[dradernh]

Originally Posted by mike519

As someone not in the know as someone like yourself, can you explain the real difference between something like the Wavetrac and the M LSD? Of course, price for one, but what is real world for someone who will not track often but just wants to put the power to the ground a little better (in a 6spd).

Also, I know if I get the BMW M LSD in there my warranty is still fine. What about with a Wavetrac or similar? Obviously the diff wouldn't be covered by BMW but would it be likely for BMW to deny ANY drivetrain warranty claim if using a non BMW diff?

Thx

Originally Posted by BallHog5873

Can someone explain the real world everyday advantages of having the LSD. I know what it is and how it works but for daily driving and weekend canyon runs what will it do to my drive? Will I be able to tell its even there? Is it more of a track thing? Its a pricey add on and wanna get some opinions.Thanks

First, I'm no expert when it comes to diffs. As I say to my wife: if I watch an internet animation of how a particular type of limited slip diff works...well, five minutes later I can't really explain how it works, even to myself! I just think of them as black boxes.

However, I do know this - your car will do a significantly better job of putting the power down to both wheels with a limited slip diff. Where it's made a difference for me is coming out of corners, whether it's on a back road or exiting the Bus Stop at Watkins Glen. The car simply hooks up and goes. If you have a favorite corner where you're getting the most out of the car on exit, you will notice the difference after you install a LSD. Whether the cost and other issues are worth it is up to each driver.

I got the Wavetrac based upon Dan's advice. I told him it was going into a street car that would see two or three track events each year, and he said the Wavetrac was the one to get. I assume if I'd told him it was for a race car that he would again have advised a clutch-based unit, but that's just an assumption.

From my point of view, the advantage of the Wavetrac is that it doesn't require periodic rebuilds. I don't know the rebuild interval for the BMW clutch-based LSD, but I'm assuming the clutches do eventually need to be replaced. All of my clutch-based track/race LSDs eventually needed to be rebuilt; of course, they were seeing much more intense use than they would if they had been installed in a street car.

As far as the OEM warranty goes, I don't really know what the situation is. Beyond possible issues with halfshafts (axles), I'm not sure what BMW could say a non-OEM diff did that caused damage to other parts of the car. I'm not suggesting that it's not an issue, but my guess is that a properly installed non-OEM diff is unlikely to result in a legitimately denied warranty claim when that claim is otherwise valid.