Thoughts on AWD cars?

[fawndog]

There's slippage in the Suby viscous drive (wrx), probably much less with a DCCD in the (STi)

 

[louemc]

Roll center and center of gravity are not the same thing lou

That's why I said Or I thought One of the terms might be right.

You said AWD isn't necessary...I say Horse pucky..It is necessary, even on wet roads...AWD is far more stable than two wheel drive...And I had a Saturn that actually had to be one wheel drive, and if that tire spun, Ya had No wheel drive.

 

[louemc]

Fair enough, I say the same thing really but.... I think there is a lot of placebo and marketing influence I've fallen for.

Just this morning I drove past Lou, figuratively, on hwy 4 in our ford focus. Bone stock base model. At the speeds one can reasonably maintain the handling was no better or worse than the S4 it replaced. If I could double the speed limit, I'd sing a different tune

Uhh, No one has driven past me on 4...What is figuratively?

 

[cleverusername]

If the tires have plenty of life left in them, you can always get the replacement tire shaved down to match the remaining tires.

no such issues in the evo. if that's true, that's absurd.

There's slippage in the Suby viscous drive (wrx), probably much less with a DCCD in the (STi)

subaru's front to rear torque handling/splitting system is one of those that briefs well on paper, but is disappointing in real life.

 

[louemc]

no such issues in the evo. if that's true, that's absurd.


subaru's front to rear torque handling/splitting system is one of those that briefs well on paper, but is disappointing in real life.

Well, that disappointing in real life sure, didn't come to light in my extreme skier days...Studded snow tires on all four corners..and every morning was a race up the mountain cause the hard cores want the first choice parking place, as well as first in the lift line to be first down the mountain in un-touched snow.

In those up the mountain races. No one ever passed me...I have no idea how many I passed, but...Mid thousands, would be conservative.

Those tires only saw snow...I had two sets of mounted tires...The other set were dry pavement, performance tires.

And the Subaru dominated World Rally racing as well.

And I had no mechanical problems or failures.

I'd say that is real life...Not on paper.

 

[auntiebling]

That's why I said Or I thought One of the terms might be right.

You said AWD isn't necessary...I say Horse pucky..It is necessary, even on wet roads...AWD is far more stable than two wheel drive...And I had a Saturn that actually had to be one wheel drive, and if that tire spun, Ya had No wheel drive.

If it's necessary then how do all those priuses stay on the road let alone get to the lift line?

Uhh, No one has driven past me on 4...What is figuratively?

Drove past opperopolis aboot 8am today. Close enough to your place to say I drove past and display the twistiness in question!

 

[cleverusername]

Well, that disappointing in real life sure, didn't come to light in my extreme skier days...Studded snow tires on all four corners..and every morning was a race up the mountain cause the hard cores want the first choice parking place, as well as first in the lift line to be first down the mountain in un-touched snow.

In those up the mountain races. No one ever passed me...I have no idea how many I passed, but...Mid thousands, would be conservative.

Those tires only saw snow...I had two sets of mounted tires...The other set were dry pavement, performance tires.

And the Subaru dominated World Rally racing as well.

And I had no mechanical problems or failures.

I'd say that is real life...Not on paper.

there's no question that when it comes to speed competitions in 4 wheel platforms that money wins, every time. the guy with the best r-comps wins, the guy with the best snow tires wins, because these types of events tend to draw like minded and similarly skilled folks. but several times i've experienced better skilled drivers lose to lesser skilled drivers on the basis of equipment differences directly tied to money.

on another note, picking proper races is another driver skill that most will never even get to try.

but when it comes to manufacturer level racing, the biggest budget especially always wins. mitsu has done a poor job of making desireable cars outside of the evo, and with sales down, hasn't competed much in any form of motorsport. not much of a win for subaru if no one else is showing up.

but real life, you know, where you are you're own backer, and the only thing that matters is how much you enjoy yourself if your vehicle? for me, the subaru platforms are several echelons below if terms of fun, and feedback, and excitement. but objectively, i can tell you the sti is not as robust given the same pricepoint, and will cost more in the long run. been there, done it.

 

[fawndog]

subaru's front to rear torque handling/splitting system is one of those that briefs well on paper, but is disappointing in real life.

Never tested the paper version. You should quantify what you're comparing it too, I'm assuming EVO.

 

[aminalmutha]

no such issues in the evo. if that's true, that's absurd.


subaru's front to rear torque handling/splitting system is one of those that briefs well on paper, but is disappointing in real life.

The more I read, the more apparent it is that you're braindead.

 

[louemc]

If it's necessary then how do all those priuses stay on the road let alone get to the lift line?

Drove past opperopolis aboot 8am today. Close enough to your place to say I drove past and display the twistiness in question!

Lift Line? I've yet to see a Prius with a ski rack, or a rugged looking driver,
So...Ima Don't Know.

Hope Ya had some clear-ish road in the twisties..It can be pretty thick at the Aboot 8:00am hour.

Rather dramatic difference at 6:30am, though, going up could be empty, with a few going down to the big cities.

Above Copper-ooplis, on an empty hwy4, you can haul ass, but below...It's cops fishing for a catch.

 

[cleverusername]

The more I read, the more apparent it is that you're braindead.

good one.

 

[racerXgirl]

welcome home, racerxgirl...


as per topic, gotta say which AWD system on which car makes a difference...

on the GTR, one of the most insane cars i was ever in, it is phenomenal and beyond my threshold...on the TL AWD, meh...it gets rather 'bland' ....on some cars like the sti, while nice it can give a false sense of confidence...i think subaru system also make you have to replace all of the tires if one of them gets a flat.. truth or myth, dunno..

all others on suv, there are some sophisticated ones like in the mdx and some very cheap but effective ones like in the crv..

read in magazine that most don't need awd..just good tires...

Hi John!!!!! <3 I'm not sure I could afford a GTR Not quite ready for a suv yet

 

[auntiebling]

It was empty enough that I wasn't catching anyone in my 2wd. Chp got me a few years ago on the way out at the bottom of the grade coming into town. I knew they would be theee too, just wasn't watciing the speedo and gravity helped me down the hill.

Anyway, plenty of 2x4 vehicles of all types make it ip the hill, Prius was just easy funny

 

[AbsolutEnduser]

if I see a woman in a Mazdaspeed or a Mitsu, I'd just assume she's either a teenager
Ok ok--or she's from the Danica Patrick team.

and there goes my contribution to the thread

I see the OP in what she's specified: the Subaru, the BMR X1 , or I'd suggest the Audi A3 (S-line AWD version, used), A4 (have quattro version), or A5

 

[Silence]

The poor OP.

This really shouldn't be a EVO vs STI thread.

 

[cleverusername]

The poor OP.

This really shouldn't be a EVO vs STI thread.

i'd suggest an outlander or an outlander sport from the last 3 years. the bigger one has a nice tailgate, 7 pax seating, and is a reasonable size and weight. the awd system is actually very good. like getting sideways around in dirt and snow if you want, very predictable, very nice driver's SUV.

 

[Reli]

You live in the East Bay? Then AWD is a waste unless you plan on going skiing at least 15-20 times a year. AWD hurts fuel economy, contains more parts that can break, and weighs more.

And please no Audis unless they're still under warranty.

 

[TheRobSJ]

I'm going to say that AWD is useful, especially in the wet, take my word for it she drives more aggressively than most guys. I'm not a fan of Subarus road noise either.

Does anyone have expierence with the Acura TL awd

I might have a little.

If you can stand the looks of the current gen TL (2009+), our SH-AWD system has been super super reliable.

Because of its torque vectoring operation it's really more for performance/fun driving than it is for getting unstuck from snow/mud.

 

[V4]

I might have a little.

If you can stand the looks of the current gen TL (2009+), our SH-AWD system has been super super reliable.

Because of its torque vectoring operation it's really more for performance/fun driving than it is for getting unstuck from snow/mud.

Is it true acura is coming out with an all new tl-x?

 

[OldMadBrit]

I have had a heavily modified 450HP Mitsubishi 3000 GT AWD Turbo since 1994 and have thrashed it every one of its 134,000 miles.

I picked up a brand new EVO IX MR in '06, wound the wick up to 420 HP and have wrung its neck also for 87,000 miles.

Both cars have been utterly reliable and absolutely brilliant in all conditions and on track.

After spending almost 20 years driving high HP AWD cars hard, I don't think I would be safe in a 2WD car anymore