[desertman123]

Ordered my diff!! Should be going in this weekend or the next

[Eins Suchtig]

Originally Posted by desertman123

Ordered my diff!! Should be going in this weekend or the next

Let us know your impressions when installed!!!!

[desertman123]

Originally Posted by Eins Suchtig

Let us know your impressions when installed!!!!

I got it in!! Initial thoughts are it's awesome!! Swap was really tedious, not difficult. Took some pics along the way. Also for some reason the diff I bought didn't have the flanges, so I had to swap mine over. It was a pain but it's done lol.

I really like how the shifting feels now - the gears are a bit "closer" together so downshifts and 1-2 isn't such a dramatic change in RPM so it's smoother. The acceleration is fantastic too. For how much money this is I'm impressed.

A few things:
• Balancing the diff on the jack stand was easier than I thought.
• My diff fluid was really brown for 20k miles
• I had to bend my heatshield quite a bit to get to the bolts, wonder how different the E90 and E82 ones are
• Get a friend to help. I had one sitting in the car while I was underneath, pulling the e-brake and putting it down, so I could tighten the bolt, rotate the driveshafts/axles, and go to the next one.

Here's the album

View post on imgur.com

[CobraMarty]

Pics are great.

Now who is going to do the front diff on a XI and have pics?

[Eins Suchtig]

Thanks desertman, excellent photos!

[desertman123]

The damn thing is leaking from the passenger side axle seal. Don't be a lazyass like me, kiddos. Replace all the seals in this, new drain plug O-ring and apply fresh RTV to the cover BEFORE you install it.

But the acceleration is nice!

[Joebie]

Originally Posted by desertman123

The damn thing is leaking from the passenger side axle seal. Don't be a lazyass like me, kiddos. Replace all the seals in this, new drain plug O-ring and apply fresh RTV to the cover BEFORE you install it.

But the acceleration is nice!

That suckkkks. I guess I'm lucky that mine came with the flanges installed already. I didn't replace a thing.

[desertman123]

Oh it was a massive pain in the ass, but once I did a 2nd and 3rd gear pull I remembered why I bothered

[banshee28]

I have a 2006 330i Manual 6SP ... I would like to do the upgrade to a 3.64 diff. Anyone know the Part Number for these or good sources? I seen a couple on ebay but not sure if those are correct. Carparts does not seem to have these either?

[desertman123]

Originally Posted by banshee28

I have a 2006 330i Manual 6SP ... I would like to do the upgrade to a 3.64 diff. Anyone know the Part Number for these or good sources? I seen a couple on ebay but not sure if those are correct. Carparts does not seem to have these either?

33107566175

Interesting the 325i uses the 3.23/3.73, but then 330i it's 3.15/3.64 ratios.

[desertman123]

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1418770

Wrote a DIY guide with pics on 1Addicts!

Also I like this mod because I can floor it in 1st-2nd and the tail end will shimmy/fishtail just enough to make it feel like I'm driving a car with big power lol.

[Eins Suchtig]

Still looking for a decent one down here. With AA headers, 3 stage DISA IM and BPC off road tune it will be interesting!!!

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by banshee28

I have a 2006 330i Manual 6SP ... I would like to do the upgrade to a 3.64 diff. Anyone know the Part Number for these or good sources? I seen a couple on ebay but not sure if those are correct. Carparts does not seem to have these either?

I have 3.64 diff available for sale. Send PM if you are interested. Tested on my car and works perfectly.

Apologies for jacking the thread!

[Jimsbim]

I would be interested the 3.64 if the OP decides against it...
Where in PA are you / it located?

[Mavus]

Originally Posted by Jimsbim

I would be interested the 3.64 if the OP decides against it...
Where in PA are you / it located?

Just outside Phila in Ardmore (Wynnewood) ... Mainline

[Phyrexia]

I'm glad I found this thread ten minutes AFTER pulling the trigger on a 3.73 diff. :P

I graphed it out and 3.73 is IMO the most desireable ratio for everyday driving. 3.91 means your 6th gear is a little shorter than the stock 5th gear. With 3.73 gears, 6th is a tad longer than stock 5th gear, which was, to me, the best compromise for this car.

[Volasko]

Originally Posted by Phyrexia

I'm glad I found this thread ten minutes AFTER pulling the trigger on a 3.73 diff. :P

I graphed it out and 3.73 is IMO the most desireable ratio for everyday driving. 3.91 means your 6th gear is a little shorter than the stock 5th gear. With 3.73 gears, 6th is a tad longer than stock 5th gear, which was, to me, the best compromise for this car.

Congrats, of all the mods I have done the diff swap was my favourite!

[rick100]

I may be wrong here , but although the car feels faster down below , doesn't this slow down your 0-60 times as you need to go through one more gear to get there. In the video you posted it actually shows you are taking over 7 seconds to reach 60 because of the third gear shift. A 128 should be getting there in under 7 no problem

I fully understand that shorter gearing benefits your overall feeling of acceleration , but I just wanted to point out the 0-60 suffering .

For track purposes shorter gearing is better

I still think is fully worth it

[b-drizzle]

Thank you for all this useful info.

Quick question.. Would the diff from an automatic 2006 330xi work for this swap?

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by rick100

I may be wrong here , but although the car feels faster down below , doesn't this slow down your 0-60 times as you need to go through one more gear to get there. In the video you posted it actually shows you are taking over 7 seconds to reach 60 because of the third gear shift. A 128 should be getting there in under 7 no problem

I fully understand that shorter gearing benefits your overall feeling of acceleration , but I just wanted to point out the 0-60 suffering .

For track purposes shorter gearing is better

I still think is fully worth it

I have a 3.73 diff from a auto 328 installed in my 2009 Manual 328 e92. I can get to about 62mph in 2nd gear and have clocked 5.2 seconds 0-60 with AA headers/MILVs/BPC tune/3IM/3.73 diff.

[Phyrexia]

Originally Posted by rick100

I may be wrong here , but although the car feels faster down below , doesn't this slow down your 0-60 times as you need to go through one more gear to get there. In the video you posted it actually shows you are taking over 7 seconds to reach 60 because of the third gear shift. A 128 should be getting there in under 7 no problem

I fully understand that shorter gearing benefits your overall feeling of acceleration , but I just wanted to point out the 0-60 suffering .

For track purposes shorter gearing is better

I still think is fully worth it

It slows down your 0-60 time, yes, but it speeds up your 0-57 drastically, and since 60mph/100kph is really just an arbitrary number, there's no reason to worry.

The amount of time you (should!) spend changing gears is easily overcome by all that extra torque under the curve!

Remember most cars are geared specifically so that a 0-60 run can happen in 1st and 2nd. 0-60 specs are important! But we know better.

[rick100]

Originally Posted by Biginboca

I have a 3.73 diff from a auto 328 installed in my 2009 Manual 328 e92. I can get to about 62mph in 2nd gear and have clocked 5.2 seconds 0-60 with AA headers/MILVs/BPC tune/3IM/3.73 diff.

I find hard to believe you can clock 5.2 without some type of force induction or going down hill somehow