OEM

R.T. Quaife Engineering Ltd is more than capable of attending to the needs of both the major car manufacturer and the specialist low volume manufacturer.

Quaife now have two fully operational manufacturing facilities, located in Sevenoaks and Gillingham, Kent and our production capacity can meet the needs of you - the customer.

Quaife facilities can be seen in their corporate video on this site.

Quaife are not afraid of today's technologies and  have invested heavily in machinery and personnel since the 1990's. This has helped grow the business into a multi million pound operation capable of supporting OEM contracts of anything from 5,000 units up to 50,000 units per year.

The Gillingham factory is also capable of running 24 hours a day, seven days a week, as it utilises some of the latest automated CAM machinery.

Quaife have the capacity, capability and the facilities to offer a complete package to develop mechanical driveline components and other technical parts for your project.

With a dedicated design office housing the latest computer aided design packages from Solid Works, the needs of the customer can be developed from mere ideas or sketches to fruition, through the design stage, to development, manufacture, testing and distribution.

Quaife already has over four years experience working with the big three global car manufacturers, Ford, General Motors and Daimler Chrysler, and the results speak for themselves. Together with these results, Quaife's reputation gained from 43 years as industry leader speaks volumes.

Over 35,000 Quaife ATB Helical LSD differential units have already been sold as original equipment, and the clean warranty record complements the quality of the product itself. This is of course supported by Quaife's ISO 9001 approval.

The concept of the Quaife Automatic Torque Biasing Helical LSD Differential (what is an ATB differential?) can be designed to fit most road car applications, and with several OE fitments already being fitted to road cars, Quaife are not afraid to take on new projects.

Quaife facilities can cater for high volume or low volume batch runs on ATB Helical LSD differentials, complete mechanical steering rack and pinion assemblies, hubs and suspension uprights, individual gear components, half shafts and drive shafts, and numerous other machined parts, all made to the customer's specification. Quaife facilities can cater for the customer's every need.

Essentially Quaife are a one-stop-shop for transmission components, and with the facilities they have, many smaller car companies already take advantage and use Quaife products.

Quaife have learned a huge amount from all of the years in business. This has been enhanced by the hands-on approach to developing Quaife products and technology through racing.

Testing and developing Quaife products through motorsport has always been a key part of the business,  since the early days of R.T. Quaife Engineering. The rich heritage of success in competition includes innumerable race victories and championship successes all over the world, not only on four wheels but also two wheels, and both on race circuits and off road.

Clearly Quaife is in a very strong position to offer the services for the benefit of your company.
Please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss your company's needs and take your project to the next stage.

O.E.M and QUAIFE  AUTOMATIC TORQUE BIASING HELICAL LSD DIFFERENTIALS

a) The requirement

In an age when power and torque outputs are rising rapidly thanks to the adoption of ever advanced technology, harnessing engine performance to use it effectively in a user-friendly manner is huge challenge for engineers and powertrain designers. The problem is

simple one - how do you effectively control the delivery of power through the driven wheels to maximize traction and minimize wheelspin?

b) The choices faced by OEM's

Different car manufacturers have adopted different approaches. Some front wheel drive platforms (particularly from Ford and Opel / Vauxhall) have adopted the electronic traction control route, which offers safety benefits, but tends to compromise driver involvement and enjoyment, particularly if the vehicle is used for trackday work.

Others - such as Mitsubishi and Subaru - have invested heavily in developing four wheel drive systems for their high performance derivatives and while these total traction systems afford obvious benefits, the negative factors such as high transmission power losses and excessive weight mean that they will remain very much a niche market.  

Which leaves vehicle designers in something of a quandary, as they are faced with just two choices for an effective, user-friendly and low-cost traction control system on a two wheel drive high performance car. Interestingly, in an increasingly electronic age, both of these systems rely on mechanical methods to improve traction.

c) Why not use a traditional, plate style limited-slip differential?

Method one is to use a traditional, plate style limited slip differential, the type of which is used commonly in racing and rallying. This uses a pack of clutch plates worked by sun and planetary gears to transmit a set percentage of the torque to the spinning wheel (say between 40 and 50%.) Certainly these units are effective in increasing traction, but they do have negative implications on both driver enjoyment and vehicle longevity. In some applications on very high performance cars the LSD's clutch plates are now engaged using computer-controlled electro-hydrualic action, with obvious cost implications.   

i) Potentially negative dynamic effects

Unless it's set up correctly, a plate-style LSD can ‘snatch' as it suddenly locks to maximum torque transfer. This is particularly noticeable in a front wheel drive car, usually when driven rapidly along a bumpy road, as the vehicle will tend to skip from bump to bump as the LSD tries to transfer the torque to the unloaded wheel. A similar effect will be experienced in a powerful rear wheel car, albeit not felt directly through the steering, but nonetheless this can compromise driver enjoyment.

ii) Long term maintenance implications

The traditional style LSD's reliance on clutch plates, as well as sun and planetary gears for operation ultimately leads to wear on these components when used hard. For example, it's not uncommon for high performance track / rally cars to undertake a differential rebuild at least once a season.

d) The Quaife Engineering Automatic Torque Biasing Helical LSD differential

The second mechanical method of improving traction is to use a Quaife Automatic Torque Biasing Helical LSD differential. Rather than using clutch plates as a method of operation, the Quaife ATB Helical LSD uses sets of floating helical cut gear pinions that run in pockets and mesh during normal driving.

Should one of the driven wheels start to spin however, the helical gears start to generate a torque bias thanks to the axial and radial thrust of the helical gear pinions in their pockets. The result is a progressive transfer of torque away from the spinning side of the axle to the driven wheel, which is now capable of transmitting a greater proportion of torque.

i) Positive dynamic effects

Because the Quaife ATB Helical LSD differential's design produces a progressive transfer of torque away from the spinning wheel to the wheel that's capable of driving, the effect is far more benign to the driver. In a front wheel drive car harsh snatching and torque steer are eliminated, so much so that it's not uncommon for a Quaife ATB Helical LSD differential to cope with 400bhp through the front wheels in aftermarket road applications.

For rear wheel drive use the benefits of the Quaife ATB Helical LSD diff are obvious - excellent tractive qualities, combined with a progressive action, making for a benign, effective and involving package for those seeking the ultimate in safe high performance vehicle dynamics.

ii) Maintenance free performance

That's right, unlike a plate style LSD the Quaife unit delivers its performance without the need for stripdowns and rebuilds. There are no plates or gears to wear or break and the Quaife diff units retain standard vehicle lubrication.

e) OEM Applications

In recent years the advantages of the Quaife ATB Helical LSD differential have been exploited by original equipment manufacturers in both front and rear wheel drive applications. These include:-

• Dodge (V10 Viper sportscar)
• Dodge (Neon SRT-4 high performance sedan)
• Ford (Focus RS high performance hatch)
• GM (Cobalt SS)