2002 gears into E36 LSD?

[Mucci]

Will 2002 3.64 gears assemble into an E36 318i 4.44 LSD case to achieve a 3.64 LSD?

 

I tried to search this but it appears most people are asking about the opposite transaction - LSD into 2002 carrier. 

Edited March 1, 2021 by Mucci

[AceAndrew]

yes,  but not the carrier.

[Mucci]

19 minutes ago, AceAndrew said:

yes,  but not the carrier.

 

I wouldn't need the 2002 carrier would I? Would the 3.64 gears bolt to the E36 LSD carrier and fit in the E36 case?

 

What would it take to mount the E36 small case diff into the 2002? I'm not seeing any threads on people doing this; only transferring guts into e21 cases. ...which may be a sign but I've got a lathe and a welder
 

[2002iii]

10 minutes ago, Mucci said:

 

I wouldn't need the 2002 carrier would I? Would the 3.64 gears bolt to the E36 LSD carrier and fit in the E36 case?

 

What would it take to mount the E36 small case diff into the 2002? I'm not seeing any threads on people doing this; only transferring guts into e21 cases. ...which may be a sign but I've got a lathe and a welder
 

E36 318i rear suspension the same as an E30. You would have to get an aftermarket rear subframe or have yours modified to mount the differential.

 

You want to remove the lsd differential from the E36 case and remove the 4.44 ring gear, install the 3.64 ring gear and put it back into the 2002 case or E21 case, with new shims. Look at the strongest 2002 lsd article. Any rearend shop should be able to swap it over and shim it.

Edited March 2, 2021 by 2002iii

[Mucci]

24 minutes ago, 2002iii said:

E36 318i rear suspension the same as an E30. You would have to get an aftermarket rear subframe or have yours modified to mount the differential.

 

You want to remove the lsd differential from the E36 case and remove the 4.44 ring gear, install the 3.64 ring gear and put it back into the 2002 case or E21 case, with new shims. Look at the strongest 2002 lsd article. Any rearend shop should be able to swap it over and shim it.

 

I've read Andrew's write up and will in more detail once I've got the LSD in hand. I was hoping the E36 case swap was more of an "add spacers" kind of deal. Sounds like it'll be easier to go the route Andrew writes about for something a bit more stout.   

[2002iii]

2 minutes ago, Mucci said:

 

I've read Andrew's write up and will in more detail once I've got the LSD in hand. I was hoping the E36 case swap was more of an "add spacers" kind of deal. Sounds like it'll be easier to go the route Andrew writes about for something a bit more stout.   

If it was easy someone would have done it already and written about it. The E36 diff case isn't any stronger, it's the actual differential it self that's stronger.

[RussTii]

There is one potential problem with this swap. 2002 diffs used a coarse spline on both the pinion shaft and the output shafts. So you would need to determine if your 2002 flange that attaches the pinion to the driveshaft will fit in place of the e36 unit because the splines make them not interchangeable. While all small case units use the same front seal the actual fitment of the flange may be different. All in all would probably be easier to find a set of gears from any e21/e30/e36 diff that would be interchangeable as they all have the finer spline on both pinion and output shafts.

[chargin]

22 hours ago, Mucci said:

case to achieve a 3.64 LSD?

 

I would suggest running an open 3.64 (Cheap tester) before building a LSD version, I tried a 3.64 for one week and now have a 3.91 e30 pumpkin LSD, the 3.64 gives up a lot of around town driving fun and ran my fresh Tii M10 significantly warmer on the freeway, it was an easy test that worked well for me, maybe it'll be different for you.

 

 

 

If you were local I'd offer my tester to try but I'm in SoCal area 

Edited March 2, 2021 by chargin

[Mucci]

7 hours ago, RussTii said:

There is one potential problem with this swap. 2002 diffs used a coarse spline on both the pinion shaft and the output shafts. So you would need to determine if your 2002 flange that attaches the pinion to the driveshaft will fit in place of the e36 unit because the splines make them not interchangeable. While all small case units use the same front seal the actual fitment of the flange may be different. All in all would probably be easier to find a set of gears from any e21/e30/e36 diff that would be interchangeable as they all have the finer spline on both pinion and output shafts.

 

It sounds like it's possible to transfer only the E36 LSD carrier assembly into the 2002 differential and keep everything else 2002.

[Mucci]

24 minutes ago, chargin said:

 

I would suggest running an open 3.64 (Cheap tester) before building a LSD version, I tried a 3.64 for one week and now have a 3.91 e30 pumpkin LSD, the 3.64 gives up a lot of around town driving fun and ran my fresh Tii M10 significantly warmer on the freeway, it was an easy test that worked well for me, maybe it'll be different for you.

 

 

 

If you were local I'd offer my tester to try but I'm in SoCal area 

 

I'm confused...are you only talking about the final drive ratio not being preferred?

As far as I know the original 3.64 is in the car along with the original 4spd. I wouldn't want anything taller with that transmission. My highway cruising speed just to not get rear ended is at 4000rpm. 

[Mucci]

Anyone happen to know the lock % on the E36 4.44 LSD?

[2002iii]

1 hour ago, Mucci said:

Anyone happen to know the lock % on the E36 4.44 LSD?

25% or 40%, more likely 25%

[chargin]

3 hours ago, Mucci said:

As far as I know the original 3.64 is in the car along with the original 4spd.

3.91 is a very popular gear ratio, especially with a 5 speed, if your at 4 speed and staying with a 4 then maybe a 3.64 is the way to go 

[TobyB]

As Andrew says above, the E36 LSD carrier does not fit into the standard 2002 case.

As pictures found on the internets show, the E30 rear subframe mounts

to the diff very differently than the 2002 subframe does.

 

Can it all be made to work?

Of course.  All it takes is a bit of cutting and welding.

 

t

and maybe a lathe, if you're making side case spacers.

and maybe a mill, if you're clearancing a case to fit a different carrier.

and certainly a sawzall.

 

 

[Mucci]

2 hours ago, TobyB said:

As Andrew says above, the E36 LSD carrier does not fit into the standard 2002 case.

As pictures found on the internets show, the E30 rear subframe mounts

to the diff very differently than the 2002 subframe does.

 

Can it all be made to work?

Of course.  All it takes is a bit of cutting and welding.

 

t

and maybe a lathe, if you're making side case spacers.

and maybe a mill, if you're clearancing a case to fit a different carrier.

and certainly a sawzall.

 

 

Is the E36 318i carrier larger than the E30 318? I read posts about others getting the E30 carrier into the 2002 case without modification by removing the cap and reinstalling inside the case.