Ford Arrangement for Front-wheel Drive
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nEVELOPMENTS in front-wheel drive units are disclosed in patent No. 885,580. The chief feature is the arrangement, in which the main mass of the engine is positioned between the front wheels. This provides a compact layout and eliminates most of the stresses created by bending movements on the main vehicle structure. (Ford Motor Co., Ltd., 88 Regent Street, London, W. I.) The drawing shows the arrangement, comprising the engine (in chain lines), gearbox and final drive assembled as a unit. The drive is taken by transfer gearing to the gearbox (1), which is mounted on the side of the engine, and hence to the final drive unit. Two drive-shafts are used, a short one (2) and a longer one (3) to reach the Opposite wheel.
To locate the engine in the most favourable position relative to the front wheels it is necessary for the longer drive-shaft to pass .right through the crankcase. It runs through a tube (4) which is arranged to pass under one of the main crankshaft bearings. It is, in fact, within the sweep of the crankpins. It is stated in the patent specification that the engine shown is an eight-cylinder Vee unit but that the details of its construction form no direct part of the invention. It is also stated that the transfer gearing between engine and gearbox might, in its preferred form, be a chain drive. Low height is an important feature of the layout.