Hi all,

Can someone provide a technical explanation of what the Watt links do and what would be the result if they were missing?

TIA

phil

 

The Watt's link is a device that maintains the axel's postion perpendicular to the for-aft center line of the car as the axel is at rest and in motion.

If it were missing the axel would be free to move along a plane perpendicular with the for-aft center line of the car. The resultant being a car that is virtually uncontrolable.

Is that technical enough??

 

it keeps your axle from flying out from under your car when you make a turn.

 

Couldn't have said it better myself.

 

aren't there some live axle cars that don't have Watt links? How do those cars maintain stability? I am thinking of a pathetic old Dodge I used to have but perhaps the leaf springs had something to do with it.

Phil

 

A panhard bar does the same function. there are other ways of doing it too.

 

There are 3 link and 4 link rear ends out there. G-force engineering makes a 3 link for our cars that replaces the watts link and it uses a panhard bar.

There are some pics of mine on my personal page here:

http://members.cardomain.com/7heaven

 

Chrysler used to be a huge fan of torsion bars. I don't know why they stopped using them. They're pretty fail-safe, but when they break it sounds like a bomb going off.

There are a whole slew of rear suspension designs today. However, the watts is still being used in some cars like the Neon and PT Cruiser.

 

now thats some mathematical sarcasm

 

The Watts linkage had been used on factory-sponsored RX-3 racers. Uchiyama chose to keep the Watts linkage because it gives the RX-7 a more faborable roll center.

Had Mazda installed a Panhard rod with the same favorable characteristics they'd have had to make the rear overhang 3 inches longer.