FWD vs. RWD. vs. AWD

[KnifeEdge_2K1]

See my post above. What is logical, not on what I read. I didn't through out facts as the truth, I threw out opinions to see if I was right.




You want more power to the outside tires for better cornering.

Is it benefitful only 10% of the time? maybe, but that 10% is the difference between a loser and a winner.

im talking about front rear bias through cornering

its beneficial 10% of the time and a hinderance the other 90, there's no free lunch, the added components add weight, which isnt bad if they're in use ALL the time since everything else will be designed around that, the skyline might have suspension setup optimized for rwd but once the awd components kick in itll be all jittery, its worse then rwd because you dont have the throttle control of a rwd car allowing it to throttle steer/power oversteer, and not as good as a normal awd since it adds so many extra perameters

[KnifeEdge_2K1]

Which has better performance is a bit ambiguous but the majority of racing cars , and certainly those built to a formula are RWD, so that must count for something?
As far as Im concerened having owned and driven all of them, rear wheel drive is the most fun and interactive.

not really, alot of rallying is done in fwd format since it optimizes front end grip and lowers maintenance (awd has 2 more differentials 2 more driveshafts bla bla bla), all of the MAJOR formulas are done in rwd because they have huge downforce cornering forces and power, a fwd with that ammount of power will be SIGNIFICANTLY slower then a rwd for obvious reasons but in a road car format not many cars have enough power to warrent switching to rwd instead of front, a well set up fwd car be just as fast as a comprable rwd car, the integra and civic type r are good examples

[KnifeEdge_2K1]

the skyline's awd system adds unneccessary complications which dont increase performance and THATs why its overrated, im sure a skyline with torsen diffs or regular clutch type lsds will do just as good, probably better then the fancy awd version (mainly due to lower weight) and active differentials like the ones used in the wrc rally cars will increase performance even better (the active diffs in the impreza and lan evo arnt really up to competition spec and only give minimal increase in performance over regular LSDs, the competition spec ones have alot more sensors perameters and conditions which it sorts out to determine the optimal torque bias)

[gtrjazz]

The Skyline R32 GTR has a AWD system that is light weight and also has a simple electronic over Hydralic operating system. It is the only way to deliver power without the torque loss that normal 4WD sytems get. This is why a 400 bhp Skyline can match and exceed most of the worlds super cars performance figures. You will find cars with more BHP, quicker quater mile times, and even quicker round the tight bends. But on the road or Fast track you are not going to keep up.

[jcp123]

I'm a rear-drive fan myself. I lot of people make a lot of hoopla about how hard it is to drive in rainy weather or other wet conditions, but I have no problems with it. Its reduced weight vs. AWD makes it a hard tradeoff to justify unless you're hitting the snow a lot. And AWD is far more complex, which means more servicing to be done and more parts that are highly stressed with a potential to break. AWD also gets expensive. And, when you want to, you can hang the tail out with RWD.

FWD to me is just lame. Although you can get decent performance out of FWD (as Matra pointed out to me), it takes a skilled driver, and most FWD cars are definitely not biased towards performance, and it's basically best suited to family cars, etc.

[KnifeEdge_2K1]

The Skyline R32 GTR has a AWD system that is light weight and also has a simple electronic over Hydralic operating system. It is the only way to deliver power without the torque loss that normal 4WD sytems get. This is why a 400 bhp Skyline can match and exceed most of the worlds super cars performance figures. You will find cars with more BHP, quicker quater mile times, and even quicker round the tight bends. But on the road or Fast track you are not going to keep up.

complete bullshit

[KnifeEdge_2K1]

The Skyline R32 GTR has a AWD system that is light weight and also has a simple electronic over Hydralic operating system. It is the only way to deliver power without the torque loss that normal 4WD sytems get. This is why a 400 bhp Skyline can match and exceed most of the worlds super cars performance figures. You will find cars with more BHP, quicker quater mile times, and even quicker round the tight bends. But on the road or Fast track you are not going to keep up.

everything you just said defies the laws of physics

[KnifeEdge_2K1]

I'm a rear-drive fan myself. I lot of people make a lot of hoopla about how hard it is to drive in rainy weather or other wet conditions, but I have no problems with it. Its reduced weight vs. AWD makes it a hard tradeoff to justify unless you're hitting the snow a lot. And AWD is far more complex, which means more servicing to be done and more parts that are highly stressed with a potential to break. AWD also gets expensive. And, when you want to, you can hang the tail out with RWD.

FWD to me is just lame. Although you can get decent performance out of FWD (as Matra pointed out to me), it takes a skilled driver, and most FWD cars are definitely not biased towards performance, and it's basically best suited to family cars, etc.

neither are alot of rwd cars, regardless of the drivetrain you still have to tune it for driveability performance ect. you cant have it all

rwd really isnt good for nething other then performance which is why most of the rwd cars are "sporty" since the driveshaft creates a bump in the cabin and longitudly mounted engines take up more room lengthways

[jcp123]

Trust me, I know you can't have it all. And while few cars are really tuned to performance hardcore, my point was that it's far easier and more effective as much from a physics as from a marking standpoint to tune RWD for performance than FWD. But then again, I thought that the question was asking about performance, not really anything else?

Yes, FWD can create a little more cabin space, though most of that comes from elimination of the tranny hump, not the driveshaft (youll notice that most FWD cars still have a small ridge going down the middle; sometimes, a backbone brace goes through there, or more commonly the exhaust is routed through there, or other things such as brake lines, fuel lines, etc. go in there. This helps them lower the car without sacrificing actual ground clearance). My point with that is that FWD has its advantages, just not really in a performance sense. I don't happen to like it, but that's more from the cars I grew up with than any rational reason; rationally speaking there's more I should like about FWD than RWD since handling is not really a concern of mine at all, and performance (read: acceleration) is only a secondary concern, and I prefer the additional room it gives.

[Matra et Alpine]

the driveshaft creates a bump in the cabin and longitudly mounted engines take up more room lengthways

No "bump" in the Matra - you eve get a third bucket seat in the middle of the cabin.
Or in the Alpine.
BUT, you do get a nice warm back when driving them "spiritedly"

[crisis]

a well set up fwd car be just as fast as a comprable rwd car, the integra and civic type r are good examples

This we will never know as nearly all fwd cars are smaller than larger RWD models. A fwd car cannot get the power done as successfully as a rear wheel drive car and that is why you dont see high powered front wheel drive race cars. The really powerfull rally cars are AWD.

[crisis]

They are RWD because of regulations. i'm sure if the regulations aloud it, they would all be AWD.

Ex: in ETCC Cars that are FWD can have sequential gear boxes and Cars that have RWD must have a manual gear box.. there's allways someone cuting legs in racing.

Sure. Im comparing with fwd.

[Koenigsegg_CC]

RWD is the best for road surfaces, 4WD for non-road surfaces and FWD if you are a fool

[Matra et Alpine]

FWD if you are a fool

So how come the Quantum is only one second slower than the Alpine round Crail track ?
1600cc 105hp FWD <-- EDIT: oopsie, woudl be nice with 1005 !!!
3000cc Turbo 260hp RWD

and whilst NOT on the same day ( but similar conditions ) , the A610 was a second a lap FASTER than a Subuaru WRX STi

So £1000 FWD versus £17,000 !!!!!

It's not as simple as one better than the other, there are different conditions where the FWD is better than the RWD because fo the tighter corners AND even better than the AWD because of tther ebeing ENOUGH grip and having less losses in the tranny

It's not all bad

[RS6]

Rear Wheel Drive for when it is sunny, and 4 Wheel Drive for when it isn't.