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In a motor vehicle, the powertrain comprises the main components that generate power and deliver that power to the road surface, water, or air. This includes the engine, transmission, drive shafts, differentials, and the final drive (drive wheels, continuous track as in military tanks or caterpillar tractors, propeller, etc.). Hybrid powertrains also include one or more electric traction motors that operate to drive the vehicle wheels. All-electric vehicles ("electric cars") eliminate the engine altogether, relying solely on electric motors for propulsion. Occasionally the term powerplant is casually used to refer to the engine or, less often, the entire powertrain.
A motor vehicle's driveline or drivetrain consists of the parts of the powertrain excluding the engine. It is the portion of a vehicle, after the prime mover, that changes depending on whether a vehicle is front-wheel, rear-wheel, or four-wheel drive, or less-common six-wheel or eight-wheel drive.
In a wider sense, the powertrain includes all of the components used to transform stored (chemical, solar, nuclear, kinetic, potential, etc.) energy into kinetic energy for propulsion purposes. This includes the utilization of multiple power-sources and non–wheel-based vehicles.
The most recent developments in powertrain are driven by the electrification of it in multiple components. Electrical energy needs to be provided, usually this leads to larger batteries. Electric motors can be found as isolated component or as part of other elements, e.g. the axle. In hybrid powertrains the torque generated by the combustion engine and the electric motor have to be brought together and distributed to the wheels. The control of this process can be quite involved but the rewards are greatly improved acceleration and much lower emissions.
Powertrain development for diesel engines involves the following: exhaust gas recirculation (EGR), and advanced combustion. Spark ignition engine development include: fuel injection, including the gasoline direct injection variant, as well as improving volumetric efficiency by using multi-valves per cylinder, variable valve timing, variable length intake manifolds, and turbocharging. Changes also include new fuel qualities (no sulphur or aromates) to allow new combustion concepts. So-called "combined combustion systems" (CCV) or "diesotto" cycles are based on synthetic fuels (synthetic diesel, biomass to liquid (BTL) or gas to liquid (GTL)). [1]
BEVs, FCEVs and PHEV powertrains are expected to reach cost parity with ICE powertrains in 2025. [2]
The manufacturing of powertrain components and systems is important to industry, including the automotive and other vehicle sectors. Competitiveness drives companies to engineer and produce powertrain systems that over time are more economical to manufacture, higher in product quality and reliability, higher in performance, more fuel efficient, less polluting, and longer in life expectancy. In turn these requirements have led to designs involving higher internal pressures, greater instantaneous forces, and increased complexity of design and mechanical operation. The resulting designs in turn impose significantly more severe requirements on parts shape and dimension; and material surface flatness, waviness, roughness, and porosity. Quality control over these parameters is achieved through metrology technology applied to all of the steps in powertrain manufacturing processes.
In automotive manufacturing, the frame plus the "running gear" makes the chassis.
Later, a body (sometimes referred to as "coachwork"), which is usually not necessary for integrity of the structure, is built on the chassis to complete the vehicle. Commercial vehicle manufacturers may have "chassis only" and "cowl and chassis" versions that can be outfitted with specialized bodies. These include buses, motor homes, fire engines, ambulances, etc.
The frame plus the body makes a glider (a vehicle without a powertrain).
The final drive is the last in the set of components which delivers torque to the drive wheels. In a road vehicle, it incorporates the differential. In a railway vehicle, it sometimes incorporates the reversing gear. Examples include the Self-Changing Gears RF 28 (used in many first-generation diesel multiple units of British Railways) [3] and RF 11 used in the British Rail Class 03 and British Rail Class 04 diesel shunting locomotives.
This section uses infographics to show a unified model with variations, the green wheels denote no traction, and the angled wheels denote steering.
6X4 means 6 wheel ends and 4 positions distribute power (power divider installed)
6X2 means 6 wheel ends and 2 positions distribute power (single axle drive)
4X0 means 4 wheel ends no power (Trailer axle)
4x2 means 4 Wheel ends, 2 Positions to distribute power
The 6 wheel ends can either be wide base singles or duals. Its about the outside of the wheels.
Code | Description | Use | Graphic |
---|---|---|---|
RWD | Rear Wheel Drive | Small Van | |
4WD | Four Wheel Drive AKA 4x4 | Pick Up Truck | |
FWD | Front Wheel Drive | Van, Where Weight is desired over front wheels | |
DWD | Dual Wheel Drive (Dually) | Extra load Capacity is required to a 4WD | |
6X4 | A 6×4 or six-by-four is a vehicle with three axles, with a drivetrain delivering power to two wheel ends on two of them. It is a form of four-wheel drive but not one of all-wheel drive. | Classic Truck | |
6x6 | 6X6, a standard class of medium-duty trucks | Classic Mil spec | |
6X2 - Rear Lift | In its purest form, a 6x2 chassis configuration is a three-axle tractor with power going to just one of the tandem rear axles. Put another way, only two of the six wheel positions are powered. | Where Trucks need a shorter turn radius and at times don't need the extra axle to improve fuel consumption (the rear wheels can be lifted off the ground when not needed) | |
6x2 Mid Lift | three-axle tractor with power going to just one of the tandem rear axles. | The middle axle is able to be lifted, typical use is where max weight is given to cargo (such as fuel tankers), sometimes the middle axle as smaller wheels and tyres | |
8X4 | 8X4 means that the Truck has four axles, two of which are driving axles. | Typical use is a Tipper Truck, which has on and off-road requirements. | |
8X8 | Eight-wheel drive, often notated as 8WD or 8×8, is a drivetrain configuration that allows all eight wheels of an eight-wheeled vehicle to be drive wheels (that is, to receive power from the engine) simultaneously. | Military or extremely high-load and off-road capability is required. | |
6x6 | Six-wheel drive (6WD or 6×6) is an all-wheel drive drivetrain configuration of three axles with at least two wheels on each axle capable of being driven simultaneously by the vehicle's engine. | Typical Small to medium Mining Truck or Military use. | |
Half-Track | A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels at the front for steering and continuous tracks at the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cross-country capabilities of a tank and the handling of a wheeled vehicle. | Typical WW2 era not main streamed produced today. | |
Tracked | Continuous track or tracked treads are a system of vehicle propulsion used in tracked vehicles, running on a continuous band of treads or track plates driven by two or more wheels. The large surface area of the tracks distributes the weight of the vehicle better than steel or rubber tyres on an equivalent vehicle, enabling continuous tracked vehicles to traverse soft ground with less likelihood of becoming stuck due to sinking. | Tractors, Tanks, Excavators, and Dozers. | |
Electric | An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery (sometimes charged by solar panels, or by converting fuel to electricity using fuel cells or a generator). EVs include but are not limited to road and rail vehicles, and broadly can also include electric boat and underwater vessels (submersibles, and technically also diesel- and turbo-electric submarines), electric aircraft and electric spacecraft. | In this power train the EV is powered by a large onboard engine, and has the typical application of very heavy-duty mining truck. |
A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the use of these self-propelled vehicles is increasingly common for passenger trains, but rare for freight trains.
A hybrid vehicle is one that uses two or more distinct types of power, such as submarines that use diesel when surfaced and batteries when submerged. Other means to store energy include pressurized fluid in hydraulic hybrids.
A four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 or 4WD, is a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case providing an additional output drive shaft and, in many instances, additional gear ranges.
A diesel–electric transmission, or diesel–electric powertrain, is a transmission system for vehicles powered by diesel engines in road, rail, and marine transport. Diesel–electric transmission is based on petrol–electric transmission, a transmission system used for petrol engines.
A dynamometer or "dyno" for short, is a device for simultaneously measuring the torque and rotational speed (RPM) of an engine, motor or other rotating prime mover so that its instantaneous power may be calculated, and usually displayed by the dynamometer itself as kW or bhp.
A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft, propeller shaft, or Cardan shaft is a component for transmitting mechanical power, torque, and rotation, usually used to connect other components of a drivetrain that cannot be connected directly because of distance or the need to allow for relative movement between them.
Global Hybrid Cooperation, formerly Advanced Hybrid System 2 (AHS2), is a set of hybrid vehicle technologies jointly developed by General Motors, Daimler, and Chrysler LLC, with BMW joining in 2005. It uses 2 or 3 planetary gearsets in an automatic transmission: one on the internal combustion engine (ICE) side paired with a second, forming the compound split, and possibly one third additional planetary gearset to multiply the number of fixed gear ratios. General Motors has stopped using the "AHS2" name as of 2006, preferring to call it simply a two-mode hybrid system.
Hybrid Synergy Drive (HSD), also known as Toyota Hybrid System II, is the brand name of Toyota Motor Corporation for the hybrid car drive train technology used in vehicles with the Toyota and Lexus marques. First introduced on the Prius, the technology is an option on several other Toyota and Lexus vehicles and has been adapted for the electric drive system of the hydrogen-powered Mirai, and for a plug-in hybrid version of the Prius. Previously, Toyota also licensed its HSD technology to Nissan for use in its Nissan Altima Hybrid. Its parts supplier Aisin offers similar hybrid transmissions to other car companies.
Hybrid vehicle drivetrains transmit power to the driving wheels for hybrid vehicles. A hybrid vehicle has multiple forms of motive power.
The powertrain layout of a motorised vehicle such as a car is often defined by the location of the engine or motors and the drive wheels.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to automobiles:
In automotive design, an F4, or front-engine, four-wheel drive (4WD) layout places the internal combustion engine at the front of the vehicle and drives all four roadwheels. This layout is typically chosen for better control on many surfaces, and is an important part of rally racing, as well as off-road driving. In terms of racing purposes, whether it be on-road or off-road, can be described as follows,
A team that pursues the Weak LS4WD architecture will minimize the development cost of the front-wheel drive system at the expense of having a larger rear powertrain. The Weak architecture produces a vehicle with a large powersplit between the front and rear powertrains, while the Strong architecture recommends a vehicle with more similar power and torque requirements for the front and rear.
Audi hybrid vehicles are hybrid electric vehicles created by the German carmaker, Audi. Some vehicles listed were concept vehicles, which utilised an internal combustion engine and an electric motor, and were used for research and development (R&D) for potential future use of the technology into possible series production. Audi launched its first hybrid concept car in 1989 called the Audi Duo, and was the first European company to sell a hybrid in 1997, though only in very small numbers.
The Jaguar C-X75 is a hybrid-electric, 2-seat, concept car produced by British automobile manufacturer Jaguar Cars in partnership with the derivative of the Formula One team, Williams Advanced Engineering, which debuted at the 2010 Paris Motor Show. The powertrain of the C-X75 concept is rated at 778 hp through four YASA electric motors, each of which drives one of the four wheels. The batteries driving these motors are recharged using two diesel-fed micro gas turbines instead of a conventional four-stroke engine. It was described as a design study that would influence future design and technology.
A drivetrain or Transmission System, is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components of a motor vehicle that deliver power to the drive wheels. This excludes the engine or motor that generates the power. In marine applications, the drive shaft will drive a propeller, thruster, or waterjet rather than a drive axle, while the actual engine might be similar to an automotive engine. Other machinery, equipment and vehicles may also use a drivetrain to deliver power from the engine(s) to the driven components.
The Subaru Hybrid Tourer is a hybrid concept sport utility/grand touring vehicle designed and built by Subaru, unveiled at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. The Hybrid Tourer included several signature Subaru design features, such as the use of a horizontally-opposed engine and all-wheel drive, and built on prior Subaru hybrid concepts such as the B9SC and B5-TPH by using a two-motor layout. The Hybrid Tourer was succeeded by the 2011 Advanced Tourer concept and the 2013-15 VIZIV diesel hybrid concept series.
The Techrules Ren is a single-door, high-performance sports car manufactured by Techrules, and designed by Fabrizio Giugiaro and Giorgetto Giugiaro of GFG Style. At its launch, it will become the first sports car to contain a turbine engine. This is also the first production sports car from Techrules. Expectations for the vehicle's construction are 10 (hand-built) per year.
A platform chassis is a form of vehicle frame / automobile chassis, constructed as a flat plate or platform, sometimes integrating a backbone or frame-structure with a vehicle's floor-pan.
An internal combustion locomotive is a type of railway locomotive that produces its pulling power using an internal combustion engine. These locomotives are fuelled by burning fossil fuels, most commonly oil or gasoline, to produce rotational power which is transmitted to the locomotive's driving wheels by various direct or indirect transmission mechanisms. The fuel is carried on the locomotive.
This glossary of automotive terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts related to automobiles, including their parts, operation, and manufacture, as well as automotive engineering, auto repair, and the automotive industry in general. For more specific terminology regarding the design and classification of various automobile styles, see Glossary of automotive design; for terms related to transportation by road, see Glossary of road transport terms; for competitive auto racing, see Glossary of motorsport terms.