Differential Explained

[shatto]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4JhruinbWc
Starts slow, but is really pretty neat.

[theholycow]

I've seen that one before...it really is great. The meat starts at about 3:30.

[yt]K4JhruinbWc[/yt]

[GasSavers_JoeBob]

Great video...breaking down the principle of the differential gear into easily understood pieces.

I guess they hadn't invented the driveshaft tunnel yet...

[VetteOwner]

the wha? the model T had a driveshaft tunnel. my AA does. god that thing is a beast! axle and tube weigh prolly 900 lbs of pure AMERICAN steel AND its a worm gear drive rearend.

i first learned of how a differential works from believe it or not but legos (actually the Technic side of legos)

[JanGeo]

How about the Torson differential . . . that was a major improvement. My BMW R100S has a swingarm with the shaft inside it to the rear end but it is not a differential. It does however use an offset from center pinion to drive the crown gear so it is sort of a worm drive. After I teflon empregnated the gears it became much easier to bump start in 1st gear where as before the rear wheel would lock up.

[GasSavers_JoeBob]

Originally Posted by VetteOwner

the wha? the model T had a driveshaft tunnel. my AA does. god that thing is a beast! axle and tube weigh prolly 900 lbs of pure AMERICAN steel AND its a worm gear drive rearend.

i first learned of how a differential works from believe it or not but legos (actually the Technic side of legos)

I think you are thinking about the torque tube, which was a tube which enclosed the driveshaft. IIRC, Model Ts, Model As, and a bunch of other older model cars used that. I was talking about that hump down the middle of the floor on RWD cars...that place where you don't want to sit when you have 5 or six people in a six-passenger car...

[VetteOwner]

Originally Posted by JoeBob

I think you are thinking about the torque tube, which was a tube which enclosed the driveshaft. IIRC, Model Ts, Model As, and a bunch of other older model cars used that. I was talking about that hump down the middle of the floor on RWD cars...that place where you don't want to sit when you have 5 or six people in a six-passenger car...

ahhh yea lol. yea that tube came about because cars were getting lower and faster (better handiling and lower due to better road imprevements. gotta remember T and A days roads were dirt and commonly got washed out/rutted. had to have high ground clearance and be rugged.

even up into the 50's roads were dirt (some still are)

[JanGeo]

That hump is still there for the exhaust pipe now even on front wheel drive cars.

[theholycow]

I think the hump is also structural to stiffen the floor.

[VetteOwner]

Originally Posted by theholycow

I think the hump is also structural to stiffen the floor.

yea part exhaust routing part structural (or could be structural and decided to route the exhaust there