genitor

What exactly does a center diff do and what are the benefits of having one?

sheograth

A differential allows torque to be split between 2 bodies rotating at different speeds. So just like a rear differential allows the left and right rear wheels to turn independently - a center differential separates the front and the back ends.

genitor

So, more power will be transferred to the front or back according to which end has the least traction.
How does this translate to how the vehicle handles?

leavinghobby

By putting power to both the front and rear ends you gain massive amounts of control of the car, you can dictate how much power you want to each end simply by using different weight diff fluids. For example I have a Jammin X1 CRT AWD Truggy that I run 30,000 Weight in the center diff 10,000 in the front and 7,000 in the rear, this means that the center diff carries the brunt force of the torque and tranfers more torque to the front and a little less to the rear and allows me to navigate turns and full throttle acceleration with out alot of fish tailing in the rear making for faster lap times and better performance.