The AWD thread

Not to mention all your articles say the same thing that not one person here has argued: FWD + SNOW = better then AWD + All Seasons. We know that.
They also say: AWD does not help you stay ON the road. We know that, too.
 
7eregrine said:
Not to mention all your articles say the same thing that not one person here has argued: FWD + SNOW = better then AWD + All Seasons. We know that.
They also say: AWD does not help you stay ON the road. We know that, too.
Click to expand...

Bingo.

No one here is calling AWD some "magic I can now drive like I'm invincible" system.

But to say it does absolutely nothing? That IS deluded.
 
Although some do believe that, I don't think anyone here does.
I call those people: future tow truck customers. [emoji6]
 
ColoradoDriver said:
Bingo.

No one here is calling AWD some "magic I can now drive like I'm invincible" system.

But to say it does absolutely nothing? That IS deluded.
Click to expand...



Spot on. AWD is very helpful in snow and ice but only if the driver also knows the limitations both of themselves and of the system. It’s definitely not “invincible”.
 
Actually - I understand "murky".

If you have a FWD - your up-front costs: lower, your maint. costs: lower ; none of that hump in the interior. On top of that - if you happen to drive mostly in sunny conditions, nice roads, etc. : a FWD CUV is way to go. For example: try finding a AWD in Florida ; there people never buy AWD.

Next - let's just say my area: NJ/NY. Here it snows. What if I still buy a FWD but equip them with winter tires? That combo: I think its still better than AWD and all-season or at least mostly at par.
Now - if you couple it with overall driving habits, i.e. like murky mentioned - having had to use the All-wheel portion of AWD only couple of times then it does make sense to go for FWD.

I think it all depends on where (geography) you drive, type of driving done - urban/muddy/etc. and driver experience/preference.

Come to think of it - if I had to buy CX-5 all over again - will I buy the AWD or will I save that money - get a FWD and the $ delta spend on good quality winter tires and wheels instead? Dunno: tough one.
 
bmninada said:
Come to think of it - if I had to buy CX-5 all over again - will I buy the AWD or will I save that money - get a FWD and the $ delta spend on good quality winter tires and wheels instead? Dunno: tough one.
Click to expand...

That $1300 savings on a 18 GT won't last long if you buy a second wheel and tire set, OR if you have a second set of tires remounted 2x/yr. A lot depends on if you lease or own, and how long you'll be keeping it.

But as you pointed out, there's a lot more to consider than money.
 
I saved a lot of money on my AWD GT even buying new rims and tires.
I was looking at a Volvo that was $20,000 more.
[emoji16]
 
shadonoz said:
That $1300 savings on a 18 GT won't last long if you buy a second wheel and tire set, OR if you have a second set of tires remounted 2x/yr. A lot depends on if you lease or own, and how long you'll be keeping it.

But as you pointed out, there's a lot more to consider than money.
Click to expand...



I would think the resale value of the AWD vs FWD might be something to consider. The awd would sell faster as well
 
Yep.

It is harder to do donuts in an AWD, I will say that. Been trying the past few days. Haha
 
Its 02:30 here and looking out of the window I’m going to work in fresh snow again. My route is over some steep hills and although I could make it in a FWD, it would be a long way round. I simply wouldn’t make it in a FWD and there comes a point with an FWD where winter tyres wouldn’t help as the hills are just too steep. I have winter tyres on but I think given the choice, I’d rather chance it with the standard all season tyres than a FWD with winters. Sorry, but when the hills get steep, you can’t move over a ton of car without two axles driving.
 
anchorman said:
its 02:30 here and looking out of the window i’m going to work in fresh snow again. My route is over some steep hills and although i could make it in a fwd, it would be a long way round. I simply wouldn’t make it in a fwd and there comes a point with an fwd where winter tyres wouldn’t help as the hills are just too steep. I have winter tyres on but i think given the choice, i’d rather chance it with the standard all season tyres than a fwd with winters. Sorry, but when the hills get steep, you can’t move over a ton of car without two axles driving.
Click to expand...
qft
 
cbslc said:
Exactly my point. I bought used Mazda 6 rims for $90 and used snow tires - total of $360 mounted/balance, swapping out all tires for the seasons. Plus gas savings, ya its not much, but. Plus savings on maintenance.
I'm also saving wear on my summer tires, so it not like its exactly wasted money, it is saving you some wear on you "normal" tires.
If you're really concerned about resale, don't buy the CX5.

Here in Utah our air is nasty, so there is the intrinsic value that every increased MPG is less crap I have to breath. That saves me $$ in future health care costs. If everyone could save a few MPG, maybe we could all breath more easily.
I went from a '69 f-250 with posi-traction to a Subaru and thought, wow, I'll never go back to 2 wheel drive. After being bled dry by Subaru's, doing 180's in them and getting them high centered on snow. I realized, hey my wife's corolla made it up the same hill I just did and at 140k, its doesn't need 3k of work. So no more subie or AWD for me. And thank god Ford no longer makes posi-traction, I remember spinning out around curves if the road was even damp.
Click to expand...

qfr

where r=ridiculousness
 
7eregrine said:
Yep.

It is harder to do donuts in an AWD, I will say that. Been trying the past few days. Haha
Click to expand...

Harder than what- rwd yeah?? Mine pivots on the snow like Nancy Kerrigan.
"Hey Nancy Kerrigan, you an official here because you've officially given me a boner"
 
Monterra said:
Harder than what- rwd yeah?? Mine pivots on the snow like Nancy Kerrigan.
"Hey Nancy Kerrigan, you an official here because you've officially given me a boner"
Click to expand...
Shoulda got some Blizzaks, bro. Bwahaha
 
Nope Im good brah you're doing something wrong assuming we're talking snow here..maybe yours is really fwd (burnout)
 
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Nah. I could definitely spin a FWD. Probably not trying hard enough. There were cars parked in the vicinity so I may have been too timid on the acceleration.
 
I was sort of kidding blizzies do make it tougher those things really bite and sidewalls give but fwd donuts? In what reverse?
 
Sometimes the nannies still seem to want to shut down shenanigans..happens in my x1 drift car too;)
 
My 7 year old and I take donuts very seriously it either does them or it just does snow donuts and we have actually talked about how they can be achieved with fwd but we seem to agree awd or rwd. I tried 'growing up' with my very first fwd(prior to owning any awds) with a TL manual, one year of torque steer and coming closer to wrecking with winter tires than in any of rwds and that was enough! Part of that was inexperience with fwd, but big power at front wheels was no bueno in snow def scarier than it was fun. Couldn't ascend my driveway with much more than a dusting either so it really was a failed experiment
 
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