Quote:
Originally Posted by RichinRidgewood
I cannot imagine the justification they used in the engineering design reviews to sell this crap-tastic "feature". That's assuming GM still even has design reviews.
One stone gets stuck between the belt and the pulley that are down low and boom new engine time.
2 gears and a shaft or even a chain and 2 gears inside the sump ... wtf is wrong with doing it like that?
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I think that the assembly is fully enclosed in the oil pan or the bell housing. So probably not prone to a rock - but definitely going to be washed in dirt/mud that gets in there. . But yeah - the choice to directly drive it off the crank shaft means that you have no choice but to separate the transmission to remove the belt or install a new one. That sucks. Even a belt drive off a secondary gear on the side would have made it replaceable without a ton of effort.
The choice to put on the rear I think has to do with vibration dampening. The closer it is to the flywheel the less effect it has on causing vibrations due to flex in the crank shaft. I'd guess it's a very very minor difference if it's measurable at all. But that's my best guess on why you might do that. I can't think of any other reason why you'd even try to make one fit on the back instead of the front.
