so i got off the interstate the other day and heard a weird noise from my cars rear, listened to it a little more on the way home and decided not to drive it for a couple days, took it to a mechanic who has an ap1 also and we did the diff tests, the left wheel is bad. i havent gotten back to him yet on the results of taking it apart but im opening my options now as to new diffs, any reccomendations?

 

"Left wheel is bad"....you'll have to explain what you found.

 

the right wheel would spin freely in neutral, the left would only spin with a considerable amount of force applied to it. We put the car in gear and the right wheel had no problem, but it took some throttle to get the left moving.

 

Are you sure the brake pads weren't sticking a bit?
Diff test should be done in gear, engine off, rear wheels off the ground, turn one wheel - the other should turn opposite.

Drain the oil.
Watch for shavings on the plug and/or bigger chuncks in the oil.
What oil was in there and when was it last changed?

 

even if you were to consider other diffs...what other options do we have for the S?