Quote:
Originally Posted by Hersbird
The FWDs that work work because they have the majority of weight on those wheels and having those wheels in front will always keep things straight. A RWD best case will have only 50% of the weight on the drive and always will those tires be fighting to stay right behind the front. Then there is AWD which really makes getting it done when you need to get it done, a done deal. So paying a few thousand more for it is a good deal. On a Tesla it's more like $15,000 more which is tougher to swallow but a necessity as the alternative is 3 season RWD, and around here that one season seems to be more like a 1/3 than 1/4.
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I was in Billings a couple weeks ago and it was mid 40s and no snow :P
A small percent of people, even in snowy regions, benefit enough from AWD to justify the purchase of it. As I've said, all cars are 4 wheel stop and 4 wheel corner, so it's only acceleration that AWD helps, and that can get inexperienced people into trouble.
Regarding rear wheel drive; it's superior to front wheel drive in nearly all scenarios given proper traction control because weight shifts to the rear when you accelerate, and asking the front wheels to both steer the car and provide acceleration is asking too much. All things exactly equal, a RWD vehicle in the hands of a sufficiently skilled driver would outperform a FWD car in the hands of an equally skilled driver.
Proper tires is all most people need. Some winter tires for winter and all-season for when it's no longer freezing.