Clutch-type limited-slip differentials can be easily checked for. Put
the car in neutral, jack up ONE rear wheel, and then (with the handbrake
off - chock the wheels that are on the ground) see if you can turn the
wheel that's in the air, by hand.
Another way is to jack up the entire rear axle, with the transmission in
gear, and then see if you can spin either rear wheel by hand. On an open
differential, the opposite wheel will spin in the other direction. With
a limited slip, the opposite wheel will try to move in the same
direction, but the rotation will be prevented by the trans being in
gear.
Neither method works for Torsen diffs. The approach you've described,
however, is effective... If the above methods fail but you can't spin
just one tire no matter how hard you try, you've probably got a Torsen
in there. It's easily visually distinguished from an open diff (or any
other kind of LSD) by the use of helical "spider" gears.
It's typical for the right-side tire to spin more due to the effect of
driveshaft torque on the rear axle, with any diff, unless you've got a
spool.
Theo
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