What is All-wheel Steering? How it works
Hello, Guys, I learned about new technology in cars. The all-wheel steering system, the name itself gives us an idea about this system. Normally cars steer with the help of front axle tyres. In this system, the rear tyres also steer accordingly when required. The first car to have this technology is Honda Prelude. This article explains how this works at high speed and low speed.
Steering
The traditional steering i.e the front wheel steering is the basic steering type available on all cars. The working is very simple the car front turns where the front wheels are pointed, and the rear gets dragged along for the ride.
All-Wheel Steering
In this system, all four wheels turn at the same time when the driver steers. The rear-wheel steering is controlled by computers and actuators. The degree of rear wheel turning is less than compared to the front wheels.
How all-wheel steering works
In this case of this, it depends on the situation. If you drive along at high speeds the rear wheel will steer in the same direction as the front wheel with a low degree of turn. This helps in changing lanes, cause it is more of shifting than turning and correcting the wheel angle.
The situation changes at low speeds, the rear wheels turn in the opposite direction at a lesser degree compared to the front wheels. This helps in manoeuvring the car better at tighter corners and a better turning radius. It really helps in tight parking spaces with very low effort.
This cannot be done at high speeds because there will be stability issues. Here the computer comes into play that manages the rear-wheel steering according to the situation. This system also helps while hard braking, the rear tyres toe-in to generate more braking power and stabilize the vehicle.
You can see this system in a lot of high-end cars, and sports cars. In India, we do not have any Indian cars with an All-Wheel Steering system. I think Indian manufacturers should include them, as this would help people drive much more easily.
Advantage
- Better handling at higher speeds
- Better corning
- Easy to manoeuvre in tight spots
- Easy to park your vehicle
- Reduced turning radius
Disadvantage
- Expensive
- Complicated System
- Expensive to repair
Hope this article helps you understand better what is all-wheel steering and how it works
