Date: 21 Nov 2001 23:25:11 GMT From: davehinznopsamcop.net Subject: Re: Freewheeling
Matti Lamprhey <matti-nospamnopsamlly-official.com> pressed random keys until the following was produced: > I would be interested to know why Saabs had this freewheeling feature. Was > there perhaps a problem with 2-stroke engine braking, for instance? Was > the freewheel removed when the engine changed to 4-stroke? Your answer > implies that it survived that change for a while. Hi, Matti. Yes, it was specific to the 2-strokers, originally. The deal is this - the 2-stroke, as you probably know, was originally lubricated by mixing the engine oil into the gasoline. If you take your foot off the gas on that engine, the butterfly on the carb(s) closes, and you get very little oil. Without a freewheel, you're then moving the engine fast, but with little oil. Bad thing. The freewheel lets the engine drop to idle, the car basically coasts as if you were out of gear, and the engine gets the lubrication that it needs based on the engine speed, metered through the carb at idle as it needs it. The carryover to the V4's was simple - same transmission, and it's more work to take it out than leave it in. I like the feature, and I suspect others did at the time as well. As far as putting it in the 99's, well, no technical reason at all, so I can only say it must have been what folks expected to be there. Hope this helps? Dave Hinz