what are some of the benefits of having rear wheel drive, especially in sports cars? Thanks in advance!!
There are many engineering compromises that must be made to package drive and steering in the front end. With a rear drive, those problems can be avoided. As a result, rear drive cars have: 1. better weight distribution 2. Lower unspring weight in the front 3. No torque steer 4. Much better handling.
Rear wheel drive cars are known to have better power distribution to the wheels and better traction on road surfaces. Especially in sports cars, which are designed for performance, factors such as stability of the car under any road condition are essential. Unlike a front wheel drive car, in which the engine delivers power to the front wheels alone. The rear wheels are simply being 'dragged' along with the rest of the vehicle. The function of the rear wheels in a front wheel drive car is simply to support the structure of the vehicle and nothing more than that. There is no traction in the rear of the car. In a rear wheel drive car, all the power and traction is supplied to the rear wheels, while the front wheels are used to steer the car. Over Steer - Suppose you are driving a nose heavy car (a car which has got a heavier front than the rear), going fast around a curve could result in the car losing traction (grip) from the rear end and having its back being flung outside the curve. Over Steer can also result from bad aerodynamics which fail to equalize downforce on the front and rear of the car, i.e. higher down force at the front and no or very low downforce at the rear. Traction in the rear wheels is preferable as power delive
FWD results in over steer and torque steer at high horsepower levels... non issues with rear wheel drive.
Hey you, hope thanksgiving went well!. To answer your question, rear wheel has some benefits while front wheel also is beneficial. Rear wheel drives have more horse power to the wheel, but they also lose torque because of the drive shaft (longer shaft= less power to axle), but to compensate for this loss, they have invented some unique methods to deliver torque and increase power efficiency. They have reduced the gearing in the rear transaxle, and added slip differential to limit the transfer of energy to both rear wheels equally.Now front wheel drives have a very short transaxle, that transfers energy to the wheels with very little loss of energy. This makes them proficient, and less parts moving means less friction, therefore the engine works less. Most vehicles today are front wheel drive, except trucks and sports cars. But if you want fast power, rear wheel delivers that, but at a cost in gas$$$. Plus they will have more problems that are more expensive to fix.......hmmm sounds like front wheel is more better in a lot ways, but when you put the pedal down and feel the seat press up against you as the G's climb, rear wheel has it down. Talk to you again, and good luck finding the right car for you. Bye =Jesse=
