Editing Front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout (section)

=== Longitudinally mounted front-engine and front-wheel drive===
[[File:Alfasud av.jpg|right|thumb|A 1975 Alfa Romeo Alfasud Sprint Veloce using a Longitudinally mounted front-engine and front-wheel drive.]]

The 1946 [[Panhard Dyna X]], designed by [[Jean-Albert Grégoire]], had the engine longitudinally in front of the front wheels, with the transmission behind the engine and the differential at the rear of the assembly. This arrangement, used by Panhard until 1967, potentially had a weight distribution problem analogous to that of the Cord L29 mentioned above. However, the Panhard's air-cooled flat twin engine was very light, and mounted low down with a low centre of gravity reducing the effect. The air-cooled flat twin engine of the Citroën 2CV was also mounted very low, in front of the front wheels, with the transmission behind the axle line and the differential between the two. This became quite popular; cars using this layout included the German [[Ford Taunus|Ford Taunus 12M]] and the [[Lancia Flavia]] and [[Lancia Fulvia|Fulvia]]. This is the standard configuration of Audi and Subaru front-wheel-drive vehicles. In 1979, [[Toyota]] introduced and launched their first front-wheel-drive car, the [[Toyota Tercel|Tercel]], and it had its engine longitudinally mounted, unlike most other front-wheel-drive cars on the market at that time. This arrangement continued also on the second-generation Tercel, until 1987, the third generation received a new, transversely mounted engine. Other front-wheel-drive Toyota models, such as [[Toyota Camry|Camry]], and [[Toyota Corolla|Corolla]], had transversely mounted engines from the beginning on.

The 1966 [[Oldsmobile Toronado]] (along with its sister model the [[Cadillac Eldorado]])   used a novel arrangement which had the engine and transmission in a 'side-by-side' arrangement with power being transmitted between the two via a heavy-duty chain, and a specially designed intermediate driveshaft that passed under the engine sump.  This family has the distinction of being the highest engine capacity (8.2 L) front-wheel-drive vehicles ever built.  The [[Saab 99]] and “classic” Saab 900 also used a similar arrangement. The Eagle Premier used a similar powertrain arrangement found in the Renault 21 and 25 – later becoming the basis for the Chrysler LH sedans produced until the 2004 model year.

Today, [[Audi]] is the most prominent user of this mechanical layout, having used it since the 1950s in its predecessor companies [[DKW]] and [[Auto Union]], and it can be found in its larger models from the [[Audi A4|A4]] upward.  The latest evolution of the format in Audi's [[Volkswagen Group MLB platform|MLB platform]] attempts to address the long-standing drawback of uneven weight distribution.  This is done by packaging the differential in front of the clutch, allowing the axle line to be further forward in relation to the rear face of the engine block.
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