Does anyone know if it's even remotely possible to install an LSD in a gen2 prius? I take her to a lot of rural areas, onto Sandy and Muddy dirt roads, ect. and I really hate digging a hole with one tire while the other sits there and wonders wwhat's happening.
It's possible. You may not like the price. Quaife will do one-offs, but they're prohibitively expensive.
It might be easier (but not easy) to install the rear wheel drive from an AWDe Prius and interface it with the electronics in your Gen2 Prius. JeffD
way ahead of you Jeff! now just need to 3D scan the rear end of the Gen 2 I have then align the rear subframe to see where we will place the bolts to attach the subframe. The problem though, a non-PHEV Prius doesn't have enough power to run the motor...
Just add an additional battery and controller and/or switch to Lithium cells. Note that the AWDe rear drive is only active at low speeds so battery current limits may not be an issue. JeffD
That's not supposed to happen. The car's traction control system has control over the brake at each wheel, which allows it to brake the wheel that is digging the hole, and that forces the plain differential inside the transaxle to deliver the corresponding torque to the opposite wheel. It is the same thing a limited-slip differential tries to do by building a friction element into the differential itself, but achieved with a less complicated differential, using brakes and computers that already have to be on the car anyway. It sounds as if your traction control is malfunctioning. Here's an example of a Gen 2 Prius where it's working right: Perhaps there's an issue that can be solved so you get the full benefit of the system already built into the car, before delving into expensive mechanical mods.
