When your J30t LSD Locks up @ 70mph...

[S13.75DET]

while on a tow dolly with no driveshaft connected the diff locked up and destroyed both half shafts, rear subframe peeled, pumkin ripped out, sliced open the unibody, broke fuel breather, mangled sway bar and cracked the rear bumper

dont try this at home
http://i1091.photobucket.com/albums/i382/dicker420/DSCN1624.jpg
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http://i1091.photobucket.com/albums/i382/dicker420/IMG_0139.jpg

[Edwin562]

:eek: WOW holy hell batman!!!

[curbhuggerrps13]

sweet mother of...how the hell that happened?

[drift freaq]

^^^^^^ agree^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Seriously.

[S14DB]

Why is there a U-Joint and part of a DS still on the input of the diff?

That looks like torpedo damage not the diff locking up. The Ring gear looks pristine still.

[zenki_240sx]

Oh Man. I have a J30 LSD but have been installed in my car for the last 5 years. I hope this does not happen to me.

[keytops]

Fire in the hole!!! Did you run something huge over?

[JSimpson]

was there fluid in the diff?

[rice_bowl]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't the drive wheels supposed to be the ones placed on the tow dolly.
For example, on a RWD car, the front wheels will be the ones rolling on the road, to avoid mishaps like this.

Edit: Good example, disgusting ass car.

http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs577.snc3/31475_1248460423340_1584350465_30605823_1205360_n. jpg

[BoostSlideWayz]

omg what did that sound like ?

[ILoveMyRHS13]

How did you diff randomly "lock"?

Like S14DB said, it looks like the driveshaft pole-vaulted.

[S14DB]

How did you diff randomly "lock"?

Like S14DB said, it looks like the driveshaft pole-vaulted.

It can happen. I have seen it a lot at the drag strip.

However,

The reason you can't tow a car with a LSD is that the locking system will have the forces applied on it in reverse burning/grinding up the system. Usually when this happens the diff fails open. Even if the LSD failed closed the tires would just skip around corners like a welded differential.

When the Ring and Pinion fail ether by bad gear mesh or foreign object the R&P eats teeth or shatters. I don't think there is enough force being towed to break the R&P. So, it would just lock up and the tires would lock up and skid down the road. Even if the force was great enough, having the tq coming from the wheels would blow the axles before doing that much damage to the sub-frame. As I noted earlier the ring gear looks to be in good condition

The way the pumpkin twisted forward and then got rammed back and up into the trunk looks just like damage I have seen on other cars that dropped their drive shaft and pole vaulted it. I think that part of the J30 DS that was left on was spinning around and caught on something like a manhole cover or some other part of the road.

[The_Other_Aaron]

Fucking brutal.

[EjMalernee]

Damn that's crazy looking.

[RyanS13]

Daaaaaaamn. Thats crazy.

[tqstarburst]

God damn, some serious damage there. In for the story.

[[email protected]]

I bet the rear end of you car was up in the air about 2ft hahaha. Fack!

[misterdumby]

the rear wheels should be on the dolly when towing a rwd car :ugh:

[S13.75DET]

okay, so this is the deal.

this happened while towing from PA to CO. I drove non stop to Denver (32hrs) before this happened.
The rear was down because the front end was too close to the ground for my comfort to tow across the country.
The J30 Was removed out of a junker and the driveshaft had been plasma cut off. I did spin around but was no where close to touching any part of the car.
When it did sieze, i heard a very loud bang, and the very warm 335/55 NT555R's STUCK and bounced the car about 3 feet up and 5 feet sideways in full lock up and the car started fish tailing pretty bad while i managed to get the truck and tow to a stop.
The tires were brand new and now have a flat patch that intrudes past the groove almost to the steel belt.
there is no damage to the end of the cut off driveshaft that would indicate a pole-vault situation. The ring gear is not flawless by any means and is completely locked up.

[BoostSlideWayz]

Should have ordered a flatbed man.

[S13.75DET]

Should have ordered a flatbed man.

i know, but i was on a budget and the extra cost + the extra gas needed for the heavier load wasn't in the budget.

One way plane ticket from CO to PA= $220
One way rental (2 days & unlimited miles & employee pricing)= $224
Tow dolly (one week rental & unlimited miles) = $335
Gas = $320
Hitch & Wiring = $162 (which i returned after i was done for a full refund)
J30T & Halfies= -$100
New Subframe= $75
Open Diff & Halfies= $35
Good reason to buy solid subframe risers & ISIS Suspension package & learn a lesson= priceless

[theboy]

crazy shit man

[Lrn2Go]

Yikes! Better to happen while being toed than with someone in it!

[SoBay240guy]

note to self remove diff and half shafts if you have to tow with rear wheels down...not like suspension needs em for thrust loads or anything.

[S13.75DET]

So in order to get the car home, which was still another 200 miles (all curvy mountain highways which consist of 2 +10000' passes) was a whole different story. And I forgot to mention that this was on the Sunday before Memorial Day and no place was open for anything.
SO, here I am after pulling a car for 32 hrs straight with both rear wheels locked up on the side of I76 10 mi north of Denver. I had managed to get the rig to a stop about 20 yards past the entrance to an off ramp. I had no tools and only the stock jack that comes with a '10 Chevy Colorado. FML. :smash:
So at this off ramp there was a CO State Trooper and Ambulance responding to a medical emergency call at this gas station located just off of the exit. Well the trooper heard the kaboom followed by severe screeching and immediately came over to see what had happened.
I told him what I thought had happened and that I had to get the car off of the dolly and turned around if I was to move it at all, so I asked to borrow his jack and he said no and that I should call a tow company. He said that as long as no one was hurt and there was no other property damage that I was fine to be there and have a tow truck assist me.
So he left and I decided to go over to the gas station to see if they had any tools to see if I could remove the diff to at least get the rear wheels to spin to get off of the highway. Of course they didn't.
So then I started asking customers if they had any tools that I could buy or borrow and one guy gave me a small adjustable wrench. So then I decided to ask the Emergency crew. One of the crewmen said that he was also a tow truck driver and had a tow truck 5 min down the road and would go and grab it and help me out. :D
So I set up some triangles and flares along side the highway and decided that if the rear wheels were locked up that I would be able to unhook the front and just pull the dolly out from underneath it. I had to completely remove the front bumper, fmic & piping, oil cooler, and tie down the steering column with two ratchet straps, and it worked. So that took about 25 min and by the time I was done sure enough here he comes with a tow truck, emergency flashers flashing and all.:bigok:
So now I have to get this car on the dolly but it is stuck facing forward on the side of the highway. So he tells me to pull a U-Turn on the highway and back the tow dolly up to the back of the 240. So I did it. We then jacked up both sides of the car with floor jacks and slid the disconnected tow dolly under the raised, locked-up rear wheels. Then backed my truck up to the tow dolly and re-connected. I then had to drive the wrong way on the highway and make another U-Turn with the 240 this time so I could exit the highway on the exit ramp that I was sitting next to.
I pulled into the the gas station and secured everything and left and made it home without any issues.
The whole ordeal only took 1 Hr. It couldn't have happened at a better spot or time, and I seriously owe that guy alot!

[jakins]

im not a mechanic but i think that thing is pointing the wrong way.

[conrad_s13.5]

damn son!
if you were going to do it,.......thats how you fucking do it!
:D

[TheRealSy90]

It's just so painfully obvious why that happened. Never leave that piece of driveshaft connected to the differential. Sure you "spun it around and it didn't hit anything", but that u-joint is not going to stay perfectly straight at highway speeds, meaning it's going to fall to a side and flail around like crazy because of it being out of balance.

You could have saved all of your trouble with just a couple minutes removing those 4 bolts...

[Joekuh]

Dont skip steps: Hard lesson to learn...glad to see you made it back home tho OP.

[VNG704]

Um, take off bumper or anything up front ie IC if it's too close to the ground= free.

[S13.75DET]

at first i was really pissed and upset at myself because i know better, but it did make it 1600 miles without any issues. but now im happy that it happened on tow and not on a track day and after the car was painted causing more financial damage.

[rijndenn]

omg! not normal!

[miamiman323]

If it lifted 3 feet off the ground then it def. pole vaulted. It wouldnt just do that because the tires locked or else every time someone entered a turn with the e brake there ass end would jump lol.

[S13.75DET]

If it lifted 3 feet off the ground then it def. pole vaulted. It wouldnt just do that because the tires locked or else every time someone entered a turn with the e brake there ass end would jump lol.

Okay. But it locked up before pole vaulting. What else would cause it to rip out of the subframe. It didn't just fall out. Nothing from the road jumped up and grabbed the damn thing. It locked up and since there was no driveshaft supporting the force, it ripped out of the subframe and pole vaulted the car.

there has to be a chicken before an egg

[titangts]

i dont understand why people say you shouldn't tow a RWD car with the Rear tires on the ground... correct me if i wrong.. but if you drive the fucking car the rear tires will do the exact same thing!?!?! roll forward as they are intended to do..

though the driveshaft should have been completely removed.. but the "fact" that you should have the drive wheels off the ground means nothing if the car isn't automatic.. cars are meant to roll.

[Prime]

i dont understand why people say you shouldn't tow a RWD car with the Rear tires on the ground... correct me if i wrong.. but if you drive the fucking car the rear tires will do the exact same thing!?!?! roll forward as they are intended to do..

though the driveshaft should have been completely removed.. but the "fact" that you should have the drive wheels off the ground means nothing if the car isn't automatic.. cars are meant to roll.

The point is that LSD's tend to destroy themselves when towed in that fashion. Open diff car, shouldn't be a problem. But the LSD is going to be attempting to equalize force coming from the driveshaft by applying it to the wheels. I'm guessing the problem is with the force itself coming FROM the wheels. I'm no engineer, so I can't give you a perfect reason. Bottom line for me is, standard practice says don't do it, and it is standard practice for a reason.

[RBvert]

who cares WHY it happened? Everything is all dandy (minus the sub-frame, Diff and axles) no one got hurt because of how it was being towed so there is no need to lecture the OP about how he towed a RWD car with the drive wheels on the ground... I've towed my 85 Celica GTS with a LSD from a Mk II supra almost 3k miles with no problems.. s%#t happens randomly.

[Imarvin240]

DAMN! that blows! luckily when the car went sideways, there wasn't another car there.

[TheRealSy90]

Okay. But it locked up before pole vaulting. What else would cause it to rip out of the subframe. It didn't just fall out. Nothing from the road jumped up and grabbed the damn thing. It locked up and since there was no driveshaft supporting the force, it ripped out of the subframe and pole vaulted the car.

there has to be a chicken before an egg

Are you ignorant? Like I said in my previous post. It's because of the piece of driveshaft you left connected to the differential. That piece will NOT stay "straight" while spinning at highway speeds. I don't care if you did "spin it and it didn't touch anything". It hit something in the road, twisting the diff backwards and fucking your shit up.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lghfpd0fix1qciojuo1_500.gif

[S13.75DET]

Are you ignorant? Like I said in my previous post. It's because of the piece of driveshaft you left connected to the differential. That piece will NOT stay "straight" while spinning at highway speeds. I don't care if you did "spin it and it didn't touch anything". It hit something in the road, twisting the diff backwards and fucking your shit up.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lghfpd0fix1qciojuo1_500.gif

im not ignorant. i know what happened. But thank you for the asshole-ish un-educated replys. the 2" piece that was spinning at full circumferance (4" circle) was 12" from the ground and wouldn't have touched a bowling ball if i ran over it. If it was spinning as you claim then it would have been banging against my unibody and i would have heard it and noticed damage to the both the cut piece and the unibody. And even if i did hit something it wouldn't cause the differential to lock up it would just bounce over it.

the purpose of this thread was not to figure out what happened but rather to educate people so that this doesn't happen to them.

[s14unimog]

someones hiding bones in the closet, the underside of your car is n-a-s-t-y, glad you didn't loose the entire car getting it to a hault. Crazy shit man, I foresee a stereotypical inspirational poster in your future...