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FWD vs AWD

B1GEast

B1GEast

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For an SUV, is this a big difference?

I don't care about fuel economy, just safety

I know fwd can fish tail, just curious overall

My preference is AWD
 
WhereistheDove? said:
Definitely safer in rain. The safety difference in snow is MASSIVELY overblown. AWD will help you get going in snow but it doesn’t help with steering or stopping and I see a lot of folks that get very overconfident because they have AWD.

FWD and winter tires will be far safer than AWD and all seasons if that’s all you’re worried about. AWD and winter tires will be a tank.
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Agree on the tires. More important for snow than many people realize, though I disagree on the control. Maybe not going 75 but in going through heavy snow y get much better control with awd
 
Went from a Dodge Journey FWD to Subaru Ascent AWD and safety in rain and snow is night and day.

Subaru had snow/ice mode where if a wheel slips and spins it diverts energy and power to the other three wheels.

We park in back of our place via an alley that gets icy. Dodge was like being on skates…Subaru like walking.

X mode is 30mph or lower though.
 
B1GEast said:
For an SUV, is this a big difference?

I don't care about fuel economy, just safety

I know fwd can fish tail, just curious overall

My preference is AWD
Expand ...
FWD is an abomination. I'd rather have RWD than FWD, at least you can control the car with the throttle. FWD prone to torque steer and if you lose traction you also lose steering. Should only be used on low power small cars.

Snow tires indeed are superior, but let's be honest, nobody in southern New England uses them. Certainly not south of here. AWD with rear wheel bias, like most German SUVs and the Ford Explorer, is your best bet. Neutral systems like Subaru's are good too. AWD with front wheel bias is better than FWD. Side note, Ford switched the Explorer to RWD because the police required it.

For anyone who grew up with RWD, you probably learned how to steer with the throttle. A RWD car sliding can end the slide, not by braking, but by applying the gas. AWD gives you some of that same capability, depending on how much goes to the rear.
 
Lafayette said:
Went from a Dodge Journey FWD to Subaru Ascent AWD and safety in rain and snow is night and day.

Subaru had snow/ice mode where if a wheel slips and spins it diverts energy and power to the other three wheels.

We park in back of our place via an alley that gets icy. Dodge was like being on skates…Subaru like walking.

X mode is 30mph or lower though.
Expand ...

A computer controlled AWD will always do better than having a human at the controls.
 
/thread

AWD: Pros & Cons (Very Popular in CT)​

✅ Pros​

1. Excellent for New England weather
  • Automatically sends power to the wheels with grip
  • Great for snowy roads, freezing rain, slush, wet leaves
2. “Set it and forget it”
  • No buttons or levers to engage
  • Works seamlessly in changing conditions (dry → snow → dry)
3. Better fuel efficiency
  • Lighter systems than 4WD
  • Many AWD SUVs disengage rear wheels when not needed
4. Better on-road comfort
  • Smoother handling
  • Quieter and more car-like ride
5. Wide availability
  • Most compact and midsize SUVs offer AWD

❌ Cons​

1. Not designed for extreme off-road use
  • Limited ground clearance
  • No low-range gearing
2. Can cost more upfront
  • Usually a $1,500–$2,500 option
3. Maintenance can be slightly higher
  • More components than FWD

Common AWD SUVs You’ll See in CT​

  • Subaru Outback / Forester
  • Toyota RAV4 AWD
  • Honda CR-V AWD
  • Mazda CX-5 AWD
  • Lexus RX AWD

4WD: Pros & Cons (Overkill for Many CT Drivers)​

✅ Pros​

1. Superior in deep snow and rough terrain
  • Excellent for:
    • Unplowed roads
    • Steep rural driveways
    • Mud, sand, trails
2. Low-range gearing
  • Helps crawl through snowbanks or pull heavy loads
3. Tougher systems
  • Built for abuse and heavy-duty use

❌ Cons​

1. Worse fuel economy
  • Heavier drivetrain
  • Often always engaged when in use
2. More driver involvement
  • You may need to switch modes (2H / 4H / 4L)
  • Using 4WD incorrectly on dry pavement can cause drivetrain wear
3. Higher cost
  • Purchase price + maintenance + fuel
4. Less comfortable for daily commuting
  • Stiffer ride
  • Larger turning radius

Common 4WD SUVs​

  • Jeep Wrangler / Grand Cherokee (some trims)
  • Toyota 4Runner
  • Ford Bronco
  • Chevy Tahoe / Suburban

The Connecticut-Specific Recommendation​

✅​

If you:
  • Commute daily
  • Drive highways and town roads
  • Deal with snowstorms but also plenty of dry pavement
  • Want good fuel economy and comfort
AWD + good winter tires will outperform 4WD with all-season tires in most real-world CT driving.

✅​

  • You live in a rural or hilly area
  • Your road or driveway is rarely plowed
  • You regularly:
    • Tow heavy loads
    • Go off-road
    • Drive in deep, unmaintained snow

One Important Truth (Many People Miss This)​

Tires matter more than AWD vs 4WD.
Expand ...
  • AWD helps you go
  • Tires help you stop and turn
In CT winters:
  • AWD + winter tires = best overall setup
  • 4WD + all-season tires ≠ unstoppable

Bottom Line​

For Connecticut:
  • ✅ AWD SUV → best balance of safety, efficiency, and convenience
  • ⚠️ 4WD SUV → only if you truly need heavy-duty capability
 
.-.
Lafayette said:
Went from a Dodge Journey FWD to Subaru Ascent AWD and safety in rain and snow is night and day.

Subaru had snow/ice mode where if a wheel slips and spins it diverts energy and power to the other three wheels.

We park in back of our place via an alley that gets icy. Dodge was like being on skates…Subaru like walking.

X mode is 30mph or lower though.
Expand ...
You lost me at Dodge to Subaru.
 
HuskyHawk said:
FWD is an abomination. I'd rather have RWD than FWD, at least you can control the car with the throttle. FWD prone to torque steer and if you lose traction you also lose steering. Should only be used on low power small cars.

Snow tires indeed are superior, but let's be honest, nobody in southern New England uses them. Certainly not south of here. AWD with rear wheel bias, like most German SUVs and the Ford Explorer, is your best bet. Neutral systems like Subaru's are good too. AWD with front wheel bias is better than FWD. Side note, Ford switched the Explorer to RWD because the police required it.

For anyone who grew up with RWD, you probably learned how to steer with the throttle. A RWD car sliding can end the slide, not by braking, but by applying the gas. AWD gives you some of that same capability, depending on how much goes to the rear.
Expand ...
An abomination is a little strong and subjective. There is a reason why car manufacturers went from RWD to the more expensive FWD. And there are not many people under the age of 50 that grew up with RWD. Steering with throttle is a thing of the past with traction control. And torque steer has largely been eliminated with better design. It is not a given that you will have massive torque steer in a FWD car.

Whether you need AWD in CT depends on where you live. Steep hill in Litchfield? AWD. New Haven? FWD is fine. AWD is still better if the car you want comes with that option and you can afford the higher price. If not, FWD is fine. If not climbing snowy hills but needing to drive on occasionally snowy roads (most people in CT), I would take Blizzaks and FWD over mediocre all-seasons (people way too often cheap out on tires) and AWD. AWD plus Blizzaks is the best option. If you are opposed to a stack of wheels in your garage, and refuse to run Blizzaks in the winter, go with AWD and don't be cheap when buying all-season tires. Tires are critical to safety. Too many people don't think they need them, until they do. And then they usually overlook how better tires might have avoided the situation. I'm not talking about being rear ended or T-boned. I'm talking about some dumba$$ changing lanes into you on RT91 at 75MPH on a wet or snowy road. Your ability to retain control while slamming on your breaks and swerving will ABSOLUTELY be impacted by your tires!!! People don't need to buy the absolute best tire at twice the price but don't drift too far down the list.
 
B1GEast said:
For an SUV, is this a big difference?

I don't care about fuel economy, just safety

I know fwd can fish tail, just curious overall

My preference is AWD
Expand ...

I have driven 11 zillion miles from Dutchess County to New York City over the past 25-ish years. Have had front, rear and four wheel drive cars. Rear wheel drive can be an adventure in the snow, but I've never wished that I had four wheel drive when I was driving a front wheel drive car.

WhereistheDove? said:
Definitely safer in rain. The safety difference in snow is MASSIVELY overblown. AWD will help you get going in snow but it doesn’t help with steering or stopping and I see a lot of folks that get very overconfident because they have AWD.

FWD and winter tires will be far safer than AWD and all seasons if that’s all you’re worried about. AWD and winter tires will be a tank.
Expand ...

Bingo. Tires, tires, tires, tires.

Have proper tires and you're fine.
 
.-.
To make a point on one of the posts. Summer tires are not really all season tires. Two different things. You can get all season tires that are very capable in the snow. Some even have the 3 Mountain Peak certification for heavy snow, though they technically are not snow tires.

A lot of people make a poor decision on what tires to buy because big brands like Michelin are so expensive. I learned several years ago that Walmart sells a lot of very good tires at low prices. We use them for work trucks and some of them are unreal. For instance, I had a set of Nitto Ridge Grapplers on my truck. They were like $1500. When I made it a work truck, I wanted to put new tires on it. I found Blackhawk Ridgecrawlers at Walmart for $600!!! Great tires and heavy snow rated (not that I see snow down here). Awesome knockoff at a great price. Almost all reviewers like them too. They have many others available that are very well liked, good quality and affordable. The key is to shop Walmart.com, not in store. They will ship your tires to a Walmart Tire Center and install them. You get a lot more options that way vs walking into the store. If you are a brand snob, they have Cooper, BF Goodrich and many other big brands. The prices are still a lot better than the tire stores. Alot of people drive on completely worn tires and worse, they let their kids drive on them. If you NEED tires, go buy some at Walmart. Worn tires are a death wish.
 
Last edited:
If you experience snow or frequent rain and are indifferent to the gas mileage loss (typically just a few mpg anyway these days), higher purchase cost, and potentially higher repair costs an AWD drivetrain is the best choice IMO for your use.

I wrote a bunch more but the above is the direct answer and really doesn't need to go any farther.
 
I have a Chevy Trax. I fishtailed a few times during the last snowstorm. Overall I like the Trax a lot.
 
Lafayette said:
To be fair, the Dodge Journey is a meh vehicle to begin with, and is not even remotely "Dodge" material.
Expand ...

My dad used to own a '69 Dodge Dart GTS 440. Then my mom made him sell it once she had another child, so he wound up getting that early 70s Dart, which was more or less a castrated version of the muscle car it once was.
 
.-.
Chin Diesel said:
That's a bit of a d!k comment.

Go8ng from a FCA vehicle to a Subaru is a good step up in quality and performance.
Expand ...
The point is that you can't base AWD vs FWD when it is Subaru AWD vs Dodge FWD. Honda or Toyota would be better for the comparison.
 
I bought a FWD a couple years ago but our AWD is bigger and safer.

we learned to drive on a 5 speed sub-compact with rear wheel drive. Man were those cars fun to drive. The best was practicing fishtailing on empty snowy roads so it became automatic when it happened accidentally. Most of us learned that way. Granted cars today are so much safer but the kids are cheated out of really learning to drive.

we used to have a small FWD volvo but I couldn't make it up a steep driveway with a small amount of snow on it. I finally realized I had to turn off the automatic traction control in order to allow the wheels to spin and grip. I don't care for all of the automatic stuff on cars these days.
 
Kolumbo said:
I bought a FWD a couple years ago but our AWD is bigger and safer.

we learned to drive on a 5 speed sub-compact with rear wheel drive. Man were those cars fun to drive. The best was practicing fishtailing on empty snowy roads so it became automatic when it happened accidentally. Most of us learned that way. Granted cars today are so much safer but the kids are cheated out of really learning to drive.

we used to have a small FWD volvo but I couldn't make it up a steep driveway with a small amount of snow on it. I finally realized I had to turn off the automatic traction control in order to allow the wheels to spin and grip. I don't care for all of the automatic stuff on cars these days.
Expand ...
I can remember my dad encouraging me to lock up a car at low speed on a snowy road so I could feel what a slide felt like and learned how to steer out of it. I did the same with my kids. Nothing teaches like experience.

Let me add my voice to those saying that the impact of tires is highly underappreciated. Switching over to snow tires in the winter is probably the optimal solution, but I haven't done it in decades
 
Woof said:
An abomination is a little strong and subjective. There is a reason why car manufacturers went from RWD to the more expensive FWD. And there are not many people under the age of 50 that grew up with RWD. Steering with throttle is a thing of the past with traction control. And torque steer has largely been eliminated with better design. It is not a given that you will have massive torque steer in a FWD car.

Whether you need AWD in CT depends on where you live. Steep hill in Litchfield? AWD. New Haven? FWD is fine. AWD is still better if the car you want comes with that option and you can afford the higher price. If not, FWD is fine. If not climbing snowy hills but needing to drive on occasionally snowy roads (most people in CT), I would take Blizzaks and FWD over mediocre all-seasons (people way too often cheap out on tires) and AWD. AWD plus Blizzaks is the best option. If you are opposed to a stack of wheels in your garage, and refuse to run Blizzaks in the winter, go with AWD and don't be cheap when buying all-season tires. Tires are critical to safety. Too many people don't think they need them, until they do. And then they usually overlook how better tires might have avoided the situation. I'm not talking about being rear ended or T-boned. I'm talking about some dumba$$ changing lanes into you on RT91 at 75MPH on a wet or snowy road. Your ability to retain control while slamming on your breaks and swerving will ABSOLUTELY be impacted by your tires!!! People don't need to buy the absolute best tire at twice the price but don't drift too far down the list.
Expand ...
Did you say more expensive? The reason they switched it because it’s so much cheaper. Far less expensive.
 
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