Why Buy? Meet Our Staff. Customer Reviews. Leave Us a Review. Read Our Blog. Front-wheel drive versus rear-wheel drive, and all-wheel drive versus four-wheel drive. Your browser does not support the video tag. Front Wheel Drive versus Rear Wheel Drive Since the Ford Model T and actually before most vehicles manufactured and sold in the United States were rear wheel drive RWD , that is the engine was typically in the front, the transmission right behind it, with a drive shaft running back to rear axle to drive the rear wheels.
Front wheel drive FWD , on the other hand, features the engine under the hood in combination with the transmission sometimes referred to as the transaxle that directly delivers power to the front wheels. Despite the impression many people have that the wave of front wheel drive started in earnest with the invasion of the Japanese brands, even those models sold in the US until the mids were predominantly rear-wheel drive.
Each system has its unique advantages. Front wheel drive makes for a very compact engine compartment, with minimal intrusion into the interior cabin of the vehicle no large hump for the driveshaft, now just a smaller hump to route exhaust, fuel lines, etc. Front wheel drive also has certain advantages when the roads get slippery or icy. First, the bulk of the weight is over the front driving wheels which assists with traction. With a rear-wheel drive vehicle, the front tires might be initiating a turn but the rear wheels are still pointed straight ahead.
Excessive application of power at this point could cause a spin. Rear wheel drive is most commonly found on sports cars and performance sedans. A rear wheel drive car of the same weight, power, gearing, and tire size and type will accelerate faster than an FWD car, as the weight of the vehicle is transferred off the front wheels and onto the rear wheels to improve traction.
FWD cars typically lose traction in these situations. All Wheel Drive versus Four Wheel Drive Clearly, the biggest difference between these two systems is that all four wheels are delivering power at one time or another, versus FWD and RWD driving just a single axle each.
In a 4WD set-up, each axle front and rear is connected to the middle of the vehicle to a transfer case.
Four-Wheel and All-Wheel Drivetrains While there are important differences between the two, both 4WD and AWD are drivetrain types that transfer power from the engine to all four wheels of your vehicle. Since all the equipment is up front, they create more space and leg room in the back. Front-wheel drive has less components than any other drivetrain setup, making the vehicle lighter and improving its gasoline mileage.
There is greater tactile feedback through the steering wheel if the wheels are slipping. Front-wheel drive is a simpler system and tends to be less expensive to buy and maintain.
Front-Wheel Drive Cons Disadvantages : Since all the weight is located in the front of the vehicle, front-wheel drive cars tend to understeer. Front-wheel drive has worse acceleration than rear-wheel drive, which is why most sporty and race cars use rear-wheel drive.
With all the weight up front, front-wheel drive can make handling more difficult. Front-wheel drive repairs and maintenance may cost more since they have to remove more parts for workable access. Towing large loads is easier since the wheels doing the pulling are located closer to the load. Also, steering is much easier since the back wheels are providing the power while the front wheels do the work of steering.
Rear-Wheel Drive Cons Disadvantages : Rear-wheel drive may be more fun to drive, but it also makes it more difficult to master. There is less interior space due to more room needed for the transmission tunnel and driveshaft.
There may be less trunk room since more equipment must be placed underneath the trunk. The main advantage of the rear-wheel layout is that each set of tires has just one task, ensuring an equal amount of stress on both: The front set steers, while the rears handle the power.
Rear-wheel-drive cars can manage turns more smoothly as a result because the drive wheels aren't overtasked. The balanced feel of RWDs is why performance cars use the system. Rear-wheel-drive cars sometimes have more towing capacity than FWDs because the weight of the trailers gives the rear tires of the RWD more traction. Plus, the RWD's front tires, being less burdened than an FWD, can usually more accurately maneuver the trailer through traffic. Rear-wheel-drive vehicle platforms have more flexible designs, as the engine can sit in the front, middle, or back of the car, whereas front-wheel-drive vehicles require the engine to sit at the front.
RWDs can also handle larger engines because the weight and power of that larger powertrain are less likely to burden the front wheels. The ability to handle more power is why many law enforcement agencies continue to use rear-wheel-drive sedans as pursuit vehicles.
But because of vehicle construction changes over the decades, the durability differences between the front and rear-drive cars are less significant. Although rear-wheel-drive cars have many advantages over FWDs, their inferior traction remains a big drawback, especially when it rains or snows. Severely bad weather, such as a snowstorm, can make rear-wheel-drive cars very difficult for drivers to maintain control.
Less traction also means RWDs can't climb steep grades as easily or keep as tight a course on muddy or poorly paved roads. Getting out of snowbound parking spots is especially tricky for RWDs, helped only by manually selecting gears or through a preset snow mode on some automatic transmission-equipped vehicles.
If you plan to drive a rear-wheel-drive car just about anywhere during the winter, make sure the car has winter tires to avoid sliding on the road.
Also, rear-wheel systems are more complex than front-wheel ones, so they cost more to make and are more expensive on the lot. Also, most fuel-efficient modern cars don't have the power required to make advanced driving techniques easy to pull off with RWDs. If neither layout works for you, perhaps you're best off with an all-wheel-drive vehicle. AWD or four-wheel-drive systems provide power to all four wheels, ensuring a balance of traction and handling that's ideal for a wide range of driving conditions and the ability to handle high levels of power because of a differential that can distribute power between both the front and rear wheels.
AWD systems require minimal input to operate, while 4WD vehicles might require more configuration depending on the road surface or for off-road driving.
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