KAAZ LSDs, who has/had one? - Zilvia.net Forums | Nissan 240SX (Silvia) and Z (Fairlady) Car Forum

Yoshi · 07-05-2002, 01:01 PM

I'm researching KAAZ LSDs, I've heard they're fairly high maintinience, and that they're pretty noisy as well, can anyone tell me more about them?

First hand experiences only plz, I don't need any info from people who, "read somewhere that..." or, "I know this guy who sez..."  blah blah blah.... real experiences only please!

Yoshi · 07-08-2002, 11:27 AM

biggidy-bump!  <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

240 2NR · 07-08-2002, 03:29 PM

Do you understand how they work?  

For that kind of money I'd be looking at a quaife instead.  Much more streetable, much less maintenance (read none, cept for normal fluid changes), lifetime warranty, and very respected in the racing community.  

Sorry I can't give first hand accounts, as I have the one wheel drive stocker on my car, but this has been a recent discussion with several friends I race with and has been a topic I've gone through a few time trying to decide what I'll get so I feel I have a reasonable knowledge of the subject.

The one thing I'm not sure of is, does the KAAZ relase when you get off the gas or is it effectively a 2way diff in that it stays closed in accel, decel, and lift throttle until the breakway torque is reached either by turning or engine torque?

uiuc240 · 07-08-2002, 03:57 PM

check this out for many good answers.

KAAZ

and Kaaz makes 1.5 and 2 way. no 1 way. you can get either one for the R200 diff.

Eric

*Grant* · 07-09-2002, 04:43 AM

Well my friend does have a Kaaz 2 way LSD. I rode in the car with him, and it seems to make a world of differences. easy to swing the back end of the car out, drifts nice and smooth. balance/handles great.  

drawback is its noisy as hell. you can hear the clunking when the car moves slowly, i.e. backing out of the driveway and what not. It is worht the money though.

But for the price you pay for that (i think he paid $1200 installed), you might as well get a Nismo LSD kit (comes with everything). The nismo unit is helical, which is arguablely the best type of LSD there is, and should be about the same price if not cheaper than the kaaz.

sil80 · 07-09-2002, 07:09 AM

Yoshi I dont have first hand experiance with kaaz or quaife but I have been researching about it a lot lately since I want to do this upgrade also.
There is a huge/informational thread on FA about it that actually answer a  lot of questions for me so you might want to check it out.

240 2nr, based off what I heard people are liking the kaaz better then the quaife. Since the kaaz is a cluth based you have to put more maintance into(change fluid every 2500 miles) but after reading a lot of posts elsewhere it seems people are always sending in their gear based quaife's to get repaired/rebuilt.

uiuc240 · 07-09-2002, 08:03 AM

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Grant @ July 09 2002,05:43)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Well my friend does have a Kaaz 2 way LSD. I rode in the car with him, and it seems to make a world of differences. easy to swing the back end of the car out, drifts nice and smooth. balance/handles great.

drawback is its noisy as hell. you can hear the clunking when the car moves slowly, i.e. backing out of the driveway and what not. It is worht the money though.

But for the price you pay for that (i think he paid $1200 installed), you might as well get a Nismo LSD kit (comes with everything). The nismo unit is helical, which is arguablely the best type of LSD there is, and should be about the same price if not cheaper than the kaaz.</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
If you read at Kaaz' website, it states that the LSD should NOT make chattering noises and whatnot.  I'm guessing that your friend might have slacked on the break-in, and now it's forever messed up.  You can read all about the break-in procedures at KAAZ

Eric

Yoshi · 07-09-2002, 10:22 AM

Anyone know what maintinience is involved with the KAAZ.... I'm tending to lean towards KAAZ purely on a monetary basis, I can get a KAAZ 1.5 for about $550, where as the quaife is $1250, and the Nismo $800...  

Can anyone give me a reason why I shouldn't go with the KAAZ?

uiuc240 · 07-09-2002, 10:43 AM

go with the kaaz.  but just be very patient with the break-in.  and use the kaaz fluid.  and be prepared to change fluid at every oil change (get a fluid pump).  oh, and know that the disks have to be replaced sometimes.  have you decided that the VLSD just isn't good enough for you?  i realize it's not the best thing, but it's also VERY streetable.  basically you just get one, put new fluid in, put it in your car, and drive it.  and then change the fluid in like 2 years <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='

'>

Eric

Yoshi · 07-09-2002, 11:35 AM

well, sad as it sounds, I'd been giving serious thought to the KAAZ because it so cheap... very comperable to everything required to get a used R200V into my car, and it would be new.  

My other choice was getting an R200V from somewhere, but even after reading countless posts on here and FA and 240sx.org, it still seems to me that people do NOT know exactly what will work with what.. and I have several factors against me... I do not have ASB, I have an S13, and I have an auto tranny... those things together create a car setup that i've not seen any other person say they've replaced their R200.  I know the auto brings up issues with the drive shaft, and there are issues with the half shafts or whatever else there was that conflicted, and should dictate whether I needed a diff from a 95 J30 or a 96+ J30, or a N/A Z32, or a S13 R200V or a s14 R200V....

There's just so much misinformation flying around that I KNOW with my luck I would get screwed, and going with the VLSD (which would be totally fine by me) would end up costing twice as much as it should for a used unit that I don't know the background history of...

I'm willing to pay for piece-of-mind, know what i'm saying?  I wish this didn't have to be so difficult <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='

'>

uiuc240 · 07-09-2002, 12:43 PM

All good points man.  First of all, it shouldn't be that tough to find the right diff for swapping.  The placement of the diff in all the cars is the same.  And I checked and the final drive ratios are the same for MT and AT, so that's not a problem.  You just need to find an R200V that either has the 3x2 bolt output shafts, or swap output shafts, or get 5 bolt halfshafts.  I'm not saying any of this is going to be a piece of cake, but the info is out there, and it really shouldn't be a problem.

I have a piece of advice/opinion, though.  I think, and I'm sure many others would agree with me, that you're going to be MUCH happier spending your money on a 5speed swap right now.  That will not only help you drift, it will make your car faster, and you will enjoy driving it even more.  I'm sure you've already thought about this, but I just want to encourage you to do it.  It will cost more money, but I think you'd be better off with a row-your-own and a one-tire-fire, rather than having a dorifto-matic.

Eric

Yoshi · 07-09-2002, 02:51 PM

heh, already in the works my friend <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='

'>

the thing is, I need some sort of LSD to help me for winter, because I have a whole master plan all setup for my car.

First and foremost is my wedding, which is this August, on the 17th.  It's going to be huge and pretty and going to bleed me dry (oh wait, it already has&#33<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='

'>.

After that, the woman has agreed that the wedding is her baby, and after that, she helps me with the plans for the 240. I won't have enough time to recover monetarily right away... but the plan is to get the diff first, prolly sept-oct, save til january, then get the SR swap done (with the 5-speed of course) along with FMIC, ACT clutch, fuel pump, boost controller, etc etc etc.

Being that it snows like a mofo every few years here (last winter was mild, so this winter will most likely kick my ass), I need the LSD or a cheap ass Subaru GL or something for getting to work in the snow... hence why I'm doing the research now.

I'll have to get some of my videos online tho, I think I drift rather well for a guy with no HP mods, an open diff, auto tranny (which actually is fine, just that I can only do feints, brake, sidebrake, and powerover drifts, no clutchkicking for me, less I wanna neutral drop and kill my tranny some more), and 17"s... well, I guess u can see the pics I've got in the "show your car" thread <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='

'>

uiuc240 · 07-09-2002, 03:08 PM

wow, dude.  sounds like you have it all figger'd out.  cool deal.  well in that case, it definitely would be wise to just get the LSD.  and if it's snow you're worried about and drifting now and then, i'd say just get the VLSD...but that's just me.  hey, look at it this way...if you get it and the you realize it's NOT good enough, just sell it for exactly what you paid for it and get a KAAZ.  i guarantee you can get every penny out of your investment...there are like 50,000 s13s out there that don't have LSD.  i for one will be jealous of you <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt='

'>

oh, and yeah, nice drifting.  i pretty much suck at it, but that's cuz i don't bother practicing.  just the occasional bigass powerover coming around a turn when the T2small kicks in.  wheeeee!  <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

Eric

07-05-2002, 01:01 PM	#1
Yoshi Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Washington Age: 48 Posts: 3,003 Trader Rating: (1) Rides Gallery: Yoshi Feedback Score: 1 reviews	I'm researching KAAZ LSDs, I've heard they're fairly high maintinience, and that they're pretty noisy as well, can anyone tell me more about them? First hand experiences only plz, I don't need any info from people who, "read somewhere that..." or, "I know this guy who sez..."  blah blah blah.... real experiences only please! __________________ www.360realms.com/S13-S15

07-08-2002, 11:27 AM	#2
Yoshi Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Washington Age: 48 Posts: 3,003 Trader Rating: (1) Rides Gallery: Yoshi Feedback Score: 1 reviews	biggidy-bump!  <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'> __________________ www.360realms.com/S13-S15

07-08-2002, 03:57 PM	#4
uiuc240 Nissanaholic! Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Naperville, IL Age: 46 Posts: 2,093 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	check this out for many good answers. KAAZ and Kaaz makes 1.5 and 2 way. no 1 way. you can get either one for the R200 diff. Eric __________________ 2002 Mazda Protege5 1989 S13 w/SR20DET (sold)

07-09-2002, 07:09 AM	#6
sil80 Zilvia Addict Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 660 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Yoshi I dont have first hand experiance with kaaz or quaife but I have been researching about it a lot lately since I want to do this upgrade also. There is a huge/informational thread on FA about it that actually answer a  lot of questions for me so you might want to check it out. 240 2nr, based off what I heard people are liking the kaaz better then the quaife. Since the kaaz is a cluth based you have to put more maintance into(change fluid every 2500 miles) but after reading a lot of posts elsewhere it seems people are always sending in their gear based quaife's to get repaired/rebuilt. __________________ Five degrees of separation - from you and your license 91 240sx SE

07-09-2002, 08:03 AM	#7
uiuc240 Nissanaholic! Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Naperville, IL Age: 46 Posts: 2,093 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Grant @ July 09 2002,05:43)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Well my friend does have a Kaaz 2 way LSD. I rode in the car with him, and it seems to make a world of differences. easy to swing the back end of the car out, drifts nice and smooth. balance/handles great. drawback is its noisy as hell. you can hear the clunking when the car moves slowly, i.e. backing out of the driveway and what not. It is worht the money though. But for the price you pay for that (i think he paid $1200 installed), you might as well get a Nismo LSD kit (comes with everything). The nismo unit is helical, which is arguablely the best type of LSD there is, and should be about the same price if not cheaper than the kaaz.</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'> If you read at Kaaz' website, it states that the LSD should NOT make chattering noises and whatnot.  I'm guessing that your friend might have slacked on the break-in, and now it's forever messed up.  You can read all about the break-in procedures at KAAZ Eric __________________ 2002 Mazda Protege5 1989 S13 w/SR20DET (sold)

07-08-2002, 03:29 PM	#3
240 2NR Zilvia FREAK! Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Denver Posts: 1,131 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Do you understand how they work?   For that kind of money I'd be looking at a quaife instead.  Much more streetable, much less maintenance (read none, cept for normal fluid changes), lifetime warranty, and very respected in the racing community.   Sorry I can't give first hand accounts, as I have the one wheel drive stocker on my car, but this has been a recent discussion with several friends I race with and has been a topic I've gone through a few time trying to decide what I'll get so I feel I have a reasonable knowledge of the subject. The one thing I'm not sure of is, does the KAAZ relase when you get off the gas or is it effectively a 2way diff in that it stays closed in accel, decel, and lift throttle until the breakway torque is reached either by turning or engine torque? __________________ Steve 93 240sx FB currently very clean and for sale

07-09-2002, 04:43 AM	#5
Grant Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: 聖地牙哥 Posts: 2,647 Trader Rating: (0) Rides Gallery: Grant Feedback Score: 0 reviews	Well my friend does have a Kaaz 2 way LSD. I rode in the car with him, and it seems to make a world of differences. easy to swing the back end of the car out, drifts nice and smooth. balance/handles great.   drawback is its noisy as hell. you can hear the clunking when the car moves slowly, i.e. backing out of the driveway and what not. It is worht the money though. But for the price you pay for that (i think he paid $1200 installed), you might as well get a Nismo LSD kit (comes with everything). The nismo unit is helical, which is arguablely the best type of LSD there is, and should be about the same price if not cheaper than the kaaz.

07-09-2002, 10:22 AM	#8
Yoshi Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Washington Age: 48 Posts: 3,003 Trader Rating: (1) Rides Gallery: Yoshi Feedback Score: 1 reviews	Anyone know what maintinience is involved with the KAAZ.... I'm tending to lean towards KAAZ purely on a monetary basis, I can get a KAAZ 1.5 for about $550, where as the quaife is $1250, and the Nismo $800...   Can anyone give me a reason why I shouldn't go with the KAAZ? __________________ www.360realms.com/S13-S15

07-09-2002, 10:43 AM	#9
uiuc240 Nissanaholic! Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Naperville, IL Age: 46 Posts: 2,093 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	go with the kaaz.  but just be very patient with the break-in.  and use the kaaz fluid.  and be prepared to change fluid at every oil change (get a fluid pump).  oh, and know that the disks have to be replaced sometimes.  have you decided that the VLSD just isn't good enough for you?  i realize it's not the best thing, but it's also VERY streetable.  basically you just get one, put new fluid in, put it in your car, and drive it.  and then change the fluid in like 2 years <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> Eric __________________ 2002 Mazda Protege5 1989 S13 w/SR20DET (sold)

07-09-2002, 11:35 AM	#10
Yoshi Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Washington Age: 48 Posts: 3,003 Trader Rating: (1) Rides Gallery: Yoshi Feedback Score: 1 reviews	well, sad as it sounds, I'd been giving serious thought to the KAAZ because it so cheap... very comperable to everything required to get a used R200V into my car, and it would be new.   My other choice was getting an R200V from somewhere, but even after reading countless posts on here and FA and 240sx.org, it still seems to me that people do NOT know exactly what will work with what.. and I have several factors against me... I do not have ASB, I have an S13, and I have an auto tranny... those things together create a car setup that i've not seen any other person say they've replaced their R200.  I know the auto brings up issues with the drive shaft, and there are issues with the half shafts or whatever else there was that conflicted, and should dictate whether I needed a diff from a 95 J30 or a 96+ J30, or a N/A Z32, or a S13 R200V or a s14 R200V.... There's just so much misinformation flying around that I KNOW with my luck I would get screwed, and going with the VLSD (which would be totally fine by me) would end up costing twice as much as it should for a used unit that I don't know the background history of... I'm willing to pay for piece-of-mind, know what i'm saying?  I wish this didn't have to be so difficult <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> __________________ www.360realms.com/S13-S15

07-09-2002, 12:43 PM	#11
uiuc240 Nissanaholic! Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Naperville, IL Age: 46 Posts: 2,093 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	All good points man.  First of all, it shouldn't be that tough to find the right diff for swapping.  The placement of the diff in all the cars is the same.  And I checked and the final drive ratios are the same for MT and AT, so that's not a problem.  You just need to find an R200V that either has the 3x2 bolt output shafts, or swap output shafts, or get 5 bolt halfshafts.  I'm not saying any of this is going to be a piece of cake, but the info is out there, and it really shouldn't be a problem. I have a piece of advice/opinion, though.  I think, and I'm sure many others would agree with me, that you're going to be MUCH happier spending your money on a 5speed swap right now.  That will not only help you drift, it will make your car faster, and you will enjoy driving it even more.  I'm sure you've already thought about this, but I just want to encourage you to do it.  It will cost more money, but I think you'd be better off with a row-your-own and a one-tire-fire, rather than having a dorifto-matic. Eric __________________ 2002 Mazda Protege5 1989 S13 w/SR20DET (sold)

07-09-2002, 02:51 PM	#12
Yoshi Post Whore! Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Washington Age: 48 Posts: 3,003 Trader Rating: (1) Rides Gallery: Yoshi Feedback Score: 1 reviews	heh, already in the works my friend <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> the thing is, I need some sort of LSD to help me for winter, because I have a whole master plan all setup for my car. First and foremost is my wedding, which is this August, on the 17th.  It's going to be huge and pretty and going to bleed me dry (oh wait, it already has&#33<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''>. After that, the woman has agreed that the wedding is her baby, and after that, she helps me with the plans for the 240. I won't have enough time to recover monetarily right away... but the plan is to get the diff first, prolly sept-oct, save til january, then get the SR swap done (with the 5-speed of course) along with FMIC, ACT clutch, fuel pump, boost controller, etc etc etc. Being that it snows like a mofo every few years here (last winter was mild, so this winter will most likely kick my ass), I need the LSD or a cheap ass Subaru GL or something for getting to work in the snow... hence why I'm doing the research now. I'll have to get some of my videos online tho, I think I drift rather well for a guy with no HP mods, an open diff, auto tranny (which actually is fine, just that I can only do feints, brake, sidebrake, and powerover drifts, no clutchkicking for me, less I wanna neutral drop and kill my tranny some more), and 17"s... well, I guess u can see the pics I've got in the "show your car" thread <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> __________________ www.360realms.com/S13-S15

07-09-2002, 03:08 PM	#13
uiuc240 Nissanaholic! Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Naperville, IL Age: 46 Posts: 2,093 Trader Rating: (0) Feedback Score: 0 reviews	wow, dude.  sounds like you have it all figger'd out.  cool deal.  well in that case, it definitely would be wise to just get the LSD.  and if it's snow you're worried about and drifting now and then, i'd say just get the VLSD...but that's just me.  hey, look at it this way...if you get it and the you realize it's NOT good enough, just sell it for exactly what you paid for it and get a KAAZ.  i guarantee you can get every penny out of your investment...there are like 50,000 s13s out there that don't have LSD.  i for one will be jealous of you <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''> oh, and yeah, nice drifting.  i pretty much suck at it, but that's cuz i don't bother practicing.  just the occasional bigass powerover coming around a turn when the T2small kicks in.  wheeeee!  <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'> Eric __________________ 2002 Mazda Protege5 1989 S13 w/SR20DET (sold)