All Wheel Drive Technologies

Today’s SUVs, sedans and sports coupes are embracing all-wheel drive to improve vehicle handling and, in some cases, make better use of high torque/high horsepower powerplants. Don’t confuse all-wheel drive with four-wheel drive. Although some components are shared between the technologies, all-wheel drive utilizes advanced software and controls to precisely control torque vectoring and aid in the stability of the vehicle. Repairing these vehicles requires not only an understanding of the hardware, but also electronics and control strategies.

Topics in the course include:

• Differences between AWD design vs. 4WD
• The role of software’s role in AWD operation
• Common AWD components and how they operate
• Proper diagnostic testing procedures Analysis of vibration issues