Conversion from RT 4wd to AWD???

BigTzElement · May 4, 2006

I have been thinking about this and the way I understand it would it be possible to remove the clutch pack and oil pumps in the rear differential and replace them with a "small drive shaft"???

Here is my thinking.......

The engine and trans are already turning the drive shaft all the way back to the rear diff. the only thing that keeps the rear wheels from being driven is the clutch pack that is hydralically actuated. When the drive shaft spins faster than the rear axles then the clutch pack locks up and the rear wheels become driven or a %age of driven depending on the lvl of engagement of the clutch pack. Now if that clutch pack was either locked all the time or one of the oil lines in the pump was blocked so the clutch pack thought that the front drive shaft was spinning faster than the E could be made into AWD instead of just RT 4WD.

I am not an engineer and not sure how possible this is but from what I have read about the RT 4WD system it seems like it could be "locked" up or removed and a solid drive shaft put in place of the clutch pack to make the E drive with all 4 wheels all the time.

I think PaulJ might be able to answer this question. So what do you all think?

paulj · May 4, 2006

It probably would be simpler to get a rear differential from some other car, such as a RAV4, and connect a custom length drive shaft to it. You would have to worry about matching gear ratios with the front differential.

Having done this, what do you end up with? Something like the 4H mode of an old conventional 4x4 (such as what I had on my 1988 Chevy S10 pickup). However, the instructions for that kind of system say it only supposed to be used in slippery conditions. On dry pavement you can get a condition called 'wind up'. When you turn a corner, the front wheels take a different track than the rear ones, so end up traveling slightly different distances, and spinning at different rates. This puts stress on the gearing and drive shafts that are trying to turn both sets of wheels at the same rate.

If you want to drive all the wheels all the time (i.e. AWD) you need some sort of clutch pack, central differential, or viscous coupling to absorb these rotational differences. Otherwise you have to make the system a part time 4wd.

paulj

MikeQBF · May 4, 2006

Not that simple, and an unlikely mod to the E. Just like you need a differential to resolve wheel speed differences on a single axle, you will need a differential to resolve wheel speed and overall axle speed differences between the front and back axles. On a hard surface with good traction, the vehicle will hop and shudder and possibly even break drivetrain bits as the wheels rotate at different speeds.

You never notice this when the RT 4WD is active because the clutch has determined there is slippage, and any "slack" in terms of wheel speed difference will be resolved by the slippage.

The reason it's an "unlikely mod" is that the transmission will have to feed the "center" differential, which would then feed the front and back axle differentials. Since the front diff is integrated into the transmission and the 4WD driveshaft is basically an extension off the transmission final drive, you have no opportunity to intercept between the transmission and front diff.

Creative thinking, but it's a no-go.

Dom.five · May 4, 2006

The easy way to to this is to get a Quarto!

Conversion from RT 4wd to AWD???

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