Matty T

They certainly look like R200 shafts. I did a write-up about R200 LSDs in Ozdat a while ago, and it had a picture of the differences between R200 half shafts. Here is the thread. The pic is on page 2.

But Grasshopper, that would not be true to The Way of the Skyline. The FJ20 is the only 4 cylinder that should grace the engine bay of a Skyline...

Car looks tops Sky. Good job!

That's a good question. I bought a pair of half shafts for $80 each ($160 for the pair) from a wrecker in south Sydney about 12 months ago. Sorry, I can't remember the name. I thought that was a rip-off at the time, but paid it anyway. LSDs are a different kettle of fish. As I said before, I put a KAAZ LSD in mine, which I bought from RMS Motor Parts (site sponsor) for just over $1K about 12 months ago. Basically, any plate LSD that will fit into a short-nose R200 (like the Silvias and R32 onwards use) will fit the long nose R200. What you have to watch out for is the size of the bolts that hold the crownwheel onto the centre. The early long nose R200 had 10mm bolt holes, the late ones had 12mm holes. All short nose R200s have 12mm holes. Therefore, if you have an early long nose R200, you need to sleeve the bolt holes to mount the crownwheel. I am led to believe that the viscous unit that you have uses the 12mm bolt holes, so changing to a new centre is easier. Another option that may be worth considering is getting some shafts and flanges from a Silvia / Skyline and adapting them? I don't know how keen you are on getting Frankenstein shafts again...

The RB30 pump mentioned earlier would be the Commodore VL pump. They would be readily available at a wrecker and will do the job. skybt1's offer may be the go, though.

Ah, I see. You are using the longnose R200 with the viscous LSD centre. That would be why you needed to get axles made up. The viscous centre needs that axle with the long output shaft (ie. the one that broke) to work properly. The other one is just a regular old R200 longnose shaft. Now, if you want "real" halfshafts, I would be speaking to the nice gents at Datsport about them. See if they can get you some, particularly if you want to keep the viscous centre. If you want to use regular halfshafts (available from a Z31 300ZX at your local wrecker, but getting harder to find), you will need to change the diff centre, either to an open centre, or to a plate LSD item (I went for a KAAZ). I don't know what/how they made your axles, but that break looks like it is easily replaceable. Did you say it is a Honda item? It is a shame that you didn't get a set of original axles at the beginning. It would have been a straightforward job for a driveshaft shop to have put the viscous output shaft onto the other (say, 300ZX) axle. If I was you (and wanted to keep the viscous), get the driveshaft shop to mate that long output shaft to a 300ZX halfshaft and all will (should?) be sweet. Then use the other 300ZX shaft on the other side too. My 2.2 cents (GST inc.)

Where are they breaking? Got any pictures? Why are you having shafts made up? Details, details, details.

You are most welcome. Glad to be of assistance!

Where? I can't see the intercooler or the turbo? I see an oil cooler begging to be damaged, but that's it...

Sorry hr31, it was sold not long after the ad went up. I actually sold it for more than I asked for it! What specifically are you looking for? It is an entire R200, the housing, just the LSD, or a crownwheel & pinion?

Um...I think he was saying that he got one, not that he's got one for you...

Hey Ravenoak, that looks great. Original. Unmolested. Top stuff! I took my DR to the last S 'n' S. Whilst I had a good day, I don't know that I will go again - the S'n'S crowd don't tend to appreciate a car like mine...

That is also why you need to make sure your hands are clean when you handle the clutch and pressure plate. You don't want to transfer any oil onto the surfaces. Replace the seals if they are leaking, yes.

All it takes is a leak from either the rear main engine seal (common) or from the gearbox input shaft. With a bit of bad luck, oil can get sprayed onto the flywheel, then to the clutch plate. The other possibility is that either the clutch plate has dropped one or more springs, or the pressure plate has started to fail. Whichever problem it is, I am pretty sure that your issues are clutch related.

The problem with this is that the Subarus use a different diff centre. The Datsun/Nissan halfshafts don't fit. You would need to have someone make up some custom/hybrid halfshafts that use Subaru splines for the diff and use the Nissan parts that bolt to the companion flanges (wheel end). Not a cheap exercise.

The DR30 rear end will bolt straight in. No mods necessary. Not that there is anything really different between the Oz R30 and the DR - the trailing arms are the same, as is the rear crossmember. The differences are: R200 differential (and halfshafts. Companion flanges are the same though.), moustache bar, rear calipers, and rear discs. Oh, while you are pulling it all apart, do this mod - it makes a world of difference. The handbrake mechanism is the same. The DR30 R200 diff is a plate-type LSD (8 plates, IIRC). Ratio is 3.9:1. Yes, the DR/HR30 came with a bigger MC. There was a 15/16" and a 1" as well. They are hard to come by, and you can't find them in catalogues. They were bigger due to the larger piston sizes of both the front and rear calipers. Yes, pedal feel is improved - the pedal isn't as "long". I *think* the booster was bigger, but only slightly. If people are looking for the DR calipers, look no further than the Z31 300ZX. They are the same. Pads are available from your local AutoProBarn. The 280ZX MC is a 15/16" item. They are bloody expensive if you buy it new, though. Oh, and the problem is that the MC bleeder nipples are on the wrong side (read: they are hard up on the strut tower). When I upgraded the master cylinder on my DR30, I used a Nissan Patrol 1" MC. I can't give too much of a comment on that MC as I ended up changing my booster to the small 180B booster, and putting a Nissan Urvan MC in. I would call a sunroof fitting place about sourcing a new seal. Either them, or someone like Clark Rubber. Hope this helps. Cheers, Matt

A-ha! From what you describe, I am 99.99% sure that the problem is the clutch. There is oil on the clutch plate. This causes the clutch to "grab" rather than slip, and results in a "shudder" in the driveline. Been there, had that. You are going to need to pull the box out, replace the clutch (the clutch plate is fooked now), clean the flywheel (if not have it machined), and put the lot back together.

Do a bit of a Google of "Phantom Grip" and you will find that they are referred to as "Phantom Slip". Crap. Not worth thinking about. If you want to stick with an R180, then you will not get out of it for less than $1000. You may be lucky, but it will probably be in dire need of a rebuild. The R200 option is cheaper for LSDs. I have a KAAZ LSD in my R200 (which is in my R30). The problem you would then run into is ratios. The R200 diff you were quoted will probably be a 3.9. The shortest R200 ratio that is reasonably available will be a 4.625, and even then, they are getting hard to find. 4.875 and 5.143 ratios are available from Kameari, but are about $1500 for the crownwheel and pinion alone. Your cheapest option is to weld up an R180. Make it a locker.

Get a mate with a video camera to video the rear wheels (both sides) while you accelerate up the road. If it is rear wheel hop, you should see it on the video. If it isn't, I'd be looking at the halfshafts and diff centre.

Notice that this one is a VLSD. That is - "Viscous Limited Slip Differential". They use different output shafts to the open or plate LSDs. You really need to have shafts built for a combination of "modern" R200 output flanges and "old" wheel companion flanges. Go to the Ozdat site and send a PM to "Baz". He is the man behind Datsport. He will know all in relation to this diff.

Just for you, here is a webpage that shows the conversion...

OK, you say that you have had some made up? What were they based on? What car is this going in to? What horsepower are you pushing out? What is the car being used for? A bit of background on your setup may help. The strongest shafts for this diff are out of a Z31 300ZX Turbo. The "normal" ones (300ZX, DR30, HR31) use a 6 bolt (3 groups of 2) companion flange (where they attach to the rear wheel stub axles). The Z31 turbo uses a 4 bolt setup, kinda like the older Datsun companion flanges. The difference is that the "normal" shafts use a tripod (looks like a "Y") at the wheel side, which has 3 roller bearings on it, and these fit into a cup. The "Y" is attached to the shaft by a spline,and this is where they fail (if they fail, the tripod usually breaks). The Z31 turbo shafts do not use a tripod, but a large high-angularity bearing which the spline slides into. Remember, if you manage to track some down (they are uber rare), you will need the companion flanges as well...

OK, by "input shafts" I assume that you mean the half shafts (ie. from the differential to the rear wheels)? Australian Z31 300ZX had the longnose R200 diff in them. If I were you, I would call your local wrecker. Also, places that get in half cuts and so on tend to get them from time to time. Another good potential source is Baz at Datsport (www.datsport.com). The long nose diff's shafts used a spline on the diff side and a flange on the wheel side. The short nose R200 went back to a flange on the diff side, and used a spline on the wheel side. I have heard of people doing funky things with flange-to-flange shafts, but I have never seen it. The diff rear covers are interchangeable between the long nose and the short nose, yes. Yes, the centres are interchangeable, to a point. I put a big post up on ozdat about R200 centre interchangeability. This one. That whole thread is probably a good read.

They are all welded on at the factory. None were removable. Use the rear caliper brackets (and the rest of the rear brakes) off an R31 Skyline. With only small mods, they will bolt onto your 240K trailing arms. Plenty of info around on that conversion.

Deal done. Thanks all.