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Re: Freewheel or not? Posted by eric in vermont [Email] ![]() ![]() In Reply to: Re: Freewheel or not?, Brian, Tue, 2 Oct 2007 03:36:52 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
No problem with keeping the freewheel locked out! You might find that you have less wear on your brake pads and rotors, because you now have engine braking on decel. On the other hand, you will put a little more wear on your engine and trans BECAUSE of engine braking.
The freewheel was originally designed into the 2-stroke. Remember that 2-strokes only get lubrication from the oil that is mixed in the gas. Without freewheel, you have engine braking WITHOUT much gas/oil mixture providing lubrication, which translates to lots of wear. Think of driving down a big hill with your foot off the throttle and the engine slowing the car without lubrication... Saab figured people were more willing to pay for brake pads than blown up engines. When the 4-stroke was designed in, the same basic transmission was used, along with the freewheel. It was even carried over to the early 99's which had a totally different transmission!
So the freewheel is an interesting and quirky feature of our beloved VSaabs, but serves no real purpose for a 4-stroke, other than providing a little better fuel economy and something to talk about. In fact, with the extra HP offered by the 4-stroke, the freewheel tends to be a weak link in the drivetrain. When people do V-4 performance mods, this weak link can be exacerbated, and a lockout sleeve is installed to keep the freewheel from going KER-BLAM.
When people approach me to ask about one of my VSaabs, one of the first questions they ask is "does that car have that crazy freewheel thing?? My father (uncle, neighbor, older sister's boyfriend...etc) had a car like that with freewheeling...those are cool!"
Eric in Vermont
posted by 68.142.36...
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