The Key Components of Your 4X4

There are many components to any vehicle and they all are certainly important in their own way. That being said, there are some other parts you want to be paying particular attention to when it comes to your 4 by 4. Below we share these parts and why they are key.

Differentials

The first part that’s important is the differentials. Every car out there will always have two differentials. One of them is between the two front wheels while the other is between the two back wheels. What the differentials do is they send torque from the driveshaft or the transmission and send it to the wheels. They are also key when turning as this is the part that allows your wheels to spin at a different speed when you are turning in either direction. As you well know the inside wheel will need to turn less than the outside wheel. To compensate for that, all four wheels are driving at a different speeds in order to turn.

There are many different types of differentials out there and the big differences between them is really how well the vehicle is able to use traction.

Transfer Case

What this device is all about is that it splits power between front and rear axels while using a four-wheel-drive car.

Going back to the example of driving around a corner: the differentials will be the ones that handle the difference in speed on the outside and inside wheels. Where the transfer case comes in for all-wheel-drive systems is that it has a device inside that allows that difference in speed between the front wheels and the ones in the back. In short, this device allows all-wheel-drive vehicles to function properly on any surface they like.

When it comes to part-time four-wheel-drive vehicles, it actually works differently. It locks the driveshaft to the rear-axle driveshaft. This forces the wheels to spin at the same speed regardless of you turning or not. These systems cause the tires to slip when going around turns. Systems like these should only be used when you are facing low traction as it makes it easy for tires to slip. If you are driving on dry concrete, using that system can cause jerky turns and cause extra wear the driver train as well as the tires.

Custom Exhaust

There is nothing wrong with the original exhaust system of course, but there is nothing wrong with customizing your own. Generally speaking if you are putting the exhaust through fewer pipes, mufflers, tube bends and more, the less back-pressure you’ll have. This causes your truck to have more power per pound of fuel you use. Typically you see this sort of work at destruction derbies where vehicles have exhaust pipes poking from the hood of the vehicle.

Furthermore by having your own custom exhaust you can boost the overall efficiency of it which only makes the engine work more efficiently.

Suspension

Suspension is the last component that is important to any truck. In short, the suspension system is responsible for keeping your car in check. It maximizes friction that’s between the tires and the road and provides steering stability along with handling. It also provides comfort to others in the car as it limits impacts you may experience on the road or from certain conditions.