Is the older Torsen-based AWD system better than the new Haldex AWD system?
A – You will see this topic very heavily debated from time to time in our forums. The simple answer for most applications is no. Torsen is a pure mechanical AWD system that, setup in most Audi and VW products, gives a 40/60 torque split front to rear. It operates in AWD all the time. Haldex on the other hand is a fully electonic clutch pack that operates in nearly 100% FWD mode till slip is detected and then locks to 50/50 front to rear torque split. The reason VW and Audi have been utilizing the Haldex system in more applications is because Haldex is an electronic system and interfaces with the increasingly complex alphabet soup of safety systems on the newer cars like ABS, ASR, ESP and more. It is becoming increasingly difficult to get a fully mechanical system to play nice with all the various electronic systems trying to do their respective jobs. Being electronic Haldex can react quicker to a slip condition than Torsen can. This reaction time is rather more sudden with the Haldex s
