Interesting find re:front diffs

[Numbchux]

According to the XT parts catalog that was recently made digital thanks to mr.radon and grossgary over on the XT boards (if you haven't seen it....click here to download it). I'm looking at pages 136-141 in the tranny section.

 

I started looking to see if there was any similarities or differences in the front axle stubs, and I actually found a matching part number. Interesting, so I started looking closer. 3ATs actually have internal snaprings just like the 5MTs.

 

Then, I decided to look a little closer. The Differential "case" (carrier), part number shows "38421 AAOOO" for the FWD 5MT, and the same part number for all 3ATs. A little digging on opposedforces.com pulls up that same part number for FWD impreza 5MTs. But some FWD cars (and AWD cars) list 38421 AA020. Then I compared the differential bearings. These actually have dimensions...

 

the FWD ones are 37x72x18, and the turbo/4WD ones are 40x80x19

 

But, I think the bearing retainers are interchangeable. They have different part numbers (for different IDs), but the O-ring that seals the OD is the same.

 

 

 

What does this all mean?? Well....not much, really. I find it interesting, as it means that 3ATs are not the missing link in my search for 23-spline stubs that will interchange with 4EAT stubs (in my carbonetic front LSD).

 

It also means, that with the bearing retainers, bearings, and seals from an AWD 5MT, a person could put an LSD designed for any AWD 5MT into a 3AT. I highly doubt anybody would spend that kind of cash on a 3AT.....but there it is.