LSD installed!

[Z8Bud]

Just had a Quaife limited slip differential installed and added the 3.64 gears as well. My early observations are that the results are nothing short of stunning, taking the Z8 to the rareified world of true exotics. First, there is no more "squirm" when shifting under hard acceleration between 1st and 2nd and 2nd and 3rd (without the LSD there was some tire spin with the DSC off, now dramatically diminished). Second, the improvement in acceleration is immediately obvious. First and second gear dissapear very quickly and there is more torque in any gear. The overall feel of the car is more "Ferrari like" in it's gearing, rather than an autobahn GT (which is what the Z felt like before the change). Not sure yet about acceleration out of corners but in time....

For those contemplating this change, my course of action was to buy two "pumpkins", one from a Z8 and one from a Euro 735i (the source of the 3.64 gears). These were blended with the Quaife LSD to yield the final "pumpkin" which was simply swapped out with the stock unit. The latter I will save in the event that I need it in the future. The differential put together was performed by a diff specialty shop (my dealer did not have a big enough press to do the job and their head mechanic had the sense not to try it....thank you Michael). The total cost was just under 5K for parts plus labor....not cheap, but well worth it IMO.

[michaelflatley]

Who did you end up using?

Did your dealer do the instal and reistall?

How long was the whole process? Would you be interested in "renting" your Pumpkin out as a core? Or did they completely reassemble it already?

Is your dealer downtown Seattle? I am down the pike a bit (Gig Harbor) as you probably rememberMichael

[Z8mania]

In my car at first I did not feel any power increase and the result was that my MAFS were clogged- make sure to get these checked/ replaced every now and then (lets say 20k miles/ 3 years)

[Z8Eldred a.k.a. The Mudman]

while keeping the original pumpkin. I wonder if Brett can still provide quaife LSD's?

[Tristan]

Northwest Differential in Kirkland did the assembly of the pumpkin. BMW Seattle did the swap of the new pumpkin for the stock pumpkin. NW Diff was provided with the Quaife, the Z8 pumpkin and the 735i pumpkin and put the new one together. These were dropped off on Friday and were ready by Tuesday. BMW Seattle did the pumpkin swap with only a two day down time for the car. If you call BMW Seattle ask for Alex, the service manager who knows all about this and request Michael the head mechanic to do the job if he is available. I am not sure what you mean about "renting the pumpkin". My original stock pumpkin has never been touched. The other stuff from the 735i and a few bits from the newly purchased Z8 pumpkin are waiting for me to pick them up but I don't see how they could be of help. Good luck and let me know if I can help with any further info.

[michaelflatley]

Thanks for the info;

I misunderstood, I thought you installed the 7 series gears and quaife inside your original pumpkin.

How much was the 7 series complete pumpkin If I may ask?Michael

[Tristan]

The 735i was about $1500 including seals (plus tax). If you go this route be sure to double check that you are getting the correct pumpkin which is the Euro version (and not the last model, if I remember correctly....Alex has the details). There are probably cheaper ways to do this, but this was the quickest, with the highest probability of success. You could intall the Quaife and 7 series gears inside the original pumpkin, the only downsides being your car is in the shop a bit longer and you will not have the original stock unit for the future (the upside is saving about $1600 for the second Z8 pumpkin).

[malibu jack]

If everyone got these units thru the same purchase that was planned on the other site, and was the reason that macfly was banned from this one, can I ask, why are you all discussing the fitting of the units here now?

[michaelflatley]

do you want the original to have for originality sake?

Unless you were drag racing, I doubt you would ever break the rear end. I think I will use my original pumkin but get the 7 series gears.Michael

[Z8Eldred a.k.a. The Mudman]

Contacted Brett today, awaiting his response on availability.

[Tristan]

I'm keeping the original pumpkin for originality sake as you said and also for the unlikely event that the LSD should go out. I think your plan is more sensible but I was told BMW does not sell the 7 series gears separate from the pumpkin so I just bought the pumpkin. You may be able to source the gears elswhere though. I also liked the idea of the work being done on a separate unit just in case something got messed up, my car was not touched until the final swap. Just my way of looking at things.

[Tristan]

Highly recommended. You may need to organize some of the owners to make it worthwhile for the Quaife dealer to do another order of the diffs. This is such a worthwhile option that any serious Z8 owner ought to consider it and a group buy might bring down the price as well.

[Z8Eldred a.k.a. The Mudman]

[Tristan]

If you are located in the USA, the official importer for Quaife is:
Quaife America, 32240E Paseo Adelanto, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
Tel. 949-240-4000 e-mail info@quaifamerica.com
I recommend you contact them for information pertaining to Quaife products in the USA.

[Z8Eldred a.k.a. The Mudman]

3.38 for the 540I from Brett Anderson. Shipped today will be installed next week.

[Z8Eldred a.k.a. The Mudman]

Are you keeping your original pumpkin for parts or just to have for originality sake? Also, how many Quaife installed Z8 owners kept the original.

I have the choice of keeping the Z8's orginal pumpkin and was just on fence and would appreciate any feedback.

[SBoysky]

I don't know if it is still active, but this site shows a 3.64 Quaife for sale at:
http://www.roadfly.com/bmw/classifieds/general/detview.php?view=55326

[JOEA2]

I only kept the internals, just in case.

[Z8Eldred a.k.a. The Mudman]

[Z8Bob]

It is also a "what's this junk?" issue than anything else. For the next 47 years or longer I can get a new one from BMW if I ever need one.

Besides, what's the NPV on a replacement 20-30 years in the future vs. the cost of a duplicate now?