Sorry it has been so long, a little comparison on drivetrains and differentials

First off, i am extremely sorry guys, i have completely avoided a post the past....long time. It takes really long, and it is sometimes hard to find time, recently running into a new job and all.

First comes first, a few questions.

"Front wheel drive is better then wheel drive in snow?" (i plan on making this a major topic)

i will answer this in the post. bare with me.

"maybe one day gps will have cars drive themselves"

I am against this personally, but it is looking as if it is headed that way, but optionally obviously, and with half computers half people, comes alot of accidents.

"cold air intake, hot it affects performance"

Well, for starters even with the lubrication your engine is designed to have (oil), you will obviously have friction, and a vigorous motion of pistons creating alot of heat. With heat comes the oil thinning out, and becoming less effective. With extreme heat comes metal heating up and bending (seperate problem). Anyways, as oil becomes less effective, it will lubricate less and make friction more of a problem. a cold air intake will cool the engine down better, and make it perform better, improve economy etc.

and one asking for more differential info.


So back to the first question i got.
what is the different benefits of front and rear wheel drive (and all wheel drive, 4 wheel drive etc)

So...When you get a front wheel drive vehicle it obviously has the drive wheels being the front. So along with this, for starters, is the engine being sideways.
In other words, instead of the crank shaft connecting to the transmission facing the back, it is facing the side. The transmission is under the hood. This makes it VERY heavy in the front, and in the back...not so much. The wheels responsible for turning, moving, mostly stopping etc, have alot of weight, and do basically everything important. This promotes grip, tire wear, and a few side effects.
If you are looking for a daily driver car, fwd is probably the way to go. it is a happy medium for grip, control, fuel economy (2 drive wheels instead of 4) maintenance, and basically ease of use.
If you are heavy on the throttle, you might get torque steer, where the wheels spin and pull you in a direction you diddnt want to go.
This all usually comes along with limited power, minimul fun-ness, and poor sporty abilities.

Who likes Rwd? ME!
This is the overall best in my eyes. If you can use it, it is just as good in slippery conditions, it is the most sporty, and everything is spread out weight-wise.

I am biased, but lets try this.
So with the weight balanced out, and both the front and back wheels doing something different, you can get the tires wearing equally, but in a different way; when you rotate them, they will finish wearing completely ideally. When you get really good at driving, you can learn how to steer with your throttle.
Basically when you are in a skid, you can use the throttle to adjust your angle and direction you head in, or just let off the gas to straighten out. so RWD = fun.

(this picture has a torque converter, not sure how this works....but its an automatic thing. do not like.

All wheel drive is just that, all wheels drive; typically the best in slippery conditions.
all wheels wear quite a bit, and fuel economy is not a goal in this.
this is never very fun unless you have ALOT of power. like lamborghini territory.

yeah its different, isnt it..


this is about all you need to know, there is 4x4, but that is just a heavier version of awd, with control of when you have all 4 wheels moving the power.


Differentials in next post? sure why not.

Please give me any automotive questions you have, i dont know everything, and this is how both of us can learn.