xviper

No, at least not after I figured out that a Canadian car cannot be wired up the same way as an American car. The American car can tap into the speedo wire at the ECU harness. My car cannot as this circuit is somehow tied into the DRL circuit. Therefore, I had to splice into the speedo sending wire right at the tranny. I basically had to cut that wire, connect up the two ends with two other wires that I ran into the underdash area by the fuse panel where I tapped for power and ground. The Yellow Box is a 4 wire deal. Aside from power and ground, there is also the speedo sender "incoming" and "outgoing". The YB resides near the fuse panel for easy access for calibration. You are lucky that it comes from one of your countrymen.

smyroad

Nitrous will accelerate the wear on your engine. Not only does it improve the oxidation of the fuel, it also improves the oxidation of the pistons, valves and cylinder walls. Modern nitrous systems are very well controlled, but still create a lean burning combustion process that will burn the valves and pistons over extended use.

Russ

[QUOTE]Originally posted by 'smyroad
[B]

Nitrous will accelerate the wear on your engine.

xviper

Not sure where the "5HP" gain came from. Technically, a gear mod adds nothing in the way of HP. All it does is "mutiply" the power you've already got. With the 4.44, it's about 8%, with the 4.77, it's about 16%. With each gear ratio, you wouldn't have to drop the clutch from nearly as high an rpm, in theory. In practice, I only know this to be true from the time or two that I did it in a parking lot. Again, much better "driveability" is a the main advantage I see.

Russ

XViper, I wrote "equivilent to 4.8hp" I think it's generally agreed that losing weight by going to 13.5-lb wheels doesn't "create" horsepower anymore than changing the gearing would. My MR2-S's 0-60 times were approaching the sub 6-second barrier because I dropped 100-lbs from the car. I didn't "gain" anything by the way of horsepower but I certainly changed the performance #'s. Same principal here. You could, in a small way, change your gear ratios by going with a smaller diameter tire but in truth, you haven't "changed" anything. We all know that.

Station

Thanks for adding the yellow box info. VERY helpful.

E30M3

It looks like you reused the ring gear bolts...yes?

I'd suggest using new ones as they are *very* high stressed, along the lines of connecting rod bolts.

Stan

xviper

Yes, I only replaced what I had originally listed. My mechanic has a great deal of experience in these things and we discussed what was "re-useable" and what was not based on my driving style and use for the car. There is a point in which you just have to say, "Where will this whole thing ever end?" Each person will have their own interpretation of what and how something should be done. This was the way I chose to do it. Each owner must decide for himself how far he wants to go. Should we replace the bearing cap bolts too? How about this seal or that seal? Maybe we shouldn't re-use any of the bearings either. Maybe I should have replaced the diff mounts as they have been known to leak. It just never ends. One just has to inspect each item as you go and make the decision to "go with it". At some point, one must simply state, "I'm willing to make a best guess gamble because if the cost goes beyond "X" dollars, it's just not worth it anymore." If it were a perfect world, I'd have changed absolutely everything. But in the "real" world, there are always compromises.
It's like travel health insurance. Do you buy any at all? Or do you buy a little or do you buy a lot?

E30M3

Yes, I only replaced what I had originally listed. My mechanic has a great deal of experience in these things and we discussed what was "re-useable" and what was not based on my driving style and use for the car. There is a point in which you just have to say, "Where will this whole thing ever end?" Each person will have their own interpretation of what and how something should be done. This was the way I chose to do it. Each owner must decide for himself how far he wants to go. Should we replace the bearing cap bolts too? How about this seal or that seal? Maybe we shouldn't re-use any of the bearings either. Maybe I should have replaced the diff mounts as they have been known to leak. >>>It just never ends. One just has to inspect each item as you go and make the decision to "go with it". At some point, one must simply state, "I'm willing to make a best guess gamble because if the cost goes beyond "X" dollars, it's just not worth it anymore." If it were a perfect world, I'd have changed absolutely verything. But in the "real" world, there are always compromises. It's like travel health insurance. Do you buy any at all? Or do you buy a little or do you buy a lot?<<<

Respectfully, you don't get it.

Those are *highly* stressed bolts. More than main bearing and head bolts. More than wheel studs or tranny fasteners. More than, well you get it. The same forces that bend the whole diff case and leads to this chronic parts breakage problem can't take place unless it goes RIGHT THROUGH those exact same bolts. They are not even that expensive, I assume. On BMWs maybe 40 bucks per set.

In some cases bolts are deliberately tightened to the yield point - they stretch. What does Honda say about reusing ring gear bolts...how about the Helms manual? Maybe the bolts ARE considered indefinitely reuseable. I doubt it though. I mean the S2k rear end is made of milk chocolate or glass some say...why cheap out?

Few folks reuse rod bolts on engine rebuilds. I replace or upgrade to ARP if available. If you read Carroll Smith he'll tell you that conecting rod and ring gear bolts are the most highly stressed fasteners on a car. The forces trying to move the ring gear and the pinion gear apart are simply immense. The fastener design wise face the Engineer with conflicting requirements related to tensile strength, shock loads and metal fatigue. The final drive on a FWD car has an easier life as there is no 90 degree direction change. So the final drive bolts have a much easier life. Maybe that is where the mechanic gets his reuse them philosophy. It's less of a risk for transverse engined FWD cars. This Comptech bearing cap tweaks are meant to hold the stuff in the case and keep it aligned. Again this same force goes through those ring gear bolts.

On many rear ends "place" bolts are used which look like a castle on top. They were invented in the days of steam locomotives. They allow the head to "spring" a bit as the fastener it is heavily loaded and unloaded. This helps longevity. You know, bending like a tree in the wind. Almost always, ring gear bolts have unusual head shapes and that is why.

Some things like seals are easily replaced later on anyway, externally. On a BMW diff the output shaft seals can be replaced very easily. I know that mechanics reuse stuff all the time anyway but that does not make it good practice, especially if you are creating a procedure for others to follow. I just did a quick web check and see various companies listing diff kits that include, shims, seals, bearings AND NEW RING GEAR BOLTS.

If your rear end fails later on, it could have been bolt related. If it never fails but instead wears out "early" at 60,000 miles it could have been bolt related. Yet at the time you might never realize this fact. Ring and pinion gears are tricky cuz there is a sliding action. This is why you need a certain grade of gear oil back there. Things that slightly alter geometry and clearances matter a lot for these hard working parts.

Stan

spider

Are you referring to the 10 bolts that hold the ring gear and the LSD together?

Thanks.