Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan Anderson
Yes, it would -- if that reason existed. To a good first approximation, however, treads do not provide more traction than wheels.
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Well I know from my basic physics class that surface area doesn't come into account when calculating friction force, but thats in an idealized environment, with no "chattering" and in which the surfaces are sliding past each other, not applying torque in the sense that we're talking about. But I thought that in the real world, surface area did play a role in how effectively a vehicle translated spinning wheels or treads into movement. If thats not true, then why do race cars have extra wide towers, and road bikes extra thin ones?