[Lingling]

Hey yall I decide to post this review in the f30 since the f22 section is nearly dead and I figure this would be most beneficial to be posted here. I have a 2015 M235 6MT that I picked up last summer what I was really bummed out about was the fact that BMW decided to not include a LSD for their mlite models. The first thing I noticed was how loose and disconnected the rear of the vehicle was, and after reading about LSD in the forum i decide to pull the trigger.

Initial Impressions:

My first couple miles with the LSD I did not notice much of a difference since (to be completely honest) I was nervous to drive it hard and did not want to send it around a corner just yet. After deciding to open it up on some back roads this is where the LSD makes its money. WOW...... The rear felt planted around every bend, and when you think the car is about to loose grip it just keeps on going. What I did notice is the rear of the car wanting to come out but never did even when I tried to push it the limits, which is relief but also pretty scarry. The car overall feel much more stable and for anyone who does any spirited driving I would highly recommend one.

Why I Picked Quiafe?

The main provider of LSD for the F2x,F3x... are Quiafe, Wavetrac, and M-performance. Im not going to turn this into a clutch vs ATB LSD. But the main driving factor for me picking Quiafe over the others was the fact that quiafe and wavetrac ATB differentials require no maintenance and break in period compared to the m performance model. Wavetrac was more expensive than the Quiafe and I could not justify the extra cost for their "wave hub" technology which in review videos I have seen did not improve the flaw of ATB LSD.

My Buying Experience

Now onto the logistics of the LSD. As many of you know QUIAFE and WAVETRAC are UK based company thus most of the retailers are located in the UK with the exception of a couple US based retailers such as HPAUTO, Bimmerworld, diffsonline. What I had noticed between the US companies and the UK companies was a significant increase in pricing. A QUIAFE LSD like the one I purchased would have cost $2799 + $1,000 core fee. What I ended up paying was only $1,467.64 + $200 on a core(bc i didnt want any down time + I changed drive ratios) nearly $1,300 cheaper to go with a UK based company. The people I went with was BirdsAuto they were by far the most responsive company out of all them and the cheapest one as well. Kevin answered all my question and after payment I received my LSD in less than a week. *full disclosure I did provide my own logistics in getting the LSD to the US and I'm willing to help anyone do it as well.($100 one way or $200 two ways). I am not trying to bad mouth any companies but I just find it disturbing that for the same job/parts we US based customers are getting shafted nearly $1300 by our own people.

Closing Thoughts:

Overall the LSD was well worth the money. If anyone does plan on getting one I would highly recommend Birdsauto and I would be more than willing to help provide shipping between the UK and US.

LSD Install Guide I wrote up:

https://www.2addicts.com/forums/show....php?t=1982557

[n55david]

Originally Posted by Lingling

Hey yall I decide to post this review in the f30 since the f22 section is nearly dead

Not only is it dead, it's about useless for actual quality info.. you should read the 240 forums.. some of the replies are cringe worthy at best.. so not only is it bad, its dead..

I almost went rwd on my f22 but I couldn't bring myself to do it.. very cool, makes me jealous

[AmuroRay]

Awesome write up. thank you.

[Lingling]

1/25/22: Update the north east was blessed with a couple inches of snow so I decide to take the m235 out for a little fun in the snow the LSD makes it so much more controllable and much more fun to spin around. TBH im not a professional drifter and before the LSD I would just spin out every time I tried to slide. In the video you can see visually the LSD locking up which made it much easier to drive. I hope this encourages some you guys to want to get an LSD

https://streamable.com/5e26jp

[Boostedphil698]

I have a Quaife LSD on my 435i Xdrive and I agree with you. Money well spent.

[LA1Z24]

I contacted Birds for a diff for my F32. They wanted over 3k for the diff plus shipping

[mike@x-ph.com]

Thank you for sharing

[Lingling]

Originally Posted by LA1Z24

I contacted Birds for a diff for my F32. They wanted over 3k for the diff plus shipping

Hmmm not sure what happened there. Did you ask for a quaife lsd? I’ll attach my original quote prior to my working with him to get what I paid for. But that still only comes out to 2,000 USD hope this helps.

*I was able to remove the shipping and exchange surcharge by first shipping my open diff and proving my own labels for shipping back and forth

I can help you with shipping if needed.

[LA1Z24]

Hi Jason,

Thanks for your enquiry.

It depends on whether you'd like to buy;

1) Quaife LSD Conversion Kit. This is GBP £945 less 30% + £77 shipping to the USA. In stock. However you will need to machine the ring gear off the open diff and drill it so that you can bolt the Quaife LSD on (see attached procedure).

2) New Complete QUAIFE LSD Differential. This is £2211.54 less 10% discount + £185 shipping. Not in stock but will take 2-3 weeks to order in and prepare.

Note that there will also be approx 2.5% import taxes to pay to DHL directly, and we also charge a 1.5% CC fee if you pay by card.

Let me know if you'd like to proceed with either of the above and I'll send the relevant quotation.

Otherwise let me know if you have some questions!

Many thanks,

James Bird
www.birdsauto.com
+44(0)1753657444

This is a copy/paste of our communication. All in is close to 3k

[Lingling]

Originally Posted by LA1Z24

Hi Jason,

Thanks for your enquiry.

It depends on whether you'd like to buy;

1) Quaife LSD Conversion Kit. This is GBP £945 less 30% + £77 shipping to the USA. In stock. However you will need to machine the ring gear off the open diff and drill it so that you can bolt the Quaife LSD on (see attached procedure).

2) New Complete QUAIFE LSD Differential. This is £2211.54 less 10% discount + £185 shipping. Not in stock but will take 2-3 weeks to order in and prepare.

Note that there will also be approx 2.5% import taxes to pay to DHL directly, and we also charge a 1.5% CC fee if you pay by card.

Let me know if you'd like to proceed with either of the above and I'll send the relevant quotation.

Otherwise let me know if you have some questions!

Many thanks,

James Bird
www.birdsauto.com
+44(0)1753657444

This is a copy/paste of our communication. All in is close to 3k

Gotchu talk to James and let him know you would like an exchange. I’m not sure why he didn’t mention it to you but basically there’s 3 options when it comes to buying the LSD

1.straight parts - you do the machining
2.complete new unit - brand new unit shipped to your door
3.exchange unit - ship your unit and he does the machining and assembling for you.

Ask him for a quote for exchange.

I can help you with shipping once you decide to proceed. It’ll be about 100$ usd for me to ship it there and for the lsd to be shipped back to you compared to his $250+

[johnung]

FYI- VAC Motorsports in Philadelphia sells Quiafe LSDs.

[Lingling]

Originally Posted by johnung

FYI- VAC Motorsports in Philadelphia sells Quiafe LSDs.

They do but cons are they are nearly impossible to get in touch with (wasted 2 weeks talking on the phone just to get the same answer of “waiting for tech department to get back to you” no offense but it’s common trend for VAC where there is terrible communication. Even tho birdsauto was based in UK he would still get back to me sometimes the same day if not not max 24 hours. I couldn’t say the same for vac motorsports and I’m literally in Philly tooo……

[Boostedphil698]

Originally Posted by Lingling

They do but cons are they are nearly impossible to get in touch with (wasted 2 weeks talking on the phone just to get the same answer of “waiting for tech department to get back to you” no offense but it’s common trend for VAC where there is terrible communication. Even tho birdsauto was based in UK he would still get back to me sometimes the same day if not not max 24 hours. I couldn’t say the same for vac motorsports and I’m literally in Philly tooo……

Tyspeed in NJ is also a great option. They had my diff built by Diffsonline up in New England.

[F32Fleet]

Originally Posted by Lingling

Hey yall I decide to post this review in the f30 since the f22 section is nearly dead and I figure this would be most beneficial to be posted here. I have a 2015 M235 6MT that I picked up last summer what I was really bummed out about was the fact that BMW decided to not include a LSD for their mlite models. The first thing I noticed was how loose and disconnected the rear of the vehicle was, and after reading about LSD in the forum i decide to pull the trigger.

Initial Impressions:

My first couple miles with the LSD I did not notice much of a difference since (to be completely honest) I was nervous to drive it hard and did not want to send it around a corner just yet. After deciding to open it up on some back roads this is where the LSD makes its money. WOW...... The rear felt planted around every bend, and when you think the car is about to loose grip it just keeps on going. What I did notice is the rear of the car wanting to come out but never did even when I tried to push it the limits, which is relief but also pretty scarry. The car overall feel much more stable and for anyone who does any spirited driving I would highly recommend one.

Why I Picked Quiafe?

The main provider of LSD for the F2x,F3x... are Quiafe, Wavetrac, and M-performance. Im not going to turn this into a clutch vs ATB LSD. But the main driving factor for me picking Quiafe over the others was the fact that quiafe and wavetrac ATB differentials require no maintenance and break in period compared to the m performance model. Wavetrac was more expensive [...]

The only difference between Wavetrac and Quiafe is that the Wavetrac won't turn into an open diff when a wheel gets airborne. Probably not a big deal for street cars.

[isenc2]

Wait Wavetrac units are built here in the US not in the UK. And I'm pretty sure they are designed by an American company as well. Awesome write up by the way, I chose the wavetrac route and dropped 4 grand on diffsonline, also took them more than 3 weeks to take my money and start the build. Better than VAC I guess, I have monoball control arms from them but damn their communications are worse than useless.

[oceanview]

I also decided to go with the Quaife.
The acceleration out of a corner is massively improved over the open diff. (And also the cornering steering controll)

However, if you drive in snow / ice roads, the clutch based does a better job.
(But needs clutch maintenance sooner or later, depending on your driving stile)

[-Eidos]

Originally Posted by oceanview

I also decided to go with the Quaife.
The acceleration out of a corner is massively improved over the open diff. (And also the cornering steering controll)

However, if you drive in snow / ice roads, the clutch based does a better job.
(But needs clutch maintenance sooner or later, depending on your driving stile)

As one data point, my clutch based Drexler GT Race Light from limitedslip.de is rated for 40,000 km of track driving or 150,000 km or more of street driving before performance slightly degrades, which is pretty good in the context of a dual duty car.