Take Some Time This Morning To Understand How A Differential Works
Earlier this year I, while I was giving rides in a C7 Corvette at a racetrack, I was asked if I could give a stunning young blonde a ride around the course. Naturally, I agreed, because every middle-aged man in a Corvette wants a girl who looks exactly like that one sitting next to him. Even if we’re both wearing helmets for the whole time. Imagine my surprise when it turned out that she was a BMW auto mechanic who knew quite a bit more about cars and engines and welding and whatnot than I did.
This video was on her FB page this morning. If you don’t understand how and why a differential does what it does, it will be of nontrivial assistance. You can skip forward to the three-minute mark if you just want the gritty details.
As for my friend — I’d like to tell you that she’s single and just waiting for some nice young man to win her heart by doing something totally romantic, but of course she’s dating some handsome young bastard. Them’s the breaks!
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I've always appreciated a woman who knows cars.
I kept waiting for something to explode or transform. Then I realized this was not a Micheal Bay General Motors film :) Great old film! I learned how differentials worked by building them out of LEGO. Same with pistons, crankshafts, steering racks and suspension. LEGO has several sets that make functional model cars in which these mechanical principals can be explored. I thought they even made a set with a simple 2 speed transmission.
Sweet! I just changed the fluid in my differential last weekend -may have been it's first change ever (RWD '74 Peugeot 504), now I know why. The arrangement on a FWD car is somewhat different no?
A similar video on how manual transmissions work can be found here: http://youtu.be/JOLtS4VUcvQ