NCTTE - Automotive Department

AUT 324 - "Transmission and drive trains"

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1.

"meaning of drive train, definition, use and necessity", lecture

Power transmission has to take place between engine and driven wheels. The torque of the engine is
transmitted via clutch, transmission, drive shaft and differential to the wheels. Beside the effect of
changing torques also the r.p.m. is changed. Here a lack of power occurs due to friction and
transmission losses.
Different arrangements of power transmission are known. It has to be differentiated between front and
rear engine as well as front, rear and four-wheel drive.
Between engine and transmission the clutch is arranged as a detachable connection. The clutch
transmits the torque of the engine to the transmission. By detaching both from each other it allows to
shift gears as well as to start the engine with engaged gear. At the same time it protects the engine
from destruction due to mis-shifting (excessive r.p.m.).
Inside the transmission r.p.m. and torque are adjusted to the required driving condition. In addition to
this the transmission allows the sense of rotation to be reversed.
Those converted r.p.m. and torques are passed on to the wheels via the drive shaft (or propeller
shaft) with its universal joints.
Therefore we define DRIVE TRAIN as:
power transmitting parts of a car between the flywheel and the wheels.
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2.

overall view of the drive train - general arrangement, different

component parts with different duties (lecture and laboratory)