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Guest2019C20
Hi, everyone. I'm a 21-hour owner of a CX-5 GT w/AWD. I'm moving from a 2012 Subaru Impreza, and prior to that a (pos) 2006 audi a4 avant AWD (pos), my most enjoyable overall auto-a 2000 Subaru Outback Limited (with AWD, obviously), and my AWD journey started with a 1996 Eagle Talon AWD turbo (aka Mitsubishi Eclipse).
I moved to AWD after owning and burning the front tires off of a 1986 Honda Civic (with whopping 86 HP engine), and 1998 Honda CRX (with uber-whopping 105 HP).
I'm making this post so that future potential buyers of CX-5's have some idea of the every-day usefulness of Mazda's AWD, versus the often-proclaimed champ Subaru.
Some background on Subaru AWD. In the old days (2000), you could get genuine Limited-Slip Differential (LSD-not the drug!) rear differentials. That meant that you had genuine 3-wheel drive in ice-like traction conditions. Without that rear LSD, only one front wheel, and one rear wheel, would try to drive the car forward. I believe that LSD usage has almost disappeared, so that ABS braking can be used to stabilize the car when things get out of hand. It would also prevent locking up the rear 'axle', causing a spin.
If you've seen some videos of cars crawling sideways up a steep incline, you've seen how the lightly-loaded tires spin, and the other two tires just sit there uselessly. On modern cars, the ABS system is used to lightly brake those spinning tires, and because physics, this transfers torque to the non-spinning wheels. (You can do this with the brake pedal, and should, if you can't get unstuck, or don't have an ABS vehicle).
You also need some type of system to prevent this occuring from the front 'axle' vs the rear 'axle'. Older Subarus used a viscous fluid 'clutch pack'. This fluid stiffened up, and forced power to the rear wheels, when there was a significant difference between the front and rear wheel RPM. It could overheat, and might have lost some effectiveness over many years (I'm not sure about that).
The CX-5 uses a computer-controlled clutch pack to force power to the rear wheels. When you get a 4WD warning icon, it might be indicating that that clutch pack has slipped too much, and is too hot. Just like when a newbie tries to start a manual trans in 3rd gear...
My Impreza had a comp-controlled clutch pack, and there was constant confusion on web forums how that worked. The best sources indicated that it constantly varied rear-wheel torque percentage from 5% to 95%.
OK, now the observations. I could power-slide the 2000 Outback on snowy corners. When the car was new, I could also LSD the car straight off the corner, because the LSD was so locked up that the rear tires rotated in lockstep, overcoming the steering traction of the front tires. *That* was a surprise! In the 2012 Impreza, I could reliably spin all four tires at the same time, when stopped, then braking/part-throttle/releasing brakes. It was mostly impossible to power-steer thru a corner, since the stability control, and 'open' (not LSD) rear 'axle' wouldn't allow both rear tires to spin. With the CX-5, I can get all 4 tires to spin from a stop on snow. I can also (hallelujah!) power slide around corners (with TC/stability manually switched off). Stability control limits the amount that the rear end swings out.
Note that from what I've read, you can force the AWD into effect by one/some/all? of these: auto transmission in to manual control mode, wipers ON (telling the car that traction is limited due to wet/snowy roads). In my tests, I was in manual shift mode, and the wipers (front and rear) were ON.
Conclusion: for my needs-sporting driving, deep snow traction, and pulling a boat up a muddy/gravelly/wet boat launch, the CX-5 should provide power to all four wheels, making me a happy Mazda owner.
I welcome any corrections to my tech points!
I moved to AWD after owning and burning the front tires off of a 1986 Honda Civic (with whopping 86 HP engine), and 1998 Honda CRX (with uber-whopping 105 HP).
I'm making this post so that future potential buyers of CX-5's have some idea of the every-day usefulness of Mazda's AWD, versus the often-proclaimed champ Subaru.
Some background on Subaru AWD. In the old days (2000), you could get genuine Limited-Slip Differential (LSD-not the drug!) rear differentials. That meant that you had genuine 3-wheel drive in ice-like traction conditions. Without that rear LSD, only one front wheel, and one rear wheel, would try to drive the car forward. I believe that LSD usage has almost disappeared, so that ABS braking can be used to stabilize the car when things get out of hand. It would also prevent locking up the rear 'axle', causing a spin.
If you've seen some videos of cars crawling sideways up a steep incline, you've seen how the lightly-loaded tires spin, and the other two tires just sit there uselessly. On modern cars, the ABS system is used to lightly brake those spinning tires, and because physics, this transfers torque to the non-spinning wheels. (You can do this with the brake pedal, and should, if you can't get unstuck, or don't have an ABS vehicle).
You also need some type of system to prevent this occuring from the front 'axle' vs the rear 'axle'. Older Subarus used a viscous fluid 'clutch pack'. This fluid stiffened up, and forced power to the rear wheels, when there was a significant difference between the front and rear wheel RPM. It could overheat, and might have lost some effectiveness over many years (I'm not sure about that).
The CX-5 uses a computer-controlled clutch pack to force power to the rear wheels. When you get a 4WD warning icon, it might be indicating that that clutch pack has slipped too much, and is too hot. Just like when a newbie tries to start a manual trans in 3rd gear...
My Impreza had a comp-controlled clutch pack, and there was constant confusion on web forums how that worked. The best sources indicated that it constantly varied rear-wheel torque percentage from 5% to 95%.OK, now the observations. I could power-slide the 2000 Outback on snowy corners. When the car was new, I could also LSD the car straight off the corner, because the LSD was so locked up that the rear tires rotated in lockstep, overcoming the steering traction of the front tires. *That* was a surprise! In the 2012 Impreza, I could reliably spin all four tires at the same time, when stopped, then braking/part-throttle/releasing brakes. It was mostly impossible to power-steer thru a corner, since the stability control, and 'open' (not LSD) rear 'axle' wouldn't allow both rear tires to spin. With the CX-5, I can get all 4 tires to spin from a stop on snow. I can also (hallelujah!) power slide around corners (with TC/stability manually switched off). Stability control limits the amount that the rear end swings out.
Note that from what I've read, you can force the AWD into effect by one/some/all? of these: auto transmission in to manual control mode, wipers ON (telling the car that traction is limited due to wet/snowy roads). In my tests, I was in manual shift mode, and the wipers (front and rear) were ON.
Conclusion: for my needs-sporting driving, deep snow traction, and pulling a boat up a muddy/gravelly/wet boat launch, the CX-5 should provide power to all four wheels, making me a happy Mazda owner.
I welcome any corrections to my tech points!
