350z / 370z Limited Slip Into the Pathfinder

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reds12t
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350z / 370z Limited Slip Into the Pathfinder

Postby reds12t » Mon Aug 28, 2017 7:38 pm

I really dislike not having a limited slip differential in my Pathfinder, and have decided to find a way to get one. Since I have the V8, I have the R230 rear end. The only R230 limited slip I can really find is the Quaife 300zx unit, but it is 31 spline and set up for the deeper gear ratios that the 300zx ran.

So, I am considering swapping down to the R200 diff from the V6 Pathfinder, as well as taking this opportunity to regear from the 2.94 to the 3.36. From a bunch of part number research, I found that the V6 Pathfinder and the 370z use the same carrier, side gears, bearings, and ring & pinion sets. So it follows that a limited slip for a 370z will fit in the Pathfinder. The only problem is that I can't use the stock viscous limited slip, because it uses different length axle flanges, and I can not find a correct length axle flange that has the Pathfinders larger CV bolt pattern.

So that leads me to the aftermarket limited slip options, and with the British Pound being so weak right now, the Quaife Helical unit is looking downright affordable at about $610 shipped at time of writing.

I wanted to see if anyone else tried this, or was aware of this? Also, does anyone know if the V6 rear bolts to the V8 drive shaft?


docwatson
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Postby docwatson » Mon Aug 28, 2017 8:53 pm

I have not researched the R230 swap at all.

I am fairly confident the Wavetrac or Quaife will swap in the R200. I had contacted Wavetrac about a month ago for some tech specs to compare with our carrier just haven't followed up. A fellow started a thread with this idea on expedition portal (well for the c200k, but they components are extremely similar) but did a M226 swap instead (Xterra not R51). I have been saving towards attempting this in the future but other things are requiring my time and money right now.

I will flow up with Wavetrac tomorrow

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smj999smj
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Postby smj999smj » Tue Aug 29, 2017 12:55 am

Actually, you do have limited slip, just not a mechanical limited slip. R51's have electronic limited slip; when a slip is detected, the ABS system activates and locks the wheel that is slipping, allowing power to the wheel with the traction. It works pretty good for the majority of Pathfinder owners.

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Tue Aug 29, 2017 8:22 am

smj999smj wrote:Actually, you do have limited slip, just not a mechanical limited slip. R51's have electronic limited slip; when a slip is detected, the ABS system activates and locks the wheel that is slipping, allowing power to the wheel with the traction. It works pretty good for the majority of Pathfinder owners.
Personally, I think that the factory traction control is decent off road, but on the street I find it overbearing and coarse. I often turn it off, especially if wet out.

In other vehicles, I see mechanical limited slips complimenting the electronic traction control systems nicely, and I am betting that is the case with the Pathfinder.

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Tue Aug 29, 2017 8:26 am

docwatson wrote:I have not researched the R230 swap at all.

I am fairly confident the Wavetrac or Quaife will swap in the R200. I had contacted Wavetrac about a month ago for some tech specs to compare with our carrier just haven't followed up. A fellow started a thread with this idea on expedition portal (well for the c200k, but they components are extremely similar) but did a M226 swap instead (Xterra not R51). I have been saving towards attempting this in the future but other things are requiring my time and money right now.

I will flow up with Wavetrac tomorrow
I went and found the thread on Expo, wish he would have finished it! I would love to hear what Wavetrac has to say!

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disallow
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Postby disallow » Tue Aug 29, 2017 1:04 pm

do you still have your s12 turbo?

Neat idea. wonder if going straight to Dana would be fruitful?

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disallow
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Postby disallow » Tue Aug 29, 2017 1:16 pm

heres a link to discussion around Dana r230 axles:

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fusea ... age/14.cfm

docwatson
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Postby docwatson » Wed Aug 30, 2017 8:05 am

Just called Wavetrac and their Engineer is out until Tuesday at an event but they will shoot over the external dimensions and bearing offset etc for the 350z/370z carrier next Tuesday or Wednesday. I know quiafe has their drawings posted online so it might be easier to use if you have the time for the research.

I couldn't find external dimensions for the R51 R200 carrier. Most of my searching leads to other versions of the R200 as it was used in so many vehicles.

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:45 pm

disallow wrote:do you still have your s12 turbo?

Neat idea. wonder if going straight to Dana would be fruitful?
I no longer have the S12, it was my first car, and the first of many Nissans for me. I got it as a non turbo 2.0l, and converted it over to a turbo, wire harness, computer, hardware and all. I kept the 2.0L block and and put the boost around 10-12psi, it was a great learning expirence and me start in using OE parts from other vehicles to upgrade my car.

Good thought on Dana. I work with Dana products in my day job, so I checked into their connection to the R230, but couldn't find any link. Too bad, because I could have gotten parts for a good price!

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disallow
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Postby disallow » Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:55 pm

My first car was an 85 200sx hatch 2.0 5spd.

I drove the piss out of that car. Still miss it!

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Wed Aug 30, 2017 9:58 pm

docwatson wrote:Just called Wavetrac and their Engineer is out until Tuesday at an event but they will shoot over the external dimensions and bearing offset etc for the 350z/370z carrier next Tuesday or Wednesday. I know quiafe has their drawings posted online so it might be easier to use if you have the time for the research.

I couldn't find external dimensions for the R51 R200 carrier. Most of my searching leads to other versions of the R200 as it was used in so many vehicles.
That is excellent. I looked at what Quaife has up, and I wish more manufacturers put up their drawings and dimensions. Would make this type of thing much easier.

I am confident that the 350/370z R200 carrier will work without issue in the R51 R200, the 370z and R51 share the same OE part number for the carrier.

I was able to verify that the V6 and V8 driveshafts are different in length so I would have to get a V6 driveshaft. I was also able to verify that the CV axles between the V6 and V8 share the same bolt pattern, but I have not been able to verify lengths. I might need the V6 CV shafts too.

Alternately, I am attempting to verify dimensions on the H233B carrier to put into my stock R230 rear. Some important dimensions such as spline count/size and ring gear pilot diameter match up. But I have not yet found overall dimensions to compare against. Whatever I find, if it will fit, it will need some welding and machine work.

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Wed Aug 30, 2017 10:10 pm

disallow wrote:My first car was an 85 200sx hatch 2.0 5spd.

I drove the piss out of that car. Still miss it!
Thats great! Mine was an 84 notch which I got for $200, or $1 per SX :lol:

I thought it was the coolest car because it had a digital dash and had the voice alerts instead of chimes.

docwatson
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Postby docwatson » Wed Sep 06, 2017 10:07 pm

Chris from Wavetrac emailed me the drawings of their 370z if you would like them. Its a PDF file, I am just not sure how to attach that here.

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Thu Sep 07, 2017 12:44 am

docwatson wrote:Chris from Wavetrac emailed me the drawings of their 370z if you would like them. Its a PDF file, I am just not sure how to attach that here.
Excellent! I just sent you a PM, as I don't know the best way to attach a PDF in this forum either.

reds12t
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Postby reds12t » Fri Sep 08, 2017 8:56 pm

With docwatson supplying the Wavetrac drawing and speaking to someone who has actually used a few R200 carriers in C200, I am confident that we can the Quaife QDF10L for the 3.36 gears, and the QDF11L (or Wavetrac) for the 3.54 or numerically higher gear ratios. So that is good news for any V6 Pathfinder owners wanting a street friendly limited slip!

However, I will probably not move forward with this project, since I will need to buy the drive shaft, rear differential assembly, and CV shafts to convert my V8 set up to V6 parts. Instead, my current plan is to put an H233B limited slip in my R230. Splines match, width is almost spot on, and some other important dimensions line up. It looks like it will require some sleeves to get the bearings to work, and a fill and redrill of the ring gear bolt holes. All doable by a machine shop. I will start up a new thread about that when I get some parts in.


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