2016 rs - awd

[midcow3]

All the GNK transmission information to date said that only 70% of the torque could be directed to the rear wheels. A technical presentation was released 11-18-2015 that now states 100% of the available torque can go to the rear wheels.

Question : Can only 70% of torque go to rear wheels or full 100% ?


Here is the source video:
[video=youtube;-UIM95NiqhE]https://youtu.be/-UIM95NiqhE[/video]



YMMV,

MidCow3

 

[Cobra Jet 429]

Pretty sure its up to 70% to the rear, and from there the differential can push up to 100% of power from one side or the other. This is fwd based awd, I doubt it can do 100% to the rear.

 

[svtfocus2cobra]

Pretty sure its up to 70% to the rear, and from there the differential can push up to 100% of power from one side or the other. This is fwd based awd, I doubt it can do 100% to the rear.

What makes it fwd based awd? When I think of that I think Taurus awd and the RS system is new from the ground up. It's supposed to be a new ground up system that will underpin many more vehicles than just the RS. This system is very akin to the R32 to R34 with some distinct differences, but those were far from fwd based.

 

[rick021808]

Watch the video at around 12:25.
Basically it is very similar to a fwd car and it does have the front differential in the transmission and no center differential. But off the transmission is a power transfer unit that is always sending power to the rear axle. From the rear axle, there is just a ring and Pinon, it is not a open diff with spider gears and from there, there is 2 clutch packs that controls the power to each wheel.

Now when they say that 100% of the torque can be sent to the rear wheels. That does not mean that the front wheels don't have any power at all. That just means if there is zero traction on the front tires and only one rear tire has traction, the car will still move. The other tires may be spinning but all(100%) of the torque is going to the one tire.
When car manufacturers says there is a 30/70 torque split or whatever, even if it is a fixed torque split, that may not always be the case. That is just the split it will give you when you have traction on all 4 tires.
If you ever watch the awd roller tests on you tube. I think the focus rs would do very well. I think the only time it would struggle/fail is if both rear wheels and one front wheel was on rollers. Since the front diff is open, it would be dependent on how well the brake traction control (torque vectoring) works.
The way the awd system is set up, it is similar to a 4x4 with a rear diff lock traction wise. Many awd systems on small cars or crossovers , if the front wheels have zero traction, the awd system is not strong enough to move the car with only the rear wheels. This is not the case with the Focus RS.

 

[Cobra Jet 429]

It's fwd based due to it using a fwd trans with an extra output on the side of the trans going to the rear. Without the driveshaft going to the rear, it would be fwd. The motor sits sideways... It's fwd based.

 

[VRYALT3R3D]

The AWD system is based on the Escape's system.

 

[rick021808]

Whether it's fwd based or not, it can send 100% torque to one of the rear wheels. I've also just read that the gear ratio is different front and back, the rear ratio is slightly taller.....


The rear diff in this car is really great technology and maybe one day they can use this technology for both front and rear. With the awd system on this car, having a center differential is overrated and not needed. It just adds unnecessary weight to the car.


http://www.automobilemag.com/featur...-rs-gets-the-worlds-most-advanced-awd-system/


“The system for the Focus RS has additional torque capacity and has a gear ratio offset,” he said. The rear has a taller gear ratio than the front, which allows overspeeding the rear wheels, which, in turn, allows “true torque vectoring,” Kuczera said.

But the Focus RS does not have the Evoque’s decoupling driveshaft, Fritz said.

“It’s permanently attached. The front/rear ratio mismatch is unique to the*Focus RS*-- to get more torque to the rear. During normal operation or straight-line driving, the overspeed isn’t really doing anything. The clutches slip to take up the difference in the ratio mismatch. But during handling events, we try to vector or send torque to one rear wheel -- the outside rear wheel in a turn. We take advantage of the ratio mismatch to get more torque to the rear axle than without a ratio mismatch,” which Ford says is about 1.8 percent.

Avoid talking torque-split

Twinster can immediately send torque to the rear without spinning the front wheels.

“It has a pre-emptive torque control, just like a normal on-demand system,” Fritz said. “There is no center differential so we tend to avoid talking about torque splits, because it confuses people when they’re thinking about a differential. Our active, on-demand system can send up to 100 percent of the available torque to the rear axle. Once it hits the rear axle, it can send up to 100 percent of that torque to individual left or right sides. If you were [in a scenario where] the front wheels were losing traction, then 100 percent of the torque to drive the car is going to the rear axle.”

But the Ford press release says that only 70 percent of torque can go to the rear axle

“That’s a bit misleading,” Fritz said. “It’s potentially 50 to 70 percent, but in other scenarios where you have no traction with the front wheels, then it’s 100 percent to the rear wheels. I’ve tried to clarify that, but it gets confusing.”

 

[B_Pay]

Watch the video at around 12:25.
Basically it is very similar to a fwd car and it does have the front differential in the transmission and no center differential. But off the transmission is a power transfer unit that is always sending power to the rear axle. From the rear axle, there is just a ring and Pinon, it is not a open diff with spider gears and from there, there is 2 clutch packs that controls the power to each wheel.

Now when they say that 100% of the torque can be sent to the rear wheels. That does not mean that the front wheels don't have any power at all. That just means if there is zero traction on the front tires and only one rear tire has traction, the car will still move. The other tires may be spinning but all(100%) of the torque is going to the one tire.
When car manufacturers says there is a 30/70 torque split or whatever, even if it is a fixed torque split, that may not always be the case. That is just the split it will give you when you have traction on all 4 tires.
If you ever watch the awd roller tests on you tube. I think the focus rs would do very well. I think the only time it would struggle/fail is if both rear wheels and one front wheel was on rollers. Since the front diff is open, it would be dependent on how well the brake traction control (torque vectoring) works.
The way the awd system is set up, it is similar to a 4x4 with a rear diff lock traction wise. Many awd systems on small cars or crossovers , if the front wheels have zero traction, the awd system is not strong enough to move the car with only the rear wheels. This is not the case with the Focus RS.

So under normal condition with traction to all 4 tires is the RS set up for 30/70? I'm hoping that is the case.

 

[rick021808]

Under normal conditions in normal mode. It is fwd and only awd on demand I believe but in the sport mode and track mode and that, I believe it will send power to the back in all conditions and can send up to 70% of the power to the rear. If the front wheels have zero traction then it should be able to send 100% of the torque to the rear wheels though.

 

[B_Pay]

Under normal conditions in normal mode. It is fwd and only awd on demand I believe but in the sport mode and track mode and that, I believe it will send power to the back in all conditions and can send up to 70% of the power to the rear. If the front wheels have zero traction then it should be able to send 100% of the torque to the rear wheels though.

that sux. Hopefully its a 50/50 or better when in sport and track mode.

 

[rick021808]

Well with the different gear ratio in the rear is how I think they get up to 70% in the rear. When the clutches lock up in the rear diff, the rear tires will spin faster than the front and it will push the rear of the car more.

With other awds like a Subaru, the center diff has slippage and can send power to the front or rear. I think with the Focus RS, it is like a fwd but there is fixed power sent to the rear diff and the 2 clutches on the rear diff output is where the slippage is. I wish this car had an actual center diff that can send more power to the rear but I think the way the rear diff is designed, it will still perform very well.