That makes sense.� I've heard of torque steer but never experienced it to my knowledge, nor have I spent much time at the wheel of a Subaru to compare.
�
Stephen

--- On Thu, 9/3/09, Andrew Grebneff <goose1047@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Andrew Grebneff <goose1047@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Cool modified DOKA and BRM
To: "Stephen Grisanti" <bike2vcu@yahoo.com>
Cc: vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com
Date: Thursday, September 3, 2009, 6:20 PM

> Say what you will about Subaru engineering, they are no less subject to the need for marketing doublespeak; witness their Symmetrical All Wheel Drive.� What the heck�is that supposed to mean?� Are we to infer from that name that other manufacturers' systems are other-than-symmetrical and, if so, what difference does it make?

Most FWD cars have transverse engines. To simplify things they have a
normal engine with the drive taken off the end of the crankshaft; this
requires the gearbox to be beside the engine ie offset to one side;
hence the driveshafts are of unequal length. Subaru's boxwers being
inline, the crank is north-soputh and the trans lies centrally, hence
symmetrical driveshafts.

Of course transverse-engined cars are designed this way to shorten the
car too; if the trans was centered behind the engine and driven from a
midctrank gear or chain, the drivetrain becomes longer, necessitating
a bigger vehicle (just as front-engined vans are longer per unit of
cargobay floorlength).

-- 
Regards
Andrew Grebneff
Dunedin, New Zealand
Fossil preparator
Mollusc, Toyota & VW van fanatic