We started a little dispute with DIEHARD on page:

Diehard: Do you know the Sierra still had rear wheel drive, despite much of it's opponents having front wheel drive for a long time....

wickey: To be honest, it is not bad thing - for me the RWD is always better sollution than FWD.. And best is 4x4 definitely..

Diehard: It depends, if you want to race in summers, it is ok

But when there is lots of snow and ice in winters, or roads are slippery from light frost, it is a disadvantage.....

wickey: Definitely the best solution is AWD

My point is, that your commect sounds like RWD is outdated or something

Explorer4x4: Ford Tempo AWD.

wickey: Audi Quattro.

Diehard: It all depends on wherefor you buy a car. If you want the specific advantages of rearwheel drive, to have a more sporty roadholding, it is ok.

However if you look at it from a cost reduction point, it is better to have front wheel drive, you have to use less steel, so the car can be produced and maintained easier and cheaper (although I realise that doesn't apply to all cars). Besides it will be lighter, so it can run more economical. The safety issue should apply also to a vehicle that is produced for the mass, most people buy a car to get them from A to B, they can drive it safer in bad wheather conditions then with RWD.

Although in general speaking AWD is even safer then FWD, it is even more expensive than RWD to apply on cars....

I realise some manufacturers are choosing to stay on the RWD vehicles, but most other even including Alfa Romeo (which in my opinion isn't a good thing for them), have seen the advantages of FWD over RWD. Therefor it is considered to be outdated for mass produced vehicles, which are not produced by a manufacturer that has clearly chosen to stay on the RWD path...


wickey: Yes, you are right at this, but you look at it from a point of reapiring costs and construction easiness - the RWD always wins (if it has engine in front of course).
And for safe driving - it is easier to get RWD to slide, but quite easy to handle it. FWD if once in slide, it is a nightmare

Fortunately, most marks has AWD in sedans now (also Volvo, BMW etc..). If I have to decide, AWD is the best sollution

The truth probally lies somewhere in the middle

It is just I was once in a very sticky situation in a Sierra 2.3D on a dirt road in winter conditions...I sometimes barely ccould keep it up the road, and at one time I got stuck... (I probally would have gotten stuck with a FWD too...)

I would like to trie out a Volvo 240 however sometime again, I once drove one, but only a very short track...

well my 940 behaves on icy/frosty road pretty neutral - maybe it is also because I have about 70 more kg in the trunk (LPG-tank). But with 760 it was almost impossible to move (it was automatic transmission..) The true fact is, that for normal driving during the winter FWD is better - climbs better to hills (but I did not have problems with my either.) - well car from Sweden probably must drive on icy roads well

Well, I see the functionality of FWD because it carries the engine. And, AWD is functional because it is well, all wheel drive. You get the most traction with it. Ahh, the real reason I like AWD and FWD best is because those were the 2 Tempo drives.

RWD is fun, FWD is perfect for inexperienced drivers, and AWD is safe if you know how to use it.

I've never had a RWD for a daily driver. I'd like to though. The closest to a RWD daily driver I've driven was our old Aerostar. I don't recall ever spinning it out when it snowed.

Most of the FWD cars I've driven always understeered. I've heard it's suppose to be safer for a person who is inexperienced because it is less likely to spin out and cause worse damage.

I've never driven an AWD vehicle so I can't give an opinon about those.

And you know how to recognize understeer from oversteer? When you see the tree that you will hit, it is understeer; when you hear it, it is oversteer

this one is good

this is very true - my fathers previous vehicle as 1996 Grand Cherokee Laredo - it has permanent AWD - in case, you will come to a slide, all you have to do was to push the gas - a bit acceleration will help you out.
on current 1999 Grand Cherokee Limited (the newer model - Series II) it is not that easy - it seems like the RWD comes on only under certain circumstances.. So it handles most time like FWD and RWD comes on anytime, anywhere - more unstable to drive...

And that is the "progress"...

FWD is a crime against contact patches. If RWD is good enough for the track, it's good enough for the street. AWD is wonderful, unless it's one of the modern hodgepodge contraptions that decides for itself which end it wants to drive with. Pardon me, but I'll control the car, not vice-versa.

As has been said, RWD is great, for experienced drivers (or at least drivers who're willing to try and pay attention to what the car is doing). FWD basically exists to save gas, and combat natural selection

One little item missed in this discussion is the problems you can have with FWD and a turbo or powerful engine. The torque effect on steering can be downright dangerous if the turbo starts in a curve. Both my Saab 9-3 and Volvo C70 are prone to this problem. The Saab is worse than the Volvo I guess becasue it is lighter and has a manual transmission. The Saab can get really scary if you try to start fast while turning in an intersection and the turbo cuts in while in first or second gear. Can give you quite a thrill.

RWD cars are much easier to handle when high horsepower is available.