If AWD doesn’t help cornering much, why do they put it on Lamborghinis and other high end sports cars?
AWD has been proven by Popular mechanics, I believe, to be supiror to FWD in their test vehicle, and it wasn’t even a full time AWD system either.
You should have seen some of the early 4wd conversions on cars, out of sight- anyway AWD is agood thing if you need it.Kinda like the old IRS vs live axle(remember what Von Richtofen said," its not the machine,but the man in the machine"-Kevin
Kmccume…".awd is a good thing if you need it" I agree. I also feel that compared to cars of old, newer cars with low profile tires, generally do much worse in snow. Add to that with the trend toward better mileage with lower clearance and ground effects, you now have a general greater need for awd.
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A 1963 Chevy Biscayne had standard 7.5 by 14 tires. That’s a tall tire on 14 inch rims. That is a very high profile by today’s standard with much better point loading for snow traction. A large heavy car with these rims will handle poorly but give much better winter traction potential, even with rwd. Early VWs, SAABs etc. all had very high profile tires, in rwd or fwd, they had good snow traction. I would argue, that there is a need for awd when you actually compare the poor 2wd snow traction of today’s cars. Awd, IMO, is a symptom of the times. Look around. Compared to just ten years ago, there are so many more AWD cars on the road, and many more to come. OP is justified in asking. Most modern cars handle much better but are so much worse in snow, they need all the help they can get.
Even a 2WD Farm tractor seemed to do better in certain conditions with aforementioned setup.They tell me(or picked it up somewhere) that the old vehicles with the the tall and skinny were better in snow.If you can’t float better try to get a grip.The best tires I ever seen in wet snow,were the Bias ply “Pennsylvania Turnpike” M&S tires.(Had a tread pattern similar to a Armstrong “Norseman”-Kevin PS my Grandma had a 63 Biscayne or Bel Air,what was the difference?
I don’t recommend the tip over Ranger. Silverado / Sierra are good because you don’t have to pole vault to get to the seats like some Fords. It’s easy to recover a long pickup if the rear wheels slip in 45 MPH slush. SUV’s not so easy.
Speaking of tires. For the last 8 years I have been using these on my truck. http://www.bing.com/shopping/search?q=pacemark+tires&qpvt=pacemark+tires&FORM=HURE
They have phenomenal heavy/ wet snow traction as well as mud. They ARE very long wearing as they are old technology and made of firm rubber and require studs to be good on ice and hard pack. So, if you live in more snow than ice conditions, and want inexpensive, long lasting tires, don’t mind a little extra noise, these are the ticket.
Old tech under the right conditions, still works, especially on trucks with higher profile tires.
My sister and brother in law swore by their Audi A4. They got it used for $6000- since it was a wagon, they could tote a crap ton of stuff around. They lived on the Continental Divide in CO- handled like a dream in the snow. They did switch tires in winter, but they lived in literally the least populated county in the US. Road plowing was not always done on time! I did fine in Flagstaff, AZ with an Isuzu Rodeo with all-terrain tires. In retrospect, I would have bought a car rather than an SUV, though. If your daughter isn’t used to snow, turning can get scary. The less tippy the vehicle, the better.
Good looking tire Dagosa,funny thing artound here,you get a tread design you like and the next time you want it,its been discontinued.Maybe its a moot point,havent had no winter to speak of around here for a couple of years now,havent even had the mud season the thaws used to trigger.Is it just me or is the Sun more luminous now? Rubber and paint,disinergrate and fade at a phenominal rate now,and it feels like my skin smokes when the sunlight strikes it-Kevin
I hear you. The best investment I ever made for my cars, was to get them out of the garage, for which there was no room otherwise, and get them under a carport which is more often used then any garage. The Canadians on the way to Quebec seem to be dominated by carports and not garages.
Hey Dagosa, been out of circulation for a couple of years now,but my Daugther came of age(driving permit age) and took my mirror and right fender to the cleaners back in January,on the post of the carport.Just so happened ,I had presence of mind to anchor my Carport in concrete and reinforce the roof system and it still stands- one of the best investments I ever made,keeps the sun ,rain and snow off of my pickup-Well worth it.Kevin
Just to get back on topic and still relate carports…how often have you seen cars unable to get out of even a plowed parking area with lots of parked cars because of the snow left behind. We have a local senior citizen assisted living that provides car ports where the plow can clear more easily to the back of the car and allowing the car better access to the street. People then don’t have the feeling they need 4 wd just to get to the street. Just getting to classes or work in the morning can be a chore. School parking lots, especially here and perhaps in Mt. are notorious for poor snow removal around cars. Great way to idle your car to warm up the interior in relative safety as well…good poor weather party enclosures and overhead storage areas, when built stong like yours and mine Kevin. Carports are under appreciated IMO.