Is there a difference in reliability between rear-wheel drive and front-wheel drive?
because FWD trannies are literally folded up, and smooshed to fit in the engine bay. RWD trannies are oriented the other way and sit below the vehicle, so they're less complex, and easier to take in and out.
Scotty is right again. RWD (2WD) is cheaper to make and cheaper to buy because of fewer parts. It would therefore be more reliable too because there are fewer things to maintain and repair. Simpler.
You can drop a RWD trans in a short time whereas a FWD can be a nightmare. Often you may have to pull the entire engine and transaxle out to change one. Switching out a RWD trans is a relative simple job plus they are generally a lot cheaper and you don't have to disturb the engine compartment.
All I have ever worked on myself was FWD, so it wasn’t s interesting to learn about why rear wheel drive is simpler.
I always thought FWD would be simpler because everything is up at front. But at the same time, like you said, it is also crammed in pretty tight.
Having also done both FWD and RWD transmissions, R&R with front drive is definitely a heck of a lot more difficult. Although there are exceptions, with most rear drive cars it's just a matter of disconnecting the driveshaft at the trans end by unbolting the U-joint, undoing several bolts on the bell housing, disconnecting cooling lines on an automatic, and dropping the transmission. Front drive vehicles typically require a lot more disassembly to get there.
The thing is that you can not find many RWD these days. Most of new cars are either FWD or AWD.
The 1999 to 2003 TL models where notorious for transmission problems. I have a 2000 TL and the transmission had to get rebuilt 2 times. The 2005 TL did not have outstanding transmission problems. As far as what you want to do with the transmission it is completely up to you as the car can last a long time. Make sure you find a reputable transmission shop.
I guess the FWD trans-axles are harder to rebuild because they are more compact.
Not only are they compact. But they also are a pain to uninstall and reinstall. It can take 4-5 hours to drop a tranny from a FWD car. I can drop one from a RWD in about 45 mins.
Generally speaking, are FWD more reliability than RWD? Or are RWD more reliable than FWD?
The reason I ask is because I saw an old Scotty video where he says that RWD is more reliable, because it is simpler technology.
Kaizen, I really need you to search first please, before asking your "hmm I wonder" questions. Thanks.
I usually do a quick search in google, but then also like to hear directly from people that have experience. And this group seems the most knowledgable. More knowledgeable than any forum I’ve participated in ever.
Well, search the forum. The same exact question was already posted.
Funny, the forum usually comes up on Google. Usually but not always, as today.
Scotty says the classic rear wheel drive layout vehicles are more robust.
I wasn't going to, but now I feel I have to put in my 2 cents.
People, experts, and idiots have been arguing about this question for the last 60 years or more ! The bottom line, like it or not, is both have advantages and disadvantages !
One of the most frequently used illustrations of front-drive preference is in a high-speed turn. Front-drive vehicles "pull" a vehicle through the turn, rear-drive vehicles "push" the vehicle through the turn, Add inclement conditions, road conditions, dumb drivers, and the front-drive vehicle becomes most favored.
But the real reason is that front-drive vehicles are cheaper and easier to build! Front-drive became the mechanism of choice because of corporate greed, and nothing more !
Hey Scotty, I have a 2005 Acura TL FWD with 167k miles, 3.2 L V6 and a 5 speed automatic. This car is solid built and I’ve been keeping up with regular maintenance, but the transmission is starting to wear out and I can feel it when I put it in drive. I don’t know if it’s worth the $3-5k to rebuild the stupid thing! You’ve said before that RWD transmissions are easier to rebuild than FWD transmissions. Why is that?
So the simple answer is that they're more complicated; because of where they're located and the job they have to do and in a much smaller footprint.
Isn't FWD cheaper to make and less part to go wrong?
Cheaper to make but I don't know about having fewer parts. FWD is usually more difficult to work on when things do go wrong.
What makes FWD more difficult to work on than RWD?
ummmmmm everything is buried and squeezed together
Driving FWD versus RWD:
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/fwd-vs-rwd/
Driving AWD versus RWD:
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/awd-vs-fwd/
What's the logic in switching a vehicle model to rear wheel drive? (by Kaizen):
