[Brian15]

ordered one of those diff's off ebay for a great price , last week . diff comes in looks great .

remove old diff , only to find out the 3.46 diff has different axle flanges WTF ..... common problem or did i get an odd ball ? ..... my car is an 01 330 .

can axle flanges be swapped easily

 

[MJRMatt330]

yes you have to swap them, and yes its a common problem, and yes i heard its pretty easy to swap

 

[Brian15]

yes you have to swap them, and yes its a common problem, and yes i heard its pretty easy to swap

now ive heard the common this is the driveshaft flange ? but not the axle flanges ...it looks like ill have to go inside the carrier to get the axle flanges out

 

[SeanC]

it is my understanding that you can pry out the input flange with a flat head screwdriver... read the thread that started this all!

 

[Brian15]

it is my understanding that you can pry out the input flange with a flat head screwdriver... read the thread that started this all!

good call , went and figured it out ..... was getting a little worried as its 3:30 and i leave work in an hour ....

disreguard this thread DOH

 

[MJRMatt330]

you best be giving us a review after this thing goes in

 

[kpeng]

Yeah, swapping them is no biggy. You'll be fine.

 

[DJ Reminisce]

anyone change the shaft seal when they did this mod? Woullnt you have to open up the dif to do that?

 

[Brian15]

anyone change the shaft seal when they did this mod? Woullnt you have to open up the dif to do that?

3.46 diff installed , double checking fluid then time for the drive home from work in about 30mins . Will make a new thread tommrow when i get to work .

 

[SeanC]

anyone change the shaft seal when they did this mod? Woullnt you have to open up the dif to do that?

I don't know why you're concerned about that. Shaft seal, #7 in the pic below, is the outer most piece that goes on the diff :dunno:

I think you are confusing this with #2 in the following pic, which does not need to be replaced..

 

[Fatal Flash]

you suck with pictures!

 

[SeanC]

you suck with pictures!

wtf are you talking about?

 

[Alex323Ci]

I hope you made sure to put the input nut back on the exact same number of threads and spot as it was? You need to make a punch mark on the nut and count the turns. Although it can go on no problem, it is not suppose to be tightened too much or too little. If so, the pinion gear will not match up with the ring gear inside and cause it to make noise and go out prematurely.

People, SWAPPING THE INPUT FLANGE AND TORQUE CORRECTLY IS VERY IMPORTANT. Sure, you might not have any issues. But some certainly can and will and then you'll need to buy another diff.
Buy or borrow the Bentley Manual.

 

[SeanC]

Thanks Alex. Can anybody with a Bentley manual report back the correct torque spec for the input flange nut?

 

[SeanC]

I hope you made sure to put the input nut back on the exact same number of threads and spot as it was? You need to make a punch mark on the nut and count the turns. Although it can go on no problem, it is not suppose to be tightened too much or too little. If so, the pinion gear will not match up with the ring gear inside and cause it to make noise and go out prematurely.

People, SWAPPING THE INPUT FLANGE AND TORQUE CORRECTLY IS VERY IMPORTANT. Sure, you might not have any issues. But some certainly can and will and then you'll need to buy another diff.
Buy or borrow the Bentley Manual.

Alex, would you be kind enough to share the correct torque spec on this nut if you have an easy access to that info? I am finding numbers anywhere in between 50-130 ft lbs, which are all very tight. I found a torque spec for this nut on an e30, which says it should be 15-20 in oz, just enough to crush the securing plate, consistent with what you are saying: not tight at all, but not too loose either.