The purpose of the ultimate drive gear assembly is to supply the final stage of gear reduction to diminish RPM and increase rotational torque. Typical final drive ratios can be between 3:1 and 4.5:1. It is due to this that the wheels never spin as fast as the engine (in almost all applications) even though the transmission is within an overdrive gear. The final drive assembly is linked to the differential. In FWD (front-wheel drive) applications, the final drive and Final wheel drive differential assembly are located inside the transmitting/transaxle case. In a typical RWD (rear-wheel drive) software with the engine and transmitting mounted in the front, the final drive and differential assembly sit down in the trunk of the vehicle and receive rotational torque from the tranny through a drive shaft. In RWD applications the final drive assembly receives input at a 90° position to the drive wheels. The final drive assembly must take into account this to drive the rear wheels. The objective of the differential is usually to allow one input to operate a vehicle 2 wheels and also allow those driven tires to rotate at different speeds as a vehicle encircles a corner.
A RWD last drive sits in the rear of the automobile, between the two rear wheels. It really is located in the housing which also may also enclose two axle shafts. Rotational torque is transferred to the ultimate drive through a drive shaft that runs between your transmission and the final drive. The final drive gears will consist of a pinion equipment and a ring equipment. The pinion equipment gets the rotational torque from the drive shaft and uses it to rotate the ring gear. The pinion gear is much smaller and includes a lower tooth count compared to the large ring equipment. Thus giving the driveline it’s final drive ratio.The driveshaft delivers rotational torque at a 90º angle to the path that the wheels must rotate. The final drive makes up for this with the way the pinion equipment drives the ring equipment in the housing. When setting up or setting up a final drive, how the pinion gear contacts the ring gear must be considered. Preferably the tooth get in touch with should happen in the exact centre of the band gears the teeth, at moderate to full load. (The gears force from eachother as load is certainly applied.) Many final drives are of a hypoid design, which implies that the pinion gear sits below the centreline of the ring gear. This enables manufacturers to lower the body of the automobile (because the drive shaft sits lower) to improve aerodynamics and lower the vehicles center of gravity. Hypoid pinion equipment the teeth are curved which causes a sliding actions as the pinion gear drives the ring equipment. It also causes multiple pinion gear teeth to be in contact with the ring gears teeth making the connection more powerful and quieter. The ring gear drives the differential, which drives the axles or axle shafts which are connected to the trunk wheels. (Differential procedure will be explained in the differential section of this content) Many final drives house the axle shafts, others use CV shafts just like a FWD driveline. Since a RWD final drive is exterior from the transmitting, it requires its oil for lubrication. That is typically plain equipment essential oil but many hypoid or LSD last drives need a special type of fluid. Make reference to the program manual for viscosity and other special requirements.

Note: If you are going to change your back diff liquid yourself, (or you plan on starting the diff up for services) before you let the fluid out, make certain the fill port can be opened. Nothing worse than letting liquid out and then having no way to getting new fluid back in.
FWD final drives are extremely simple compared to RWD set-ups. Virtually all FWD engines are transverse mounted, which implies that rotational torque is established parallel to the direction that the tires must rotate. There is no need to alter/pivot the path of rotation in the final drive. The final drive pinion equipment will sit on the end of the result shaft. (multiple output shafts and pinion gears are possible) The pinion gear(s) will mesh with the ultimate drive ring equipment. In almost all instances the pinion and band gear will have helical cut teeth just like the rest of the tranny/transaxle. The pinion equipment will be smaller sized and have a lower tooth count compared to the ring gear. This produces the final drive ratio. The band gear will drive the differential. (Differential operation will be explained in the differential portion of this content) Rotational torque is sent to the front tires through CV shafts. (CV shafts are commonly referred to as axles)
An open differential is the most common type of differential within passenger vehicles today. It is a simple (cheap) style that uses 4 gears (sometimes 6), that are known as spider gears, to operate a vehicle the axle shafts but also permit them to rotate at different speeds if necessary. “Spider gears” is usually a slang term that’s commonly used to describe all of the differential gears. There are two various kinds of spider gears, the differential pinion gears and the axle side gears. The differential case (not casing) receives rotational torque through the band gear and uses it to operate a vehicle the differential pin. The differential pinion gears trip upon this pin and are driven because of it. Rotational torpue is usually then used in the axle side gears and out through the CV shafts/axle shafts to the wheels. If the vehicle is traveling in a directly line, there is absolutely no differential action and the differential pinion gears will simply drive the axle part gears. If the automobile enters a switch, the outer wheel must rotate faster compared to the inside wheel. The differential pinion gears will start to rotate as they drive the axle part gears, allowing the outer wheel to increase and the within wheel to decelerate. This design is effective provided that both of the powered wheels have got traction. If one wheel doesn’t have enough traction, rotational torque will follow the road of least level of resistance and the wheel with little traction will spin as the wheel with traction won’t rotate at all. Because the wheel with traction is not rotating, the automobile cannot move.
Limited-slip differentials limit the amount of differential action allowed. If one wheel begins spinning excessively faster than the other (way more than durring regular cornering), an LSD will limit the speed difference. This is an benefit over a normal open differential style. If one drive wheel looses traction, the LSD actions will allow the wheel with traction to get rotational torque and invite the vehicle to move. There are many different designs currently in use today. Some are better than others based on the application.
Clutch style LSDs are based on a open up differential design. They possess another clutch pack on each of the axle side gears or axle shafts within the final drive housing. Clutch discs sit between your axle shafts’ splines and the differential case. Half of the discs are splined to the axle shaft and the others are splined to the differential case. Friction materials is used to separate the clutch discs. Springs put pressure on the axle part gears which put strain on the clutch. If an axle shaft wants to spin quicker or slower than the differential case, it must conquer the clutch to do so. If one axle shaft tries to rotate quicker compared to the differential case then your other will try to rotate slower. Both clutches will resist this action. As the velocity difference increases, it becomes harder to get over the clutches. When the automobile is making a good turn at low acceleration (parking), the clutches provide little level of resistance. When one drive wheel looses traction and all the torque goes to that wheel, the clutches resistance becomes much more obvious and the wheel with traction will rotate at (close to) the swiftness of the differential case. This type of differential will most likely require a special type of liquid or some form of additive. If the fluid is not changed at the correct intervals, the clutches can become less effective. Resulting in little to no LSD actions. Fluid change intervals vary between applications. There can be nothing incorrect with this design, but remember that they are only as strong as an ordinary open differential.
Solid/spool differentials are mostly used in drag racing. Solid differentials, just like the name implies, are completely solid and will not allow any difference in drive wheel rate. The drive wheels constantly rotate at the same quickness, even in a change. This is not a concern on a drag competition vehicle as drag automobiles are driving in a straight line 99% of the time. This may also be an edge for vehicles that are being set-up for drifting. A welded differential is a regular open differential which has acquired the spider gears welded to create a solid differential. Solid differentials certainly are a fine modification for vehicles made for track use. For street use, a LSD option will be advisable over a good differential. Every change a vehicle takes may cause the axles to wind-up and tire slippage. This is most noticeable when driving through a gradual turn (parking). The result is accelerated tire wear and also premature axle failing. One big benefit of the solid differential over the other types is its power. Since torque is applied directly to each axle, there is absolutely no spider gears, which are the weak point of open differentials.