Sorry if this is a really question, but I did a search and didn't come up with anything, and I've been wondering...

When I bought my TL, one of the things I read about was how Acura countered torque steer through the use of a limited-slip differential. Since I live in an area where it snows in the Winter, the limited-slip differential was important to me for other reasons.

However, I'm hearing that the limited-slip differential only comes with the A-Spec package. Is this true? On my non-A-Spec TL, exactly how many drive wheels do I have?

 

The A Spec package does not give you limited slip. Only the 6MT has the limited slip. IMHO this was done not to counter the torque steer (many threads on this) but to reduce one wheel spinning on hard acceleration and improve power-on turning. Why not in the 5AT. don't know - likely a price issue.

 

Ditto on what Lakeman posted. LSD comes with the 6MT... and not part of the A-Spec package. Not available with the 5AT.

 

only the 6MT has it?....wow that sucks....that would definitely be the convincing feature to go with the 6MT. so much for deciding between that and the 5AT

 

Well like the above posts, LSD only comes with the manual tranny. The auto does not have as much torque steer (this is from my brief drive of the TL Auto and other people's opinion's on this site).

Also, ALL TL's only have two drive wheels, more specifically front wheel drive. The LSD does not transfer power to the rear wheels, it transfers power between the front two wheels to reduce wheel spin and help the vehicle stay on course without the usual understeer (plowing wide of the intended turn). Hope this helps answer your question.

I do not believe that LSD will provide as much usefulness (if any) in the snow, as much as a good set of snow tires.

 

Well,

That means that I only have one drive wheel on my 5AT. That sucks. I didn't know that.

Anyone know which wheel it is (Left or Right)? BTW, the usefullness in snow comes from the fact that with a LSD, if one wheel is on ice, while the other is on packed snow, you can still move. That's the beauty of AWD, as long as one wheel still has traction, you can get moving. With only one drive wheel, it's much easier to get "stuck" in the snow when starting out.

 

I think you misunderstood. Every TL (even yours) is two wheel drive. It driven by the front wheels. The LSD only controls how much power is given to each front wheel. Without the LSD you are still powering both wheels, but the car does not vary the amount of power to each wheel.

edit:
Here are a couple of threads about the LSD so that you can read up on it, in case that is useful to you.
http://www.acura-tl.com/forums/showt...&highlight=LSD

http://www.acura-tl.com/forums/showt...&highlight=LSD

 

I believe many people mistake the LSD for torque steer. If you follow posts on www.vtec.net, the site owner, Jeff Palmer (a very knowledgable and helpful guy), posted that reveiws (specifically Car and Drivers) unfairly pegged the TL as having too much torque steer (which really was the LSD helping the car stay more stable).

 

Oh, really? That's good news. I don't really care about LSD. I just wanted more than one drive wheel for winter driving. If what you're saying is true, then I'm still a happy camper.

Edit: I was just reading some of the threads to which PoochaKannInc linked, and it's as I originally feared. I have an open differential, which will allow for one wheel (on ice) to spin away while the other wheel (on packed snow) does nothing. A LSD prevents this by not allowing the second wheel to remain "dead," but forcing it to do SOMETHING, which results in getting the car moving. It doesn't help if my 2WD car allows only one wheel to turn if that one wheel is on ice. Unfortunately, I guess I'll just have to deal with it. It's been many, many years since I had a car without a LSD, so icy/snowy conditions were a little easier to cope with (keep in mind, this only comes into play when STARTING OUT... I'm not talking about once you're moving), so you can probably understand my concern, since it'll take me some getting used to this winter.

Another Edit: Okay, I read a little further, and now I'm thoroughly confused. What impact does traction control play in all of this? Do I even have TC? What exactly IS TC, and what does it do? (Sorry if I'm starting to "newb" out, but the more I look into this, the more confused I seem to get.)

 

Well said, guys.

Although 5AT doesn't have LSD, well, other safety features (at 5AT/6MT) could be supportive and practical. This car is running smoothly and easily to control in the winter, especially with the good tires.

Acura says:

EBD (Electronic Brake Force Distribution): constantly and routinely adjusts the pressure distribution between the front and rear brakes depending on how the vehicle is loaded.



3-channel ABS: works in conjunction with VSA System. Utilizing speed sensors located at each wheel the system modulates braking power to the front wheels independently and to the rear wheels in tandem-enhancing driver control during maximum-effort stops. "3 channels" means 1 to front right wheel, 1 to front left one and 1 to rear ones. This is different to "4-channel" VSA.



4-channel VSA with traction control (TCS): helps the driver retain control of the car in the event the vehicle reaches its dynamic traction limits, for example through aggressive cornering, encountering ice or dirt on the road, or entering a decreasing-radius corner too fast.

The 4-channel system controls all four brakes independently.

VSA will monitor each of the wheels and a computer-controlled modulation of engine power and front brakes to help prevent wheel spin when starting out or accelerating. If the sensors detect wheel spin, TCS reduces engine power and applies brake force to the affected wheels. This helps the TL maintain traction during acceleration and helps the driver retain steering control, even when accelerating on slippery surfaces.

Engine torque may also be reduced by coordination of the Drive-by-Wire Throttle System and Engine Controller.

(Plus, in the event of understeer, the system applies the inside front and rear brakes to increase yaw (vehicle "rotation"), slowing the vehicle and enabling it to complete the turn. In the event of oversteer, the system applies the outside front and rear brakes to decrease yaw, slowing the vehicle and enabling it to stay on its intended path.)



Brake Assist: help the driver apply full braking pressure in an accident avoidance situation. This would bring the system to full ABS activation to help stop the vehicle in the shortest distance possible. It is only activated when the microprocessor detects that certain brake pedal speed and pressure thresholds are reached.

 

Damn rets...that is one thorough response.

I can't stress this enough though. Even with VSA, EBD, ABS, and if manual tranny then LSD, the MOST useful thing you can do is change out to snow tires. You will be amazed at the difference.

I would rather take a FWD car with snow tires, than a AWD with all-seasons. All those other electronic aids are just icing on the cake.

 

an "open" differential will power both front wheels (most of the time) if the traction to the them is equal. when traction is minimized on one side, the open differential has the tendence to send the power to the tire with less grip. so if you get caught in snow/ice up north, or mud down here in the south, momentum is your best friend. if you stop, the tire with little to no traction gets all the power and begins to spin wildly.

a car with a lsd even if one tire has less grip both tires will get power. it depends on the lsd's "torque breakaway #s" and the type of lsd that it is. thats why there better in the mud and in snow and ice. because even if one tire starts to spin the other one will pull the car through if it has enough traction... if both have none, then both will spin

just as a side note if your awd drive car (truck) has open differentials then technically it will only have 2 drive wheels in the nasty stuff. 1 in the front and 1 in the back. thats why serious mudding trucks have 4x4 and limited slip differentials. that way all four wheels churn in the slippery stuff

-onager