Can anyone say for certain how the VLSD behaves if you jack the car up and spin one of the wheels? I have an '03 Touring with A/T. I just jacked it up and spun one of the wheels, the other wheel spins the opposite direction. Could it be possible that a Touring model has an open diff? I also noticed a long time ago, when I had worn out tires, I did a few burnouts and it only left one skid mark. How could it be that I have an open diff? Or is it possible that it has a problem?

 

$400??? You need a jack, a pair of jackstands, and a few socket wrenches. The job can be done in your driveway in just a few hours, or less.

 

I need a press for the bearings, an impact gun for the ring gear bolts, an air compressor, a vice, and a work bench.

 

couple 17 and 19 mm for the half shafts and drive shaft, and i think 14mm for thd sway bars. but if he isnt comfortable, by all means pay to get it done

 

You said in post #3 you're buying a complete pumpkin. You don't need any of those tools, and it's a direct bolt-in. Did it on my '08 base a few years back - paid $300 for the VLSD pumpkin and sold my open pumpkin for $200. Best $100 I ever spent, and it held me over until I bought a Quaife diff.

 

mine was direct pumpkin swap also, but the same day i helped my buddy take his out and put his carbonetics diff in a pumpkin with 3.5 gears instead of his 3.9. it isnt that hard

 

TEAM HR!!!! (fist bump)

 

I see now there are actually two different discussions going on here, and that sno (not the OP) is asking about swapping the diff into his car's housing. In that case, it's definitely a task for a shop. The difficult, and critical, part of the task is getting the gear lash set properly. Sorry for my confusion.

 

If you're doing a direct pumpkin swap, you can do it in a couple hours in your driveway - we did it on ramps with a bottle jack at times to spin the wheels and get off the axle bolts.

If you're doing internals - you'll need all the fancy tools. IMO, find someone who's already gone through the trouble and selling their pumpkin (if you're looking for an aftermarket lsd). Otherwise, look for an OEM pumpkin.