Godfrey DiGiorgi wrote: > On Jul 22, 2006, at 8:33 AM, Adam Maas wrote: > > >>The co-location of steering and drive makes even the simplest FWD car >>more mechanically complex than a RWD car, even if both have fully >>independant suspensions. The CV joints and drive shafts are what drive >>up the cost of repair, sometimes by quite a lot. Also transaxles are >>more difficult to work on as they are more mechanically complex >>(Primarily due to co-locating the differential and transmission). > > > While I agree that the design is more complex, I disagree that it > drives up the cost of repair by any substantial amount. I say this > having had several years career as an automotive and motorcycle > mechanic. In some ways, it proves to be easier to work on combined > transaxle drive systems than on traditional separate component > systems, but that's really more a reflection of the quality of the > design than the type. > > Godfrey >
Two words. CV joints. That's where most of the added cost to maintaining a well-designed FWD system come in. Most RWD systems don't have a major component that wears anywhere near as quickly under normal use. -Adam -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
