ra28 diff conversion??

[kremsra28]

hi, we are building up a ra28 for my mrs, it will be running an 18rg, either turboed or supercharged, only on low boost as we want it to be as reliable as possible but with a bit more grunt than standard.

question is bout the diff, im not real big on knowledge bout them, how much power will the standard diff handle, and we have a disc to disc diff from an r31 skyline, would that be better than the standard diff as its juat sitting here taking up space, it cost us nothing and we are trying to build the car on a pretty tight budget, i havent taken any measurements as yet, but by the looks of it, it wont need to be shortened by much,

we also have a complete front strut setup, would the brakes and heavier duty struts be any good also??

thanks for your help guys, its much appreciated.

krem

[airfireman1]

Early volvo diff is a cheap and reliable option or an early hilux 2wd G series diff, just do a search as they have both been done heaps of times

[MWP]

Stick with the original T series. See how long it lasts.

If your not pushing much boost, use a full faced clutch, and drive it easyish (ie, no dropping the clutch off the line), both the W50 and diff should last quite a while.

[gmonkey]

+1 to volvo diff conversion upgrades the rear brakes then too...


measure the rb30 rear and see how long it is disc to disc... looking as around 1380mm (volvo is 1400mm)

[river]

Hi,

I'm running an 18R-G turbo, with W58 box and standard diff.

No issues with the diff. However, if you start doing single-wheel spins and dropping the clutch at rpm then you will see the diff's life expectancy greatly reduced. Also such actions deplete the wallet pretty quickly also.

seeyuzz
river

[kremsra28]

thanks for the replies guys, i have already thought of the volvo and hilux conversion, but as i said, trying to build on a budget and have this diff laying round, it cost us nothing, hence why i asked if it would be stronger than the standard diff, doing the hilux or volvo conversion would mean i have to buy another diff to convert, thought the r31 diff would be easier as it has same stud pattern and the width dont look to be too much wider.

thanks again for your replies, much appreciated.

krem

[kremsra28]

measured the r31 diff today, it measured up at 1450, so its not much wider, around 40mm each side, would that be too far if i get the rear rims in a suitable offset and pump the rear guards a little or would it be a pain in the ass to drive with the rear track wider than the front??

i know that you guys have said to go volvo or hilux, but we have this diff sitting here, was for a datto 1200 ute but we have since sold that project, might as well make use of it, it looks pretty chunky next to the standard diff so surely it would be a bit stronger??

krem

[airfireman1]

40mm each side = narrower rims = less traction. Also different stud pattern front to back, different hand brake setup, cutting off old diff fittings and welding on toyota ones Do you have a jig so that it will all line up again. the list goes on.

Just stick with the origional until it goes BANG and that will take some doing unless you are planning on being a Hoon.

[CheeseBiscuits]

r31's have a 4x113.4 stud pattern so that should be fine?

But other than that I agree with mwp and Dave. Surely the wife wont be driving it too hard?

[kremsra28]

lol, dunno bout her not driving it too hard, she rides dirt bikes pretty hard and also has a suzuki katana for her road bike!!

would rather have it al done so it can be enjoyed and not off the road being fixed.

with the narrower wheels, we would still put something wide on the car, just use a different offset and also pump the guards a little, with all the brackets and lines, im guessing it would have to be done for any diff conversion??

think we will just sit on it for a few weeks, do some more research and see wat happens, thanks again guys for your advice

krem

[mscphillips]

Hi Krem

i have a mate thats got an r31 diff in his ra28 (2jz powered) very nice fit once shortened.

im looking at doing the same conversion in my ra23. reason being, wide veriety of diff ratios, cheap and easy to get a hold of, come as LSD or open wheeler for if you want to mini spool it and reasonbly strong.

i would be interesed to no if the stud pattern is definatly the same? my mate runs commodore stud patterm - also an option

Craig

[kremsra28]

yeah the r31 is the same pattern, we are still trying to decide as its a budget build but still want to be able to enjoy the car with out fixing it all the time, being a disc brake diff already and same stud pattern is a bonus, its got me buggered why its not a popular conversion, as said in 1st post we have the full front end also, so i might pull it apart and see hoe hard it will be to convert that to fir for bigger brakes and heavier struts.

krem

[The Witzl]

Fitting an R31 diff is just as much, if not MORE work than fitting a Volvo diff.
The R31 would need to be shortened, which is quite expensive to do.... whereas the volvo is much closer to original diff width. Although volvo requires re-drilling for 4x113.4 stud pattern.... but thats not a big deal.

[gmonkey]

Fitting an R31 diff is just as much, if not MORE work than fitting a Volvo diff.
The R31 would need to be shortened, which is quite expensive to do.... whereas the volvo is much closer to original diff width. Although volvo requires re-drilling for 4x113.4 stud pattern.... but thats not a big deal.

or go all out and convert your front hubs to falcon 5studs redrilled(its what the hopper stopper kits are) and have 5x108 all round and much better braking

[td42gq]

Falcon pattern just for the reference is 5x114.3, but if you use a hoppers kit you can have any stud pattern you like.

Aaron.