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Posted by Clint Dixon [65.125.107.130] on Monday, January 03, 2011 at 12:43:55 :
In Reply to: Why is 2WD only rear wheel drive? posted by David Sherman [72.47.9.228] on Sunday, January 02, 2011 at 20:05:34 :
You want the drive axle where the weight is. Trucks are designed to carry weight (at least they were at one time). That weight is carried in the pickup box on the back, so that is where you want the driving axle.
Imagine carrying 2000 lbs around in the pickup box, while in two-wheel-drive, with the front axle as the only driving axle. Everytime you get to a slippery incline, like a dirt road, grassy hill, or even sand or gravel on pavement, you would loose traction. Front wheel drive on cars is a totally different story. That is where most of weight is in a car (at least modern cars) so front wheel drive works good.
You might justify the normal driving axle in a four-wheel-drive truck being the front because you could always shift into 4-wheel-drive when the front looses traction. That would be okay, but remember, when our trucks were made MOST trucks did not have four-wheel drive.
A two-wheel-drive truck with a load can get around better with the driving axle under the load. A four-wheel-drive truck with a load can get around better in two-wheel-drive with the driving axle under the load. It is only when either truck has no load that traction becomes an issue in two-wheel-drive. But this is not supposed to happen. Trucks were made to haul loads, not be driven to work or the 7-eleven empty everyday.
Junior
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