March 31, 200719 yr i've been contemplating this for a while and the last concern i have is that my rear drive chain has a bit of slop in it, will this cause any issues? i have a second car so i have a "fall back" if it grenades but i had to ask.
March 31, 200719 yr RWD is great fun unless it snows and then you miss 4wd so bad. If you want RWD, fix the slop and have fun.
March 31, 200719 yr Is the slop in the differential or in the axles (inner cups)? If you drive like you would with RWD I would recommend fixing the slop before doing the conversion.
March 31, 200719 yr Author from what i can tell the slop is actually in the chain itself. total slop between transmission and the rear wheels i would guess to be 7 degrees.
March 31, 200719 yr When you said drive chain, I thought you ment drive train (commen to call a gearbox and diff a drive train here in Aus) BTW.. You don't have a chain.. It's purely gears.. Don't worry about that slop, it will always be there.
March 31, 200719 yr Author its gears? really? i was told that the rear power transfer was done via drive chain... cool! that makes me happy
March 31, 200719 yr its gears? really? i was told that the rear power transfer was done via drive chain... cool! that makes me happy Who told you that, a motorcycle mechanic? a bicycle mechanic? I've never heard of chain drive systems on automobiles... not modern ones at least
March 31, 200719 yr Some of the Toyota 4WD's (new ones maybe?) have chain driven transfer cases.. There is aftermarket support to convert them to the gear type as it is stronger or something... It's all in the 4WD selectors gears/sprokets, not in the drive gears them selves, that get the chain crud.
March 31, 200719 yr Now, would it be possible to change it to rear drive based somehow? I'm willing to bet not, but if it were possible, that would be pretty sweet.
March 31, 200719 yr I'm not 100%, but I'm 99% sure the pinion shaft that runs the front diff is the same shaft that holds the gears. Unlike the AWD and FT4WD boxes where they use a shaft through the middle of the gears shaft for the pinion (because it's AWD, it has to be able to stop share the load through the center diff, not be biased front wheel drive. I hope you understand. I'll have to draw a diagram of this (maybe even animated) one day so people can learn how their PT and FT gearboxes work.. Sorry, Zebisko, simple answer is no.
March 31, 200719 yr Yeah, I do understand, I just forgot to relate my knowledge on how manuals work with this question. Eh, oh well.
March 31, 200719 yr yep, the toyota tcases for Auto trannies are chain driven (like mine). and the jeep np231 and 241 are too. and I'm sure there are others.
March 31, 200719 yr I think it would be just as hard with an auto as well.. You either need another t-case with 8" lift or some of those disconnecting driveshafts you use in cars that get towed behind campers. Or you could go out and buy a different car.
March 31, 200719 yr huh? its not that difficult to convert it to mid engine, rear drive.. just, move it all back and have the engine immediately behind the drivers seat. Think CRX, with a firewall right behind the drivers seat like a fiero or MR2. The ENTIRE driveline is between the axles.. I mean, instead of rotating the engine, slide it back. You'd need to do something about a radiator, and in the end your transmission tailshaft is gonna be pointed the same direction as your taillights (and almost that far back) but it would work... I mean, I say "not that hard" with a HUGE grain of salt.. but you wouldnt have to spin the driveline around and make the crankshaft point towards the back like a volkswagen.. that was my point.
March 31, 200719 yr huh? its not that difficult to convert it to mid engine, rear drive.. just, move it all back and have the engine immediately behind the drivers seat. Think CRX, with a firewall right behind the drivers seat like a fiero or MR2. The ENTIRE driveline is between the axles.. I mean, instead of rotating the engine, slide it back. You'd need to do something about a radiator, and in the end your transmission tailshaft is gonna be pointed the same direction as your taillights (and almost that far back) but it would work... I mean, I say "not that hard" with a HUGE grain of salt.. but you wouldnt have to spin the driveline around and make the crankshaft point towards the back like a volkswagen.. that was my point. lol, we need an 'over the head' smiley. we're talking about pulling a front axle and putting it in 4WD for front engine RWD. in a subaru.
March 31, 200719 yr lol, we need an 'over the head' smiley. we're talking about pulling a front axle and putting it in 4WD for front engine RWD. in a subaru. Well, what exactly was meant by this post??? THIS was all I took to mean "rear ENGINE" Now, would it be possible to change it to rear drive based somehow? I'm willing to bet not, but if it were possible, that would be pretty sweet. I know all about making the 4wd into a RWD, thats a simple enough idea... I guess he meant a more standard type four wheel drive, with primary bias to the rear wheels, and a T-case driving the fronts when 4wd was engaged? I just have this mid engined CRX idea in mind and cannot shake it. It started with the idea of a twin engine'd soob.. two FWD drivelines, equals four wheel drive, right? I know, thats absurd.. BUT the whole mid engine'd soob powered CRX idea is one I cant shake from my head, since my brother has a gutted 88 CRX HF that weighs 1700 pounds.... can you say, turbocharged EA81? 120-150 hp in a 1700 pound car is like, 220-260HP in a 3000 pound car. like I said before, mid engine puts ALL the weight between the two axles, so it would be great weight distribution.. Heck, if you could make a rear based 4wd system that much better, but I guess the point was, you cant do that. Anyhow, I guess I got my misunderstanding.
March 31, 200719 yr lol, we need an 'over the head' smiley. we're talking about pulling a front axle and putting it in 4WD for front engine RWD. in a subaru. Exactly, its that simple! but how much modification does this guy want to do? all you really need is at least one "stub" axle for the front (its better with two) and part-time 4wd, or a center-diff in AWD.
March 31, 200719 yr Author wow, you guys are hilarious. all i wanted to know is whether or not i was going to do more harm then good, lol. as for the change to rwd, yeah, i've got a d/r drive line which sees more tarmac then dirt, the fastest way that i know of that will allow me to do both styles of events is to remove the front shafts...thats all fab work around here gets a little scary because VI's happen at a whim so there wont be any rear engine anything coming my way. thanks for the responses guys...
March 31, 200719 yr I think there has been rear drive train slop in every Subaru I've had, all 6. Most of it was in the rear diff.
April 1, 200719 yr wow, you guys are hilarious. all i wanted to know is whether or not i was going to do more harm then good, lol. Yes, it is weird how the topics wonder off sometimes, but it's good to see a good friendly chatty community then a "help only, chat deleted" attitude. I'm glad we sorted out your issue.. Now, go have fun!
April 1, 200719 yr Author i agree, sometimes when you read some of the threads you can picture the author actually say this in real conversation...
April 1, 200719 yr Yank axles, have fun. But watch the bushing that sits above the rear pinion- thos go out, and the driveshaft hits the underside of the car, making a really bad vibration. On my Hatch, it's been RWD since last February or so, I filled that bushing with RTV last November, and haven't had any problems since. It hasn't hurt the d/r 4speed at all, and I have been beating it. Side-stepping the clutch (in low range), at about 4k, get some wheel hop with bad shocks, but otherwise no problems so far. The diff has had some play to it, but that is to be expected- you need a bit of backlash to prevent the gears from chewing themselves up.
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