pulling apart a Torsen diff

[poweredbyvdub]

hey so ive got what i believe to be an old style university special from torsen (M021-DHU, but not sure since i wasn't around when this diff was purchased) and i was wondering if anyone has any tips on pulling one of these things apart. i'd just go at it, but this is our one and only, and i'd rather not screw it up with a running car in the near future.

i've searched this site and looked on torsen's site with no real results for this diff.

[Boston]

is the housing one-piece or two-piece?

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

The hardest part will be getting the rolled pins out if its a 1 piece. If you can, try not to mix up the friction washers on the center 2 gears when you pull it apart, and always keep them in the same order.

[poweredbyvdub]

as far as i can tell, its a one piece. could you elaborate more on the rolled pins? i have an idea of what youre talking about, but not 100% sure on how to pull them out. thanks.

[Analogue]

Stick in a 3/32 welding rod.

Ground the case, don't want current through the bearings.

Strike arc on tip of rod until it balls. Stick in vice and either pry or use Torsen as slide hammer.

Sounds brutal, but works fine. After you get 2 sets of pins out, the side gears will come out. Don't mess up the order of the washers.

Keith

[poweredbyvdub]

hmm... well now pulling the thing apart and putting it back together is starting to sound like more trouble than its worth.

the purpose was to get in there and cad the entire thing up and get a better feel for what is actually going on in there for a drivetrain design study type thing.

i can do the latter with the diff still in 1 piece, but if anyone could get me any info on the gears in there, or a 2D drawing of them, that would be much appreciated.

[Boston]

Since it is a one-piece housing, it is the 012000.

http://www.torsen.com/files/University%20Special%20012000.pdf

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

ya, torsens are more trouble then they are worth...I hope you arent just now desiging a custom housing for one, competition is sneaking up fast.

[poweredbyvdub]

hmm... thanks for the drawings and help. only thing is that the outer dimensions on the casing and bearing surfaces are slightly different, but im assuming that the internals are the same since they are all T1's.

Can anyone prove/disprove this assumption?

as far as a custom housing, we're considering it for the next car, unless i can find a more efficient alternative for a diff. i'd really like a salisbury style or clutch pack diff that would be more adjustable/easier to tune. plus i'm sure that there is a lighter, less overbuilt alternative for fsae, however ive yet to come across it.

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

ever looked into ATV diffs.....

[poweredbyvdub]

yea ive read through some of the atv diff posts but haven't gone much further than that. i'd like to stay away from the cam and pawl system though. i think its a safe bet that we'll move to an atv diff of some sorts if we do decide to run something other than the torsen, otherwise we'll make an Al housing for this one.

[Paul Achard]

Digging up an old thread here, I just wanted to share this tidbit:

If anyone wants to take apart their stock Torsen T1 012000, their suggested method works very well. Cut a little notch into the retaining pin with a dremel. If you want to avoid harming the casing just use a small-radius cutting disc. Grab a sharp screwdriver or chisel and hammer the pin out sideways. Once the end pokes out use visegrips to pull/twist it out, and voilà.