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If you walk onto a lot here in the Southeast the vast majority of vehicles on the lot are FWD - or at least they were when they had vehicles on the lot. So it must be regional.
Why are there so many AWD cars now?
- Thread starter Elkins45
- Start date
Maybe that is what the car buying public has indicated they want and signal by their buying habits? Also factor in the continued move away from Sedans to CUV and SUV platforms that make it part of the appeal of the genres.
All that being said, if you give me a choice, I'll take the AWD platform all day every day for winter driving. Necessary? No. Heck I drove a RWD truck for many years here. But does it make life easier? Yes.
All that being said, if you give me a choice, I'll take the AWD platform all day every day for winter driving. Necessary? No. Heck I drove a RWD truck for many years here. But does it make life easier? Yes.
Fact:
Cars sold in America are loaded with options that are included with the vehicle at higher price and of course more profit for the manufacturers than most all other parts of the world. Money is easy to come by in the USA in auto loans so the uninformed buy the "sizzle"
Overseas, even luxury cars that are built here and exported do not have the same options loaded into the vehicles to be sold overseas. They are still nice cars but for a lack of better word, stripped of what many might consider frivolous extras.
Overseas manufacturers that sell cars here, load the cars up with options as well, increased selling price, more profit and its what the American demands, after all, its just another $75 a month in the payment to them. (and why personal finance should be required course in high school)
Cars sold in America are loaded with options that are included with the vehicle at higher price and of course more profit for the manufacturers than most all other parts of the world. Money is easy to come by in the USA in auto loans so the uninformed buy the "sizzle"
Overseas, even luxury cars that are built here and exported do not have the same options loaded into the vehicles to be sold overseas. They are still nice cars but for a lack of better word, stripped of what many might consider frivolous extras.
Overseas manufacturers that sell cars here, load the cars up with options as well, increased selling price, more profit and its what the American demands, after all, its just another $75 a month in the payment to them. (and why personal finance should be required course in high school)
As driving skills decrease and cars are bought more for the number of cup-holders they have, the driver needs all the help she/he can get.
Also with AWD the traction is greatly improved in all types of weather, all the rally cars in the last ~65 yrs are AWD.
Spend a Winter here and ask....
My issue w/ AWD is the way its sold. AWD is a great tool, especially with the ideal tires, but to the unaware/uneducated (about mechanical stuff)/oblivious, it can allow one to get way behind the curve and find the intersection with the laws of physics that much faster...and while carrying more energy
My issue w/ AWD is the way its sold. AWD is a great tool, especially with the ideal tires, but to the unaware/uneducated (about mechanical stuff)/oblivious, it can allow one to get way behind the curve and find the intersection with the laws of physics that much faster...and while carrying more energy
Vehicle engines have gotten so powerful that they overwhelm the front tires, or the rear tires, so adding all-wheel drive may be preventing loss of control during hard acceleration in less than perfect conditions. It may be a customer satisfaction thing, where people who like to drive briskly would otherwise be burning the tread off of two tires or overtaxing the traction control systems on their 2wd vehicles. I know that all-wheel drive comes in handy when you have to accelerate off a soft shoulder onto a freeway, or pull out onto a 50mph frontage road from a driveway in the rain. I don't need it very often, but I like having it when I need it. It wouldn't upset me a bit if my Mustang were all wheel drive.
Agree entirely, same with the way they foist the "Turbo" on everything. The turbo is a great tool, but has its own quirks, yet no salesperson mentions them, nor how to drive & shut-off the engines that have them.Spend a Winter here and ask....
My issue w/ AWD is the way its sold. AWD is a great tool, especially with the ideal tires, but to the unaware/uneducated (about mechanical stuff)/oblivious, it can allow one to get way behind the curve and find the intersection with the laws of physics that much faster...and while carrying more energy
This is a question I have been asking myself the last few months. I just recently started shopping for a small SUV to replace my sedan because I am getting older I want a vehicle that is easier to get in and out of. I really wanted a Mazda but they are all AWD with a standard 165 hp 2.5l that suffers from lower gas mileage and poorer acceleration that would be less of an issue if they just continued the FWD models. But it appears they have a slightly higher Tow rating. The strange thing is they come with a compact spare that I thought was a big no-no with AWD
My wife’s 2009 was the absolute cheapest one on the lot. There's a big button on the dash you push to engage the AWD system, and it automatically disengages at 35mph.
I forgot to mention this in my initial question. In an environment where manufacturers are recommending 0w-8 oils in an effort to squeeze out 0.01 extra mpg it seems like adding AWD to most of the fleet is taking them in the wrong direction with respect to CAFE.
I love Mazda but when they stopped selling the 6 in the US they lost me as a customer. The 3 is too small and everything else is an AWD crossover or SUV. Of course if they were giving away a Miata I would take one, but I’m not buying one new.
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I live in New England and need to be able to get to my office regardless of weather. I also use 4 snow tires (Nokian) in the winter. AWD can keep you going in nasty weather, but when braking all bets are off. Even with AWD and 4 snows, I realized the laws of physics are immutable. Hence, I stay out of the ditch.
I personally dislike FWD as when you approach a turn with in snow and ice and let off the gas pedal , the back end can drift out on you. RWD does not have this issue. And because AWD has all for axles pretty much moving this issue does not tend to happen. I find AWD is excellent in the snow belt areas. Probably a total waste in areas with no snow.
At the risk of getting flamed by all the AWD haters, here it goes.
My current vehicle and my previous two were AWD. I live in Tennessee, we get about 4 or 5 days of inclimate weather a year. That said, I do live on a hill. My driveway is uphill and the hill in front of my house is uphill. So when we do get bad weather, the two FWD cars in the family are stuck. They can't get out of the driveway, much less up the hill. So for those 4 or 5 days a year, I'm taking the family everywhere. I'm taking my mother in law to dialysis. I'm helping stranded neighbors get groceries and medications. Tennessee doesn't have enough plows to clear the back roads like the one I live on. Some people can be stuck in their house for a week.
But that's not why I have AWD vehicles. That's just a perk. I'd never spend the money to buy and maintain an AWD vehicle for just 4 or 5 days a year.
So why AWD? Simple. Traction. On dry roads, wet roads, gravel roads, dirt roads....wherever I choose to go. I'm a car enthusiast, as many of you are. I drive...uh..hem...."spiritedly". When I launch from a stop....I don't get wheel spin, wheel hop, torque steer, etc. I just hook up and go. When I dive into corners, the AWD system will toss some power to the rear and I can actually bring the tail around. I've owned RWD and still on FWD cars...and FWD absolutely SUCKS unless you're in something like a Civic Type R. RWD is great...right up until your rear end is pointing the wrong direction. I'm not a professional driver. So AWD erases a lot of my mistakes. Come in hot...no worries...just mat the accelerator and let the car pull you out. Having all four wheels pulling and on some cars...torque vectoring...is amazing. If you've never experienced an AWD torque vectoring system slow the inside wheels to pull you through a turn then you're missing out. It always makes me giggle. And then there is the rain...no slippng. No blinking traction control light. No FWD understeer. It's simply superior to anything FWD.
As for maintenance...some systems are more complicated than others. The system on my Honda Ridgeline was amazingly intelligent and operated as FWD unless it detected a need for the rear tires to get power. That wasn't always just when the fronts slipped. It had torque vectoring and would hustle down a back road faster than any pickup I've ever been in could. My current car, a Subaru WRX, has a very simple symmetrical AWD system. Basically all four wheels drive all of the time. There is a differential, so no worry about tires being slightly different diameters. As for that, I rotate my tires regularly (every oil change...it's not difficult) and I replace all 4 at the same time because they are normally all worn out at the same time. Other than changing the rear differential oil...there isn't much to maintain.
If you still doubt the advantages of AWD, then let me take you back to the 80's when Audi was penalized for an "unfair advantage" when their Quattro AWD equipped cars mopped the floor with every other make. Parnelli Jones and his AWD Indy car caused AWD to be banned from Indy car competition due to how much faster it was.
How Audi's Quattro system took racing by storm in the Eighties
My current vehicle and my previous two were AWD. I live in Tennessee, we get about 4 or 5 days of inclimate weather a year. That said, I do live on a hill. My driveway is uphill and the hill in front of my house is uphill. So when we do get bad weather, the two FWD cars in the family are stuck. They can't get out of the driveway, much less up the hill. So for those 4 or 5 days a year, I'm taking the family everywhere. I'm taking my mother in law to dialysis. I'm helping stranded neighbors get groceries and medications. Tennessee doesn't have enough plows to clear the back roads like the one I live on. Some people can be stuck in their house for a week.
But that's not why I have AWD vehicles. That's just a perk. I'd never spend the money to buy and maintain an AWD vehicle for just 4 or 5 days a year.
So why AWD? Simple. Traction. On dry roads, wet roads, gravel roads, dirt roads....wherever I choose to go. I'm a car enthusiast, as many of you are. I drive...uh..hem...."spiritedly". When I launch from a stop....I don't get wheel spin, wheel hop, torque steer, etc. I just hook up and go. When I dive into corners, the AWD system will toss some power to the rear and I can actually bring the tail around. I've owned RWD and still on FWD cars...and FWD absolutely SUCKS unless you're in something like a Civic Type R. RWD is great...right up until your rear end is pointing the wrong direction. I'm not a professional driver. So AWD erases a lot of my mistakes. Come in hot...no worries...just mat the accelerator and let the car pull you out. Having all four wheels pulling and on some cars...torque vectoring...is amazing. If you've never experienced an AWD torque vectoring system slow the inside wheels to pull you through a turn then you're missing out. It always makes me giggle. And then there is the rain...no slippng. No blinking traction control light. No FWD understeer. It's simply superior to anything FWD.
As for maintenance...some systems are more complicated than others. The system on my Honda Ridgeline was amazingly intelligent and operated as FWD unless it detected a need for the rear tires to get power. That wasn't always just when the fronts slipped. It had torque vectoring and would hustle down a back road faster than any pickup I've ever been in could. My current car, a Subaru WRX, has a very simple symmetrical AWD system. Basically all four wheels drive all of the time. There is a differential, so no worry about tires being slightly different diameters. As for that, I rotate my tires regularly (every oil change...it's not difficult) and I replace all 4 at the same time because they are normally all worn out at the same time. Other than changing the rear differential oil...there isn't much to maintain.
If you still doubt the advantages of AWD, then let me take you back to the 80's when Audi was penalized for an "unfair advantage" when their Quattro AWD equipped cars mopped the floor with every other make. Parnelli Jones and his AWD Indy car caused AWD to be banned from Indy car competition due to how much faster it was.
How Audi's Quattro system took racing by storm in the Eighties
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AWD is needed up here in New Hampshire for worry free Winter commuting, but I could deal with RWD if the car is not too nose heavy - Like an old C-body Buick from the mid sixties.
You are not getting up my driveway "ski slope" in the winter without it. It's hilly here, In packed snow, you are not getting through the light on a hill in the next town over - a major state highway.
I wish my manual VW jetta lease had it. That car would just spin tires in the rain and wheel hop like it was going to throw an axle as soon as the turbo hit. And it couldn't make it up my driveway unless it was treated with 300 lbs of sand up and down it.
A tool for the purpose intended. Don't need it? Don't consider it, Don't ruminate about it, Don't buy it.
You are not getting up my driveway "ski slope" in the winter without it. It's hilly here, In packed snow, you are not getting through the light on a hill in the next town over - a major state highway.
I wish my manual VW jetta lease had it. That car would just spin tires in the rain and wheel hop like it was going to throw an axle as soon as the turbo hit. And it couldn't make it up my driveway unless it was treated with 300 lbs of sand up and down it.
A tool for the purpose intended. Don't need it? Don't consider it, Don't ruminate about it, Don't buy it.
I generally prefer RWD cars- particularly on the track. I have never had a problem with a RWD car in winter weather as I usually fit a set of winter wheels/tires in November(which takes all of 30 minutes in my driveway or garage).
My C43 is the first AWD performance car I have purchased and I have to say I don’t find the AWD to be very intrusive- most likely due to the 31/69 F/R torque split, which allows a decent amount of rotation on turn-in. In any case, AWD was not a selling point; rather, I bought the car in spite of it being AWD.
Having said all that, you could not give me a FWD-biased AWD vehicle- but that’s just me.
My C43 is the first AWD performance car I have purchased and I have to say I don’t find the AWD to be very intrusive- most likely due to the 31/69 F/R torque split, which allows a decent amount of rotation on turn-in. In any case, AWD was not a selling point; rather, I bought the car in spite of it being AWD.
Having said all that, you could not give me a FWD-biased AWD vehicle- but that’s just me.
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The Equinox we just bought is AWD.I like the fact that it can be turned on and off. Winter in Michigan comes with some lessons and I am at the age where I need to make things as easy as possible. My gravel driveway is 6% at one point. Easy enough to get up when the snow is 6" or less but after that its time to shovel and I am getting too old for that.
I would take a Focus RS, or Golf R, without much complaint!
I think they get it mostly right.Maybe its mostly an SUV thing on lower grip surfaces, but getting rotation on turn in, especially when trailing the brakes a bit, has usually been quite easy. Its the transition to power on that most fwd biased systems stink at, as they tend to wait until the fronts slip a bit, you gets some understeer and then the rears kick in, and depending on the grip and AWD system, you can still understeer or go to a AWD drift.
