phantom grip diffs

[treed2 at u.washington.edu (T. Reed)]

Since I'm bound to get in trouble if I try to explain this in my own
words, I will instead quote http://www.torsen.com/general/general_faq.htm:

--
Okay, so tell me how the Torsen differential works in non-technical
jargon!

This, by far, is the most commonly asked question. The Torsen differential
is simply a torque multiplier that works through the use of friction
generated by thrust forces from the internal gearing. It multiplies what
torque is available from the wheel that is starting to spin-up or lose
traction and sends that available torque, multiplied by the TBR, to the
slower turning wheel with the better traction.

What happens when I have a wheel in the air?

As mentioned above, the Torsen differential is a torque multiplier. The
Torsen requires some type of resistance or friction in the system to
function properly. A wheel in the air provides zero torque or friction on
the system and as the Torsen multiplies the available torque, zero, by its
TBR, the end result is still zero. In response to this, we developed the
Torsen T- 2R with pre-load to combat those wheel in the air situations.
--


So, by stepping on the brakes you are simply pre-loading the spinning
wheel as described above. Cool eh?

-Toby

On Tue, 20 May 2003, Drew Teague wrote:

> On what principle does this method work?
>
> **Drew Teague**
> Harrisburg, PA
>
> '84 8v Rocco --  "Bruise"
> '85 BMW 318i
>
>
> >From: "L F" <rocco16v@netzero.net>
> >To: "Scott F. Williams" <sfwilliams@comcast.net>,"T. Reed"
> ><treed2@u.washington.edu>, <scirocco-l@scirocco.org>
> >Subject: Re: phantom grip diffs
> >Date: Mon, 19 May 2003 17:39:52 -0700
> >
> >Scott-
> >   I know this method works in certain situations. (I discovered it when I
> >lived in Michigan and drove an open-differential truck for six winters)
> >  What I was questioning was its effectiveness while cornering with one
> >front wheel in the air!!  This is the situation originally
> >described.....has anyone ever used this techique in this circumstance?
> >Larry
> >   ----- Original Message -----
> >   From: Scott F. Williams
> >   To: L F ; T. Reed ; scirocco-l@scirocco.org
> >   Sent: Monday, May 19, 2003 11:13 AM
> >   Subject: RE: phantom grip diffs
> >
> >
> >   Larry, I can't speak for Toby, but dragging the brakes is exactly how I
> >got
> >   my rallycar to move when I snapped an axle/shredded a tire. It didn't
> >take
> >   much effort, but over a 23-mile transit stage back to service, it did
> >make
> >   my rotors glow a lil' bit. Fuel economy was rather sucky, too. :^)
> >   --
> >   Scott F. Williams
> >   NJ Scirocco nut
> >   '99 Subaru Impreza 2.5 RS
> >   Mazda 323 GTX turbo "assaulted" vehicle
> >   Golf GTI 16v "rollycar"
> >   ClubVAC: "Roads found. Drivers wanted."
> >
> >   -----Original Message-----
> >   From: scirocco-l-bounces@scirocco.org
> >   [mailto:scirocco-l-bounces@scirocco.org]On Behalf Of L F
> >   Sent: Sunday, May 18, 2003 4:44 PM
> >   To: T. Reed; scirocco-l@scirocco.org
> >   Subject: Re: phantom grip diffs
> >
> >
> >   Toby-
> >     Have you actually tried this...?
> >
> >   Larry
> >     ----- Original Message -----
> >     From: T. Reed
> >     To: scirocco-l@scirocco.org
> >     Sent: Sunday, May 18, 2003 1:52 AM
> >     Subject: RE: phantom grip diffs
> >
> >
> >     A simpler solution to the quaife problem is just to apply slight brake
> >     pressure if you ever get one front wheel off the ground. That should
> >be
> >     enough to get torque transferred to the most-grippy wheel (ie. the one
> >     that is touching the ground) and get you moving again.
> >
> >     -Toby
> >
> >
> >
> >   _______________________________________________
> >   Scirocco-l mailing list
> >   Scirocco-l@scirocco.org
> >   http://neubayern.net/mailman/listinfo/scirocco-l
> >
> >_______________________________________________
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>
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