Independent Suspension W/ Drive Technic

Independent Suspension Using New Technic Parts

Front View I love those new parts!
With the purchase of some Star Wars sets ( 8002 Destroyer Droid, 8001 Battle Droid, and 8008 Stormtrooper) and the 8458 Silver Champion, I obtained many new cool parts (as well as some useless ones, but I won't go into that now).
Some of the new parts were used to create what you see to the left.

Side View The wheels of the Silver Champion ( 8458 ) are well suited to make an independently suspended axle with steering. The hubs are wide and deep, so the support mechanism (the structure from the steering pivot to the point of wheel attachment) can almost completely fit inside the hub. This means that the steering pivot is very close to the wheel-ground contact point. Also, the overall width of the axle is reduced (keep in mind you still need a differential and 2 u-joints on either side).

Front View Of course this model has its flaws. The control arms on top are different lengths than the ones on the bottom.
For purposes of definition, the top control arms are the straight black pieces over the top of the u-joints. The bottom control arms are below the u-joints and are each made of two gray links arranged in a "wishbone" type shape.
The difference in lengths mean that the axle has to vary in length as the suspension travels up and down. Of course the LEGO axle is not splined and stays a constant length. Fortunately, there is enough tolerance in the connections to allow small changes in length. Also, my u-joints are cracked at the ends so the axles can slide in and out a little.

Top View The steering link should also be about as long as the control arms. I used the straight black links from the Silver Champion which are much longer than the control arms. The result is that the wheel turns (steers) a little when the suspension travels up. This is not good and in future models, I'll use shorter steering links.

Bottom View w/ Tires This view shows the full range of steering. Unlike previous attempts at this idea, the range was so large that the u-joints are at their maximum angle. This is a tremendous advantage that the model has. It is far superior to my previous attempts.

Top/Front View Minus Red Frame Here, the red frame (made of red Technic beams) is removed as well as the rack gear for the steering. This shows the full steering arm linkage (towball to towball).

Side View Minus Red Frame ADVANTAGES
full range of steering, steering pivot point close to wheel hub, most of the parts are common, relatively strong (only for the weight of a model the size of a typical Super Car)
DISADVANTAGES
control arms different lengths, unnecessary steering when suspension moves, some specialized parts (I suppose different tires could be used; some of the parts could be replaced with equivalent parts that are more common)

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Front View	I love those new parts! With the purchase of some Star Wars sets ( 8002 Destroyer Droid, 8001 Battle Droid, and 8008 Stormtrooper) and the 8458 Silver Champion, I obtained many new cool parts (as well as some useless ones, but I won't go into that now). Some of the new parts were used to create what you see to the left.
Side View	The wheels of the Silver Champion ( 8458 ) are well suited to make an independently suspended axle with steering. The hubs are wide and deep, so the support mechanism (the structure from the steering pivot to the point of wheel attachment) can almost completely fit inside the hub. This means that the steering pivot is very close to the wheel-ground contact point. Also, the overall width of the axle is reduced (keep in mind you still need a differential and 2 u-joints on either side).
Front View	Of course this model has its flaws. The control arms on top are different lengths than the ones on the bottom. For purposes of definition, the top control arms are the straight black pieces over the top of the u-joints. The bottom control arms are below the u-joints and are each made of two gray links arranged in a "wishbone" type shape. The difference in lengths mean that the axle has to vary in length as the suspension travels up and down. Of course the LEGO axle is not splined and stays a constant length. Fortunately, there is enough tolerance in the connections to allow small changes in length. Also, my u-joints are cracked at the ends so the axles can slide in and out a little.
Top View	The steering link should also be about as long as the control arms. I used the straight black links from the Silver Champion which are much longer than the control arms. The result is that the wheel turns (steers) a little when the suspension travels up. This is not good and in future models, I'll use shorter steering links.
Bottom View w/ Tires	This view shows the full range of steering. Unlike previous attempts at this idea, the range was so large that the u-joints are at their maximum angle. This is a tremendous advantage that the model has. It is far superior to my previous attempts.
Top/Front View Minus Red Frame	Here, the red frame (made of red Technic beams) is removed as well as the rack gear for the steering. This shows the full steering arm linkage (towball to towball).
Side View Minus Red Frame	ADVANTAGES full range of steering, steering pivot point close to wheel hub, most of the parts are common, relatively strong (only for the weight of a model the size of a typical Super Car) DISADVANTAGES control arms different lengths, unnecessary steering when suspension moves, some specialized parts (I suppose different tires could be used; some of the parts could be replaced with equivalent parts that are more common)