| abstract |
Disclosed is a locking differential (10) including an oil lubricated clutch assembly (18) having a plurality of interleaved friction discs (48, 50, 60, and 62) formed of steel and squeezed together to retard relative rotation of differential side gears (32 and 34). Adjacent friction discs have mutually facing friction surfaces. One of each mutually facing friction surface is defined by the metal forming the disc and the other surface is defined by a pyrolytic carbon composite friction material (78). In one form, the friction material includes a meshed cloth substrate formed of carbon fibers, which may be woven into a single layer of cloth, and a coating of carbon deposited on the fibers by chemical vapor deposition to a level forming a friction material having a relatively open mesh which is readily penetrated by an adhesive to improve bonding of the friction material to the discs. |