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      05-06-2018, 11:14 AM   #1
XutvJet
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MPerformance LSD installed after over 2 years of ownership

It’s probably old news for many, but I wanted to share my experience with the MPerformance LSD. After over 2 years of ownership, I added the MPerformance LSD on Monday. I’m the type that likes to learn a car’s characteristics fully before adding mods as it really helps me understand pro/cons of the mod. Admittedly, I’ve wasted a ton of money over the past 20 years on overhyped, ill-fitting, and compromising mods that do more harm than good and I’m not one to hold back and remove a mod immediately if it’s crap.

I'm still breaking it in the LSD, but HOLY HELL, what a difference. It feels like I've added a ton more traction on the back axle. It feels like the OEM MPSS tires are substantially stickier out back. It's quite astonishing the difference, even in the most normal of driving. On a sweeping turn, transitioning from off throttle to moderate throttle instantly results in the car/steering wheel turning harder and harder into the turn. I’ve had other cars with lower quality LSDs, but I've never felt an LSD behave quite like this. The car just feels a ton more stable. It's awesome.

To break in the LSD, the dealer and other sources said to go out to a parking lot and do about 20 idle rolling, near steering wheel lock Figure 8s followed by 20 idle rolling near steering wheel lock circles in each direction. BMW says to drive moderately for the first 500 miles and to avoid hard shifting or situations that could cause axle tramp.

My dealer price matched the best online offer I found for $1,950. It was 3.5 hours to install which is the BMW book time as confirmed by internet searches for what others said labor was at BMW. The tech installing the diff was adamant that he check the fluid level in the diff before install because it had been his experience that some BMW diffs are underfilled from the factory and it’s a pain to check the level and add fluid after the diff is installed. He found the diff slightly underfilled and added about ¾ pint of BMW LSD-spec fluid. All in, it was about $2,700 for the LSD, labor, fluid, and tax. Yeah, crazy expensive.

The LSD is a 3 clutch lock-up with 30% lock-up on acceleration and 9% on deceleration. Pretty ideal for street driving and moderate track use. The LSD is built for BMW by Drexler, an Australian company known for making some of the best LSDs for racing. It's a very high quality piece.

If you're a car guy and really in tune with the way a car feels and are comfortable pushing the car a bit on the street (when it's safe of course) and you plan on tracking/auto-x, it's a great mod. For many, they probably won't feel the difference or really use it. Even at 4/10ths driving, I can tell it's there and working it's magic. The car is wicked in DSC Off now. The car just feels more robust and substantial. It’s hard to explain. Perhaps the lighter wallet is also affecting my brain.
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      05-06-2018, 02:32 PM   #2
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When I found local 6-speed with LSD, I jumped on it right away. After driving S2k for 5 years, LSD was a must option on my list
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      05-07-2018, 04:53 PM   #3
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As I mentioned in the other thread, congrats and I'm happy to hear you're hysterical about the mod. It's not a cheap one, but probably the most substantial handling add on you can do for the RWD car. It's crazy how much "tighter" the cars are, with an LSD, it's so hard to explain this to people who have an open diff. Happy trucking,

D
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      05-07-2018, 09:37 PM   #4
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Awesome. I cannot wait to add this to mine. Thanks for sharing!
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      05-08-2018, 12:01 AM   #5
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Cannot wait for my tax returns, my next mod will be installing a LSD and change the gear ratio at the same time.
Having driven a M235i with and without the LSD back to back, the difference is like night and day.
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      05-08-2018, 09:07 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BM235iW View Post
Cannot wait for my tax returns, my next mod will be installing a LSD and change the gear ratio at the same time.
Having driven a M235i with and without the LSD back to back, the difference is like night and day.
Assuming you have a 6MT and you do not have a tune, you may want to do a tune first and see how you feel about it. I found that a basic tune adds so much extra torque across the board that it makes the gearing more acceptable. The Comfort throttle setting is now perfect, it feels much like a cable throttle now.
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      05-08-2018, 09:27 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dylan86 View Post
As I mentioned in the other thread, congrats and I'm happy to hear you're hysterical about the mod. It's not a cheap one, but probably the most substantial handling add on you can do for the RWD car. It's crazy how much "tighter" the cars are, with an LSD, it's so hard to explain this to people who have an open diff. Happy trucking,

D
Yeah, while the open diff and the car in DSC OFF (eLSD active) is good and probably ok for most drivers, I do admit there's a huge difference traction and stability with the LSD in DSC Off and any other mod. With the open diff and DSC Off, it's easy to drift the car for fun, but it's not remotely as composed or easy to control when the LSD is there. Without the LSD, the back end is quite loose and can be hard to predict in comparison to having the LSD out back. It's kind of like being on ice. I can carry more speed and trust a lot more throttle in the turns now, around corners, or even when going straight and the back tires are spinning in 1st and 2nd.

I really want to launch the car now to see if there's much difference in the amount of launch rpm I can use, but I need to hold off for another couple hundred miles. I usually launch at ~3,500rpms with a decent amount of clutch slip and some minor tire spin/slip through most of 1st.

The car feels like it has an extra 500 lbs out back now in terms of the tires feeling planted. Prior to the LSD, the back end felt a bit loose. Now there's more forward acceleration in the lower gears as the wheel spin is better mitigated. In the nanny modes, the nanny's don't appear to be as hyperactive. That could be all in my head though.
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      05-08-2018, 09:37 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by XutvJet View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by BM235iW View Post
Cannot wait for my tax returns, my next mod will be installing a LSD and change the gear ratio at the same time.
Having driven a M235i with and without the LSD back to back, the difference is like night and day.
Assuming you have a 6MT and you do not have a tune, you may want to do a tune first and see how you feel about it. I found that a basic tune adds so much extra torque across the board that it makes the gearing more acceptable. The Comfort throttle setting is now perfect, it feels much like a cable throttle now.
Thank you for the advice. The car already has a tune, exhaust and intake. During hard acceleration from a stop, slow speed roll or in a turn the car becomes unstable even in dry conditions.
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      05-08-2018, 11:25 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by XutvJet View Post
I really want to launch the car now to see if there's much difference in the amount of launch rpm I can use, but I need to hold off for another couple hundred miles. I usually launch at ~3,500rpms with a decent amount of clutch slip and some minor tire spin/slip through most of 1st.

The car feels like it has an extra 500 lbs out back now in terms of the tires feeling planted. Prior to the LSD, the back end felt a bit loose. Now there's more forward acceleration in the lower gears as the wheel spin is better mitigated. In the nanny modes, the nanny's don't appear to be as hyperactive. That could be all in my head though.
You'll love how well it hooks up, launching. My friend has an 8at m235i and it launched really hard out of the box, but with the open diff he got pretty squirly 1-3rd. He installed a Quaife LSD and he barely spins in 2nd, now. I can hardly burn through 2nd gear with 255 PSS's lightweight wheels (from a roll, 15-16psi/meth), so you're going to be GLUED to the ground with the power you're running, lol.

That heavy feeling is 100% both wheels engaging simultaneously, vs the "hunting" for grip that the open diff used to do. The nannies will only intervene if you're trying to "drift" of do a big power-slide. You can stop it from happening but only if you stay on it WOT, if you start to modulate mid slide/drift the eLSD tries to correct things, although it ruins the experience. Not that I do this often, but there's a rare occasion on a slow twisty back road that I like to have fun, namely some steep uphill winding 180* turns . I plan on coding out the eLSD among a laundry list of other features I've been missing out on.

Looking forward to your follow up, post break-in.

D
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      05-08-2018, 01:21 PM   #10
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Glad you got this installed, and like it. You've been talking about getting it for a little bit now.

S
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      05-08-2018, 02:39 PM   #11
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I had the LSD added, it was pricy at $2,920 installed but I bit the bullet. Love it, you can hear it working when you twist the steering wheel and step on it..

The LSD plus the JB4 Stage 1, I say it's up there with the M2 in power and handling, on the street level.
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      05-08-2018, 04:50 PM   #12
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Damn, definitely peanut butter and jealous!

So, for everyone that's added the LSD, did you also code out the eLSD or are you guys leaving that alone?
Any track times showing differences with the eLSD active and inactive when a true LSD is installed?
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      05-08-2018, 05:08 PM   #13
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^^ I'll be coding mine out. My car came with the LSD, so I don't know the before/after, but I do know that it intervenes when modulating, and I want zero intervention with regard to power delivery. It really only occurs when you have power oversteer and lift to control the rear end, then as the LSD unloads it opens up slightly, which is when the eLSD/ABS kicks on. It's really strange, almost feels like you have DSC on in sport+, but it happens when fully disabled.
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      05-08-2018, 06:16 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dylan86 View Post
^^ I'll be coding mine out. My car came with the LSD, so I don't know the before/after, but I do know that it intervenes when modulating, and I want zero intervention with regard to power delivery. It really only occurs when you have power oversteer and lift to control the rear end, then as the LSD unloads it opens up slightly, which is when the eLSD/ABS kicks on. It's really strange, almost feels like you have DSC on in sport+, but it happens when fully disabled.
What are you using to code out the eDiff? I can't find the DSC module in the Bimmercode APP..

http://www.onelapx1.com/blog/how-to-...w-actually-fun
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      05-08-2018, 06:35 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
What are you using to code out the eDiff? I can't find the DSC module in the Bimmercode APP..

http://www.onelapx1.com/blog/how-to-...w-actually-fun
Someone in the F30 forums posted the how-to, for the DIY guys. As well, I believe @Liquidpaper had his done also, he's around here...

I believe Bimmercode knows the routine, that's who I was going to have do it, for me..
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      05-08-2018, 06:48 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dylan86 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
What are you using to code out the eDiff? I can't find the DSC module in the Bimmercode APP..

http://www.onelapx1.com/blog/how-to-...w-actually-fun
Someone in the F30 forums posted the how-to, for the DIY guys. As well, I believe @Liquidpaper had his done also, he's around here...

I believe Bimmercode knows the routine, that's who I was going to have do it, for me..
Like I said the module to make the changes is not in Bimmercode. You need another detail method of coding like ESYS. You can check it out yourself, you'll see the DSC module is not available.
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      05-08-2018, 07:26 PM   #17
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Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
Like I said the module to make the changes is not in Bimmercode. You need another detail method of coding like ESYS. You can check it out yourself, you'll see the DSC module is not available.
Yea I'm not too sure on that front. I don't do coding, it's not my forte.. Check with Liquidpaper on what he used? My local BMW tech has the means necessary to do it, he said (Bimmercode, and he uses ESYS as well IIRC). If you're still hunting for a how-two, in a few weeks, I'd be happy to help you out with whatever feedback he can give me, in regard to the module changed, or software used to do the job.

D
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      05-08-2018, 08:08 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dylan86 View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by Poochie View Post
Like I said the module to make the changes is not in Bimmercode. You need another detail method of coding like ESYS. You can check it out yourself, you'll see the DSC module is not available.
Yea I'm not too sure on that front. I don't do coding, it's not my forte.. Check with Liquidpaper on what he used? My local BMW tech has the means necessary to do it, he said (Bimmercode, and he uses ESYS as well IIRC). If you're still hunting for a how-two, in a few weeks, I'd be happy to help you out with whatever feedback he can give me, in regard to the module changed, or software used to do the job.

D
Yes, please keep us updated; I'm sure others would like to know also..
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      05-08-2018, 11:13 PM   #19
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Welcome to the club. I installed the LSD 2 months ago, after owning the car fora year. When just tooling around town the effect is subtle, but it's always there. You don't have to be tracking the car to appreciate it. (But it sure helps there, even with snow tires (it was so cold that day).)

There is a left turn coming out of my neighborhood onto a highway I take every morning. Taken it every day for 17 years in several different cars, often accelerating hard to beat traffic. The LSD just plants the rear end of the car and makes applying power while turning so confidence inspiring. Every day since I got the LSD, taking that corner now brings a little smile to my face.

Yes, the $2500+ for the LSD is stupid expensive, and I wish the car came with it. And it's no where near as fancy as the active diff in the M cars. But if you want a mod that makes the car feel and perform better, I think it's worth it.

Only downside is the completely stock pumpkin. Wish it had a M logo or something so you could look under the back and go 'ooh, it has the LSD'.
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      05-13-2018, 10:50 AM   #20
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Couldn't agree more with all the assessments posted here. Mine was a little cheaper, because I caught the holiday sale in December and my dealer gave me a fair install price. It was still expensive, but worth it.
Less nanny intervention in Comfort and Sport. More confidence inspiring in Sport+. Planted.
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      06-06-2018, 08:56 AM   #21
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30 day update. The LSD is fully broken in now and is pretty smooth in it's operation. I'm remain astounded by all the extra traction out back. It's so different. The negative is that all the extra traction now makes the car feel a bit slower because there's far less drama and wheelspin

One of the biggest differences I notice is how power oversteer with and without the LSD. Without the LSD, I could easily provoke the rear end out and to swing wide, but it was somewhat hard to control plus there wasn't much forward momentum. With the LSD, you really can steer with the throttle and forward momentum is dictated by throttle application. Induce some power oversteer and then get on the throttle a bit hard and the tail straightens up a bit and the car sling-shots forward, giving me similiar acceleration feel to my old 2012 WRX.

The car simply feels more robust and stable. I run around in DSC Off almost all the time. Love it.
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      06-06-2018, 03:07 PM   #22
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Tried launching yet?lol You'll probably have 50% less wheel spin, if any at all. When my PSS's were new, using launch control, it would just bite and go, very little wheel spin at all.
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