Darkshot

iTrader: (4)

I was sitting in a lane stopped in traffic when I realized I needed to be in the lane to my right. But that lane was moving, so i did the famous "put my foot into it from a stopped lane to quickly enter the fast-moving lane next to you" maneuver, which as you know is accompanied by an abrupt right-then-left motion of the steering wheel and lots of throttle. The car went, but it did not pick up NEARLY as fast as it should have. I heard the RPMs climb way faster than they should have for the acceleration I was feeling, but it wasn't instant like a neutral rev. It reminded me of when I used to lay into it from a stop with my peg leg rear end, the car would move forward slowly but the revs would climb rapidly due to my right rear tire getting blown away.

But this time I DON'T THINK I heard by tire spinning, but I'm not 100%. I have a Zexel Torsen LS1 rear end, so if my one tire was indeed spinning it means my posi unit is failing. There is no way both were spinning or I would have been sliding all over the place. Do the Zexel Torsen units fail like this? Basically turn into an open diff?

The other option is transmission. Maybe the tire wasn't spinning at all and I was losing those revolutions in the transmission. Could the rapid right-then-left motion as I hit it caused some sort of slushing action with my transmission fluid making the tranny slip? I checked the fluid and it smells good and is full.

KrisW

iTrader: (5)

Sounds like the transmission was slipping to me. Imagine a standard shift car doing what you did but with the clutch pedal partially depressed. I think you may have a seal bleeding off full pressure to your forward clutch drum.