Fuel tanks

[Brett Dikeman]

At 11:54 PM +0100 2/15/02, Phil Payne wrote:

>  > not really.  more wheel drive means poorer fuel economy, so a bigger
>>  tank gets the same range.
>
>Not what Audi's tests actually showed, though.  The quattro models
>deliver VERY slightly better fuel economy than the 2WD models.
>
>There's an SAE paper somewhere on exactly why - to do with differing
>losses in tyre deformation.


I was under the impression that it was because frictional losses grew
with torque per wheel, in a non-linear fashion?  Then again, I'm
going into the ol' databanks -several- years and might have twisted
that.  Throw in the extra friction from the additional driveline
components, bearings, etc...that probably explains why its such a
slight gain.

My $5 says the wheels slip less when you punch it, so there's less
wasted energy! :-)

Brett
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