UmattWayO

still can't believe that I'm the only one who voted "have an AWD but want a RWD"
Does the AWD really make up for all the disadvantages compared to the RWD..
1. speed
2. coilovers - no choice, only BCR for AWD
3. no midpipe
4. no header
5. staggered set up without wrying about tranny
6. even if run staggered, can use stretched tires instead of beefy 275's in the rear

There's prolly more reasons that I haven't came across yet.
I love my car still, but I don't think the AWD really justifies all those things it lacks compared to the RWD..

SaintNexus

The majority of the reason why AWD is good, is for All weather conditions, but it loses power because of drivetrain drag.

I live in Southern California, worst weather I've experienced is heavy rain, other than that, mostly sunny 8)

So, I'm probably gonna go with a RWD, its faster, cheaper, and something that I'm used to.

Eurosport

don't forget awd weighs more too, i know several mentioned drivetrain drag, but let's not forget weight ;p

DAng87

iTrader: (1)

AWD has more drivetrain loss! which is the drag thats been talked about!

chikoo

With all the tcs and vsc in place i cannot justify the awd. Rwd is good

juice14

I wonder how the 350 awd would do around the track compared to the rwd 350.

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Poorly I suspect.


AWD does not improve handling.

It improves traction

Those are not the same thing.

If the car is not traction limited then the only thing AWD is doing is adding dead weight and drive-train and mileage loss.

For most drivers, under most conditions, you are not traction limited.

Hence, for most drivers, under most conditions, AWD is a total fail.


Now, on a 500 hp car? Sure, you're traction limited just about every time you apply a lot of throttle... AWD is great for those cars.

For a 200-300 hp car? Pretty much dead useless on a paved surface other than from a stop in the snow.

Good tires>AWD for pretty much any other situation on-road.


Remember folks, people got around just fine with RWD cars for most of the last century without killing themselves left and right. Even in Chicago. Even in Canada for that matter (where I lived for a while with a 1973 Chevy with RWD and a 5.7L V8 engine and had no trouble getting around in winter).

Because they understood the importance of the good and proper tires, and they knew how to drive a RWD car properly.

Both of those are vanishing traits sadly.

IXI187IXI

iTrader: (3)

its pretty simple to answer (well at least for me)

do you want to keep the car stock? Go with AWD
do you want to mod the car? Go with RWD

the RWD is more mod friendly then the AWD is.

OPTiK

Aren't you traction limited in rain/snow? Therefore AWD is not a total fail in those situations

Kurtz

iTrader: (1)

Not usually, no.

If you're trying to corner at 90 mph, and floor the gas on poor tires you might be I guess.

I've had no problems with my RWD 350 on good tires though in the rain when driving intelligently... (nor any previous car in the rain with good tires when I had under 400 hp)

Somewhat better case here... but again it comes down to how you drive and the tires you use. With good snow tires (not all seasons) you've got quite a lot of traction with just RWD in a lot of snow conditions.

Driving intelligently with good tires I've never had much trouble getting around in snow... again even in Canada, with a car much less advanced and with a bigger engine than the IS350.

But if you're trying to do drag racing in the snow, or get by with just some all-seasons, yeah, that would probably leave you traction-limited even with only 300 hp.


Still, in most cases, for most drivers, most of the time, they're not traction limited.... so AWD does them no good, while killing performance and mileage.


Giving up performance and mileage 100% of the time for something that might give a slight advantage in cases that 99% of the time you're not in seems like a poor trade to me.

Now, if you live someplace is actually snows the majority of the time (which is almost no where any 2IS driver lives) and/or you prefer to drive like a complete maniac in all weather conditions, the trade might be of more value to you. But very few folks who actually get talked into AWD cars are really in that situation.

BlkSapPrl7

so honestly who on this forum (assuming this is your only vehicle, and this depends on which region of the world you live in)...

perform 0-60 at every stop light everytime?
an optimistic 3%
(but yes the RWD is deffinately faster)



who has to drive somewhere when it snows?
roughly 75%
(yes the AWD cant handle bad conditions better)


statistic speaking.. not everyone put all potential Horsepower/torque to the ground everytime they drive. while the awd guy has to get somewhere in a blizzard. whats more useful?



ok now assume you have the funds to buy multiple cars. for $30k+ there are much faster cars for the value.

my main point is AWD is great for ME base on where i live... what are other choices for AWD luxury sedan? audi quatro, 4matic, subaru etc... if i live where it never snows, i would buy something a lot faster thats rwd.

Raralith

Drom a dig/off the line, the AWD will do better because you have 4 wheels in contact with the ground and all 4 pushing the car forward. From a roll/moving start, usually the RWD will win as more weight is transfering onto the rear tires while the AWD will be spending precious HP on the front wheels too which are getting much less weight. For people that don't autocross or track their cars, it really doesn't make a huge difference. Even if it was raining or snowing, you can do fine with a RWD as long as you don't drive like a maniac or idiot, and I'm sure most people wouldn't drive like that anyways even with an AWD.

chikoo

I fail to understand how folks cannot keep their gas pedals in check in adverse conditions...

Infra

iTrader: (1)

Not trying to be a jerk, but this is a totally uninformed post. Horsepower has nothing to do with daily driving. AWD, obviously, will prevent power-over drifting - but this is hardly a concern for those choosing the AWD version of the car.

AWD is slower because #1 it weighs more, and #2 the dynamics of how each setup drives. RWD is set up for early braking and acceleration through the apex - the acceleration transfers weight to the rear wheels, increasing traction - most RWD cars will oversteer on both too much throttle and on throttle lift. AWD can brake later in a turn, coast through, and accelerate once past the apex. Typically AWD is more balanced, but will understeer on acceleration.

On dry pavement, RWD is just plain faster.

*edit* Kurtz explained it well. AWD improves traction, not handling - it actually degrades handling. My example is about tracking a vehicle - for daily driving, AWD provides just about zero benefit.

OPTiK

Well I live in upstate NY where it snows a lot and going up steep hills can be a challenge when it snows everyday. Even with good snow tires on RWD, you'll still run into more trouble than AWD since you'll have all 4 wheels pulling as opposed to just 2 in the back.. which is also why people load their trunks to make the car heavier for better traction.