Thread: Rear diff issues

I wonder if one were to put a p38 era diff in and see if it lasts.

I honestly think it's a qc issue. If they can last the lifetime of a heavier and more powerful car then the design can't be all that bad.

So its the pinion crown wheel contact that's making the noise?

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Originally Posted by PAT303

No idea,LR should have ditched both the sals and P38 and developed a hypoid rover,done and dusted. Pat

And so the Ashcroft HDP38 was born.....

I don't know what is causing the noise, but my latest diff has just had a new centre and new crown wheel and pinion and it's noisy again.
I've been previously told that when the changed the diffs prior they were all done as a set

Originally Posted by uninformed

I guess those engine bearings were just consumables

I thought we were just talking driveline, smart arse !

The big ends show how a quality lubricant can help, I think mine is the only '98 Tdi that had the dodgy big ends and didn't do the crank !
(And I drove it for nearly twelve months with the big ends knocking away )

As Serg said, these diff failures are just poor QC, even though I'm not enamoured with the P38 design.
The Ashcroft hypoid conversion just fixes things for good.

Does anyone know if there is/was an option for a different rear dif? Diff lock even? From Land Rover?

Originally Posted by Drover

What is reason for using the P38 in the 110/130 and the Rover in the 90 ?

The P38 has some improvements over the rover design, and apart from the reduced pinion bearing spacing, should be stronger. This seems to have been let down by poor manufacturing and installation on the puma though.

90s (and 88's before them) always had rover front and rear diffs (same as the disco and rrc), however the LWB models (109/110/127/130) had the Salisbury diff in the rear since about 1970, as the rover was not strong enough.

The P38 was considered strong enough, lighter than the salisbury, and so the salisbury was deleted and replaced with the P38.

Originally Posted by Danjeffery

Does anyone know if there is/was an option for a different rear dif? Diff lock even? From Land Rover?

There is no factory upgrade available. The easiest upgrade is to install a salisbury which was used in defenders until 2002/3. Land Rover was selling off all their old stock os salisbries not long ago, but they have probably all gone now. Plenty on the 2nd hand market though.

I think the P38 type rear going into 110/130 may have had something to do with UK military having problems with the Sals housing (not diff)...

Originally Posted by isuzurover

There is no factory upgrade available. The easiest upgrade is to install a salisbury which was used in defenders until 2002/3. Land Rover was selling off all their old stock os salisbries not long ago, but they have probably all gone now. Plenty on the 2nd hand market though.

Surely now the Ashcroft HDP38 is the easiest upgrade now and gives better clearance than the sals?