- First Name
- Rick
- Joined
- Sep 9, 2020
- Threads
- 1
- Messages
- 351
- Reaction score
- 953
- Location
- Rochester, NY
- Vehicle(s)
- 2013 F150 STX 5.0L, 1999 Mustang Cobra
- Your Bronco Model
- Badlands
Very few vehicles use a center differential anymore. Its disappointing, because it was big part of our sales. But that market is shrinking, especially as more electrification occurs. But even that aside, the US automakers were never big users of center diffs. Sure, the old V8 Explorers had one, as did AWD Aerostars and Astro vans. But I don't think there have been genuine center diffs used in this country in over a decade. The last one might have been the old Trailblazer SS. Overseas, manufacturers like Audi and Toyota (4runner as noted) still do have them. But I'd imagine that their days are limited too.
Ford much prefers transfer cases with on-demand electromagnetic clutches, and everything I read about the Bronco 4A sounds consistent with that. It always drives the rear, and sends torque to the front across the clutch when the system perceives a need to do so. So, in that way, they can claim that its continuous variable. Even if you are always connected to the rear, if the t-case sends to torque to the front when the rear slips, then the front got 100% of the useful torque. Though to truly have 100% of torque on the front, you'd have to disconnect the rear. Its just a matter of semantics, and what is happening at any given point in time.
Ford has been using variations of this design since Control-Track 2 was introduced on the '95 Explorer. It has, presumably, gotten more sophisticated and refined over the last 25 years. And that is basically what Raptor has as well. Systems like this are a lot more predictive and preemptive then what Explorer touted back then, so they are a lot more seemless in operation now. I'd expect Bronco's system to be the same way.
Ford much prefers transfer cases with on-demand electromagnetic clutches, and everything I read about the Bronco 4A sounds consistent with that. It always drives the rear, and sends torque to the front across the clutch when the system perceives a need to do so. So, in that way, they can claim that its continuous variable. Even if you are always connected to the rear, if the t-case sends to torque to the front when the rear slips, then the front got 100% of the useful torque. Though to truly have 100% of torque on the front, you'd have to disconnect the rear. Its just a matter of semantics, and what is happening at any given point in time.
Ford has been using variations of this design since Control-Track 2 was introduced on the '95 Explorer. It has, presumably, gotten more sophisticated and refined over the last 25 years. And that is basically what Raptor has as well. Systems like this are a lot more predictive and preemptive then what Explorer touted back then, so they are a lot more seemless in operation now. I'd expect Bronco's system to be the same way.
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