As such, this car epitomises Honda's position in the car market. It delivers remarkable quality, an involving drive, contemporary styling, cutting-edge technology and the highest possible levels of safety. It does all this while maintaining a distinct personality.

So, perhaps for the first time, the 2006 Honda Legend will live up to its moniker. Certainly, it can now offer a definite - and very different - challenge to the opposition.



Honda Legend Performance
Vigorous torque and a unique all-wheel drive system that cements car to road

Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD)

Press packs from car manufacturers are often filled with hackneyed phrases and claims you've heard a thousand times. Too often the car doesn't deliver the promise. But with the new Legend there's one cliche we're confident the car lives up to: This car corners like it's on rails.

SH-AWD is Honda's incredible new active torque distribution system that gives Honda Legend the cornering prowess of a sports car, while maintaining enviable levels of ride comfort. As well as varying torque distribution between front and rear wheels for optimum grip,

SH-AWD also shares the torque between the left and right rear wheels to accelerate the outer wheel and thus provide virtually neutral handling through bends.

The innovative transmission technology is the brainchild of Honda's Senior Chief Engineer Yasuji Shibahata, who was also responsible for the Active Torque Transfer System on the Prelude in the 1990s.

While some AWD systems can distribute torque between front and rear using a centre differential, or between left and right rear wheels using a rear differential, Shibahata's SH-AWD simultaneously controls torque from front to back and regulates lateral torque to the rear wheels - a world's first.

During straight line cruising and mild cornering, the system delivers up to 70 per cent of the available torque to the front wheels, and 30 to the back. But during heavy throttle use or more energetic driving, up to 70 per cent of torque is directed to the rear wheels for increased acceleration and enhanced cornering ability.

At the heart of the system is a clever Rear Drive Unit, which uses twin, direct electromagnetic clutches to distribute torque across the rear wheels. Firstly, Honda Legend's ECU calculates where the torque should go for optimum performance, based on input from engine speed, wheel speed, steering angle and lateral G sensors.

The feed of torque is then controlled by the Rear Drive Unit, which varies the magnetic forces to either clutch, pushing the available torque to one side or the other. Remember, up to 70 per cent of the available torque from the V6 engine can be fed to the outer rear wheel, significantly improving stability and reducing the effects of understeer. Conversely, if Honda Legend is decelerating during cornering, which might normally upset the balance of the car, the torque distribution is adjusted accordingly to help keep the car stable.

Because the outer rear wheel follows a path that's wider than the average path of the front wheels, the Rear Drive Unit also includes an acceleration device, that 'overdrives' the rear wheel by up to five per cent. This means the extra torque given to that wheel can be transmitted efficiently to the road.

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