changin geometry when changing drive axle ?

[woohoo]

Hi!

This is a bid daft, but I just came to me, and I cant get it out of my head now...

If you change the driving axle, say from a front wheel drive to a rear wheel drive, is necessary to change the suspension geometry as well ?

I cant see it being a problem, but then again, I cant see it being possible.

[marcush.]

Hi!

This is a bid daft, but I just came to me, and I cant get it out of my head now...

If you change the driving axle, say from a front wheel drive to a rear wheel drive, is necessary to change the suspension geometry as well ?

I cant see it being a problem, but then again, I cant see it being possible.

Not if you plan to cruise around only...but one question remains ,would it even be possible to fit all necessary parts into the front drive shell without having to think about new geometry as well?

thinking about rear suspension layouts of FWD -namely dead axles - these are effectively a live axle without the means of drive.
So this axle has not received any thought about having to transmit forces to propel the car forward...only brake ,cornering forces and supporting the weight and body vertical movement is catered for.

In a word :you will likely open up a can of worms changing the powertrain layout dramatically as it is a different concept with different base decisions right at the start of the design.

If one would do something like that I think a feasible approch would be to just take everything from the car you already got to make this layout change and shoehorn it into the FWD shell.This only leaves Wheelbase difference (with ackerman and propellershaft issues )as a possible source of basic layout faults .

I worked for a team that happened to have the full suspension system of a 911GT3
in a longitudinal front engine rear drive car.surely not the same problem but it was really a nightmare in terms of geometry not suiting the needs of the car layout.Funny enough it had more problems with other parts than you could possibly handle so the suspension was the smallest issue it had..thank god it is retired for good after clocking not more than a few laps in three years.

[jedc53]

When a good clean design finally settles in I suspect they will have motors in each wheel. When breaking the motors would generate power back into its storage system which could be some combination of battery or gyro-generator.If electrics caught on my guess is that batteries would be rapid change things that service stations owned and leased to users.I was thinking of the wheel itself being the motor or generator.It need not necessarily be all that much heavier than a wheel that is not a motor.This would then allow software control of differential forces.

[mep]

If you change the driving axle, say from a front wheel drive to a rear wheel drive, is necessary to change the suspension geometry as well ?

Yep,
when you really want your car designed on the edge.
Everything on the car is somehow repeated to the rest.
Changing such a essential thing like FWD to RWD is like designing a totally new car. In the end it will be just a compromise and never reach the full performance.

[autogyro]

When a good clean design finally settles in I suspect they will have motors in each wheel. When breaking the motors would generate power back into its storage system which could be some combination of battery or gyro-generator.If electrics caught on my guess is that batteries would be rapid change things that service stations owned and leased to users.I was thinking of the wheel itself being the motor or generator.It need not necessarily be all that much heavier than a wheel that is not a motor.This would then allow software control of differential forces.

Electric motors in wheels result in high unsprung weight, alright if you are in America but not if you want to go around corners.

[DaveKillens]

Changing from front to rear, or vice versa for the driving wheels is a major change in the vehicle. I'm not even going to start listing how many systems are influenced, but basically it's the entire car.

I strongly suggest that anyone tempted by the thought to change the drive wheels ....... NOT

[Belatti]

For a street or racing car?

[marcush.]

transferring the complete system axles drivetrain suspension from one body to another is just a fabrication challenge and should be straightforward, given you got the skills and recources available.
transferring only single parts or inventing new ,or even worse duplicating others concepts in part will surely kick you into a different orbit and is likely to end
dusted in a corner of your garage.