AWD to front wheel drive possible?

02sixt · Post by **02sixt** » Tue Sep 12, 2006 12:44 pm

Is it possible to change an AWD vibe to front wheel drive by disconnecting the main driveshaft and the rear driveshafts from the vehicle? Will it act as a regular front wheel drive car? I believe in theory it should work, I would like to hear other opinions on this.

02sixt · Post by **02sixt** » Tue Sep 12, 2006 1:09 pm

Well my diff is making a loud sound that gets louder as speed increases so I'm pretty sure the diff or some part of it is gone....thats why I'm considering removing it cuz if this can happen at only 109K then we're all screwed down the road

ColonelPanic · Post by **ColonelPanic** » Tue Sep 12, 2006 4:58 pm

109,000 km? I hate to hear that. You're one of several who have had the same problem.If you're at 109,000 km, you should be right out of your 100,000 km powertrain warranty, right? Maybe see if GM will play nice and goodwill the service? Or are you at 109,000 miles?

ToolGuy · Post by **ToolGuy** » Tue Sep 12, 2006 9:32 pm

I wonder the same but if the bearing assembly inside is what is making noise this may not be possible since you may still need this bearing because the axles may be tied to it. I am not am expert on AWD but you have an axle or two back there and not like the conventional knuckle and bearings with no rear axle found on FWD cars. I could be wrong though! You could probably remove your entire AWD rear axle assemble and replace it with a used FWD leading trailing arm axle. You could even get a GT assembly and have rear disc brakes! I do not think this would be hard to do that is if both mount to the car in the same fashion.

CAN-AWD-VIBE · Post by **CAN-AWD-VIBE** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:06 am

I pretty sure the theory and the reality are quite different.This is not 4wd with a real transfer case.Fix it. I am sure this won't work.Bend over cause it's gonna hurt.I hate to hear this, it makes me rethink the supercharger thing. Again... and again.

02sixt · Post by **02sixt** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:34 am

this is not hard to do at all because the whole thing is mickey mouse, I looked at it today and its very basic....if you disconnect the driveshaft, and the two rear axles from the diff, the whole rear end becomes a simple free-wheeling unit....there's nothing to it...dont forget, this car is Front wheel drive to start with, not rear wheel to start with...bet it would be a huge gas saver too....I dont wanna spend 1300 for a new diff only to have this happen again in a couple years....its not worth it.

BlueCrush · Post by **BlueCrush** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:38 am

Also, the AWD ECU has a different part# from the 2WD ECU. So you may need to swap that out as well.

02sixt · Post by **02sixt** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 5:42 am

I would think the ecu wouldn't matter, only thing it may do different is tell the rear end to kick in depending on traction loads if the front end starts slipping...because its not full time AWD...so if I were to disconnect the driveshaft, it may still send this signal to spin it but there wont be anything there to spin.

CAN-AWD-VIBE · Post by **CAN-AWD-VIBE** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 11:11 am

well looks like you've made up your mind.just let us know how it works out... it is an interesting option to repairs.CAN-AWD-VIBE

ToolGuy · Post by **ToolGuy** » Wed Sep 13, 2006 9:13 pm

When you do it let us know how it works! Going to do it on your own or pay someone to do it?

AWD to front wheel drive possible?

AWD to front wheel drive possible?

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