Cars, Trucks & Automotive

As early as 1895, the Austrian automobile manufacturer Graf & Stift has been experimenting with a front-wheel drive (FWD) layout. The company successfully mounted a one-cylinder De Dion-Bouton engine on a small car that powered its front axle. However, no other copies of the world’s first front-wheel drive car were made.

By the 1920s, several other manufacturers began turning out their own versions of FWDs. Although some of them went as far as competing in races, it was not until 1929 that the first commercially successful FWD was offered –the BSA (Birmingham Small Arms) three-wheeler. Two years later, the Dampf-Kraft-Wagen F1 and Stoewer, both from Germany, were introduced. Other German cars followed in 1932 and 1933, the Adler and Audi respectively. The most successful, however, came from France in 1934, the Citroen Traction Avant. The United States had to wait until the late 1930s to come up with the Cord 810.

FWDs continued to be produced after the Second World War by manufacturers as Citroen, Saab, Alfa-Romeo, Peugeot, Renault, and the British Motor Corporation with its iconic Austin Mini. However, up until the 1970s, it was the rear-wheel drives (RWD) that dominated the scene.

The oil crisis of the early 70s which saw gas prices soaring through the roof forced automobile companies to reevaluate their production. At that time, the most popular cars were the huge V8s with their thick heavy bodies which made them guzzle up gas like a thirsty camel. There was a need to drastically cut the fuel consumption of cars, and the answer was a design that has been around since 1895 –the FWD.

The design allowed the reduction of the size and weight of the automobile, and thus increased fuel efficiency. With a traverse engine instead of the longitudinal of the RWDs, the engine compartment was substantially reduced. Also, because both engine and transaxle are in front, the driveshaft extending from the transmission in front to the differential at the rear is eliminated. The result is that the hump inside the passenger shell is likewise eliminated giving more room for passengers in spite of the reduced package.

With the FWD design, the vehicle’s weight is distributed at 60% at the front and 40% at the back. This weighs down the driving wheels so that when accelerating in slippery conditions, the possibility of slipping is minimized.

Today, there are now more FWDs running on the roads compared to the RWDs. The reason is that in addition to saving on fuel costs, people are now also becoming more aware of the damage caused by the burning of fossil fuels.