Assignment

To transfer the torque as evenly as possible from the engine (sprung weight) to the wheels (unsprung weight).

Function

In modern vehicles, flexion angles of up to 47° must be overcome. The engines develop a great amount of torque, which during acceleration has to transferred without vibrations and in front-wheel drive cars, without influencing the steering. Thereby, the drive shafts are lightweight, in utility vehicles they require little maintenance and in motor cars, they are maintenance free. Those joints which are connected to the wheels are always installed with a sealed permanent grease filling. Joints which transfer the movement at any flexion angle, without overfeed or lag, are known as CV-joints (Constant Velocity) or as homo-kinetic joints.

In the case of front-wheel drive with transverse engines, two different versions are found. Due to the fact that the gearbox is, as a rule, shorter than the engine, the final drive is shifted in it's direction, this leads to a shorter and a longer drive shaft. In strong engines this however, can have an influence on the steering, this can be avoided or reduced by lengthening the engine-side flange, thus having two shafts of the same length, or by having an electronic correction in the power steering. 05/12

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