stabiliser be compatible with what's in it now? Should be if I remember, not sure though?

cheer's, Maka

Hi Maka im not sure mate, i used to run the standard ford additive then i used to have roil oil friction stuff in mine at one stage, it seemed to work ok, but its getting a bit tired now (like me ), ill give some of the thick stuff ago to keep it going for a while till i either fix it or something, i think its that tired it wouldnt matter what oil i put in it really .

[Jarry]

Originally Posted by Bill M

Hello Maka,
I used Castrol SAF XA with the Sturaco 7098 already added in by Castrol for my LSD diff in the ute.
I think it is either discontinued or in the process of being phased out and replaced with something else.
I found it listed by Supercheap online -

http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/onl...ecommendations

Check it has the Sturaco 7098 written in the description on the label.
cheers
Bill

Hey Maka,

+1 for the Castrol SAF XA.

N.B. The SAF XA is now branded under "Castrol Syntrax".
The Sturaco additive has been included with this oil at full dosage ever since Castrol removed the claim from the back of the label stating "as used in Larry Perkin's Bathurst winning Commodore". I believe this was around 7 years ago.

The factory recommendation for AU XR6/8 and V8's with LSD is a fully synthetic Mobil oil, but i think it is no longer available. These diffs came with a viton pinion seal so are compatible with a synthetic oil.

I put Castrol Syntrax 80W-140 in my AU1 XR6 diff (live axle with about 210,000kms on it) after flushing it with Castrol Limited Slip 90. The flush oil was in there for about 250kms from memory. There were no leaks before and no leaks since and diff performs fine.

Good luck with it, I'm sure you'll go well!!!

[Maka]

Hi Jarry, thanks for your very nice & informative reply mate! I'll see whats on offer @ the local spares place & grab what i can out of the two brands of lsd oil. I'm sure both brands will do the job great! Will definitely do a flush like you have, run it for the 250km, dump then refill with the good stuff.

Fingers crossed it sorts out that chatter noise, i dont think the diff has had a hard life before i purchased the car so i think it will be fine. Will post back with the results when the jobs done very soon.

cheer's, Maka

[Mainlube]

Originally Posted by Maka

Hi Jarry, thanks for your very nice & informative reply mate! I'll see whats on offer @ the local spares place & grab what i can out of the two brands of lsd oil. I'm sure both brands will do the job great! Will definitely do a flush like you have, run it for the 250km, dump then refill with the good stuff.

Fingers crossed it sorts out that chatter noise, i dont think the diff has had a hard life before i purchased the car so i think it will be fine. Will post back with the results when the jobs done very soon.

cheer's, Maka

Diff chattering is normally just wrong oil (not LSD oil) if I put our big Mack Mainlube 150 Parafinic E P gear Oil SAE 140 in an LSD, it will chatter on turns unless the tube of LSD additive is used (I use a big oil in slow moving off road 4WDs for slow moving protection)

When using LSD additive, only apply a 1/4 of a tube at a time (then drive) keep adding until the chatter goes away, the more additive you add, the more the diff clutch plates slips to stop the chatter.

If you just threw it all in, it would stop the chatter, and probably open wheel the LSD as well.

Or like you're doing, put a decent LSD oil in and it should fix it.

Cheers

Steve

[Maka]

Hi Steve, many thanks for chiming in! Yes, i've read that you can tune the chatter out by the amount of additive you add. Was hoping the premixed lsd oil will be fine, i'll give that a crack & go from there.

cheer's, Maka

[NCII40]

I Just Used Royal Purple
I chose 140 weight but double check
chucked it in and All perfect
$50 bucks Plus Post to my door from Harold @ Performance Lube

www.performancelub.com/

[Maka]

Hi guys, i ended up purchasing some Penrite Pro Gear lsd oil. I'll do a flush & oil change over the next couple of days & see how it goes. A big thank you to those who replied & shared their great tips!

cheer's, Maka

[Maka]

Hi guys, i'm happy to report the chatter noise is gone! The old lsd oil that come out wasn't that bad (stinky though), so i did a 15 min on stands flush (using Steve's @ Mainlube method, thank you very much Steve for that write up!).

The flush oil came out clean just churned up a bit, so refilled with the new Penrite stuff then drove around some roundabouts (both directions) then went to a big carpark & did some gymkhana type figure 8 turns for about 20 minutes to get the new oil into the lsd cones, it was fun!

I was going to fill up with some cheaper lsd oil & drive for 250km then dump it, but considering that the oil that came out was cleanish but worn i ended up going the on stands flush method with some cheap motor oil (20w50). I would've liked to do two flushes using the above method, but didnt think it needed it because the diff has been serviced plenty of times in the past from what i could see when under the car (diff cover has been off before). Maybe next time though, its easy as to do!

Oh yeah, i used a old 500ml ezy squeeze tomato sauce bottle to get the new oil in, took about twenty minutes to refill.

Anyone thinking about doing this job, research properly, have the right tools & prep, safely raise car / use stands & front wheel chocks, plenty of rags & time.

Good luck & safe motoring guys!

cheer's, Maka

[Jarry]

Great work Maka!

So the million dollar question... Does it now leave twin liquorice strips?

[Maka]

Originally Posted by Jarry

Great work Maka!

So the million dollar question... Does it now leave twin liquorice strips?

Yeah mate, it did before the oil change & still does! Not telling how i tested though.... Lets just say power down & traction are no problem out of tight hairpins @ wfo ....... glad the sun was out....!!!

cheer's, Maka