page_title: Axle
section_title: Drive axle
hierarchical_section_title: Axle / Drive axle
caption_attribution_description: English: Splines on the end of an axle shaft from a 1990 Geo Storm GSi.
context_page_description: An axle or axletree is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to the vehicle, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearings or bushings are provided at the mounting points where the axle is supported. In the latter case, a bearing or bushing sits inside a central hole in the wheel to allow the wheel or gear to rotate around the axle. Sometimes, especially on bicycles, the latter type axle is referred to as a spindle.
context_section_description: An axle that is driven by the engine or prime mover is called a drive axle.
  Modern front-wheel drive cars typically combine the transmission (gearbox and differential) and front axle into a single unit called a transaxle. The drive axle is a split axle with a differential and universal joints between the two half axles. Each half axle connects to the wheel by use of a constant velocity (CV) joint which allows the wheel assembly to move freely vertically as well as to pivot when making turns.
  In rear-wheel drive cars and trucks, the engine turns a driveshaft (also called a propellor shaft or tailshaft) which transmits rotational force to a drive axle at the rear of the vehicle. The drive axle may be a live axle, but modern rear wheel drive automobiles generally use a split axle with a differential. In this case, one half-axle or half-shaft connects the differential with the left rear wheel, a second half-shaft does the same with the right rear wheel; thus the two half-axles and the differential constitute the rear axle.the front drive axle is providing the force to drive the truck. In fact, only one wheel of that axle is actually moving the truck and trailer down the road.
  Some simple vehicle designs, such as leisure go-karts, may have a single driven wheel where the drive axle is a split axle with only one of the two shafts driven by the engine, or else have both wheels connected to one shaft without a differential (kart racing).  However, other go-karts have two rear drive wheels too.
caption: Splines on a front drive axle.
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