I don't really understand how this would be helpful. Flipping a portal axle would give you very poor axle clearance, a key aspect for offroad driving. Drop axles are often configured the way you describe, but these are used for onroad-only applications. You'll often see such axles on vehicles which have relatively limited needs for clearance: cars, vans, and trailers. The front of the official semi (T-series) in it's stock configuration is also configured that way. I think that in actual off-pavement trucking conditions any COG problems probably come from the height and weight of the load being transported rather than the height of the engine. Flipping a portal axle would place the differential housing quite low.
These are all very true things. How ever we're working against several factors on the T Series that wouldn't exist on say, an M35 or a Ural. The engine is much lower than it would be on a true offroad truck, mostly due to the size of the engine. So we could mount a driven straight or even portal axle, but it would have highly limited travel and potentially cause more harm to the vehicles performance than anything, and if the frame was lifted high enough to let the axle have good travel, we could run into center of gravity problems, although I think those would be caused more by the trucks narrow stance compared to the height. But with the size of tire mounted to the T series set up the axle would be even mounted on, clearance below a flipped portal axle would be reduced, but not unusable, and I personally think that it would be better to have a driven front axle with bad clearance than a non driven one with good clearance, because at least then it wouldn't get so bogged down in mud pits. Over all, the best option is simply to abandon the idea of a T series with all wheel drive, and make a whole new offroad focused truck; but that requires a lot more effort than lazily putting a transfer case and an axle on a truck. The photos attached will help paint a picture of what we're up against, although I'm sure you can easily figure out what the front end of a T series looks like. (Also, it's a video game, you would never mount TSL boggers onto a semi truck. You'd do that to a bobbed M35)
@Kear-Ski Tyre - We may have to agree to disagree on this one. It sounds like we already agree on most points other than the critical one... Seriously though, in case you don't know: messing around with a mesh isn't required to get 6wd. The wheels can be hooked up to an invisible diff without a model - if we're throwing realism out the window why bother? Obviously this is simply my 2c, if you don't feel the same way it's all good.
Hmm, I wasn't aware that did infact work correctly. in that case a simple "chain driven" front axle would be perfect. until a better more realistic set up could be done. as really, it's hard to rock crawl without a driven front axle. it's more...rock bouncing. in a semi truck....which is not good for the ol spine. (Keep in mind, I've never worked with creation of a mod for this game, and have exactly zero plans too. so I have little idea of what can and can't be done.)
I guess you could say that there are effectively 3 things in the game which are connected in some way to bring you the gameplay experience: The powertrain simulation, which you can think of as something that mostly happens on paper. Values are assigned to clutches, torque converters, engines, etc. Connections between these sorts of devices are specified as well as connections to the jbeam skeleton of a car. Connections can be arbitrary and while some things must be accurately represented in the jbeam, not all parts of the drivetrain require this. The jbeam, or node & beam structure. This is the relatively low resolution 3D structure which interacts with the softbody physics which form the core of the game engine. Movement of a suspension device, compression of a spring, deformation of a chassis... all of those things happen to the jbeam. Mesh / visual mesh (flexbodies and props). This is a relatively high resolution 3D structure which is present for show only. It's what you look at while you play the game, where the textures are applied, etc. The game correlates the mesh with the jbeam so that when the jbeam is deformed or moves, the mesh moves with it.
Oh bloody hell. I wasn't expecting that! Good thinkin'....now if we can attach a lock ring on back, then we could pull the universe out from under itself.
Hey, for some reason the hood exit stack on the D-series doesn't show for me in the muffler menu. The config you have that has it already equipped doesnt spawn with it ethier, I get the option for Chopped hood but no exhuast pipe?
Guess the beamng update broke it, but I don't think I will have the time to repair cause im going in vacation for two week and I willl be gone by sunday, so yeah I will repair it after those two weeks. --- Post updated --- I will be gone until the 18th. So I won't respond to anybody unless I got internet (will be pretty rare)
so when i try to spawn any of your configs the tires just explode off of it or they spawn about in the middle of the thing, i have your tire mod as well so i dont know what is going on. its the portal axles im pretty sure. ive even tried just adding portals in the config menu but everyting just explodes... ive attached a recording of what im talking about.