The article makes some valid points but it amounts to a posture piece.

The significant detail is, as long as it is reasonable to get some traction, awd or 4wd does a better job at accelleration and cornering than 2wd, all things being equal. The article acknowledges this. The key reason for this is the chronic to critical under steer that occurs with rwd may be less so with awd/4wd.

In other words, if the car is on sheer ice, awd isn’t going to make a difference, but if there is some ability to get traction, awd will do a better job than 2wd. Unless there has been freezing rain, there is nearly always some traction possible on snowy roads.

But I agree that good winter tires make all the difference. I use Nokian WR on both my vehicles and they make a vast difference in winter performance. I also drive probably 10K miles or > a year on mountain roads with lots of snow and ice. Even with great tires, I’ll take the awd vehicle over the 2wd vehicle when there is snow and ice on the road.

Let's look at this statement.

Clearly, the 4wd vehicle does a better job at acceleration.

However, I fail to see how the 4wd vehicle can do a better job in cornering. The capability of the tire generating sufficient friction between the road surface and the face of the tread is the sole governing factor as to whether it rolls or skids. Whether that tire is powered is irrelevant. If the tire doesn't have sufficient friction, it will not follow the desired path of the driver, whether it has the capability of accelerating, or not.

I believe you confuse the capability to "accelerate and corner" on surfaces that provide the necessary traction with the true capability of cornering at the limit (which is really the only concern). At the limit, the driver has most assuredly removed his right foot from the go pedal and the vehicle is now, effectively, a moving body without any propulsion............thereby effectively rendering the argument for 4wd moot.

It is fascinating to watch how many folks believe in the cornering capability of a 4wd vehicle, simply because it can go faster in poor conditions. It fully explains why so many of them end up on their roofs.

When you go into a slide with most any 4 wheel drive (AWD), people's natural tendency is to let up on the gas pedal. Doing this alone, is the worst thing one can do. Years ago, most cars were rear wheel drive, so when you let up on the gas, and kept your front wheels facing forward (steering in the direction), the rear wheels will drag (as in braking), and the front wheels will continue to roll. This causes the car to straighten out. It is also what most drivers will naturally do when they start sliding.

When you let up on the gas pedal with most 4 wheel drive (AWD), this causes all 4 wheels to, in effect, brake, which only makes the problem worse. That is why the SUV driver lost control of his vehicle and challenged the 18 wheeler. With 4 wheel drive (AWD), you actually want to maintain or slightly increase the gas, and steer in the direction. This should (with superior tires) put the car back on course (front wheels pulling in the direction and not sliding). The other alternative is not for people that cannot chew gum and walk at the same time. My 1997 Explorer, for example, had the emergency brake release left of the steering wheel and the pedal beneath it. You can let up on the gas if you pull the release button while using the parking brakes to slow down the rear wheels faster than the front while steering in the direction.

Most 4 wheel drive and AWD vehicles are truly lacking. The real 4 wheel drive cars (trucks) include the Jeep, the Rovers, Toyota Land Cruisers and Hummer to list a few. There is one major issue with every other 4 wheeler I can think of. They do not have a proper High/Low gearbox, which makes them way under-powered for many situations (and where they have a "low" it is not nearly low enough. Their "low" speeds may be as high as 85% of the high speeds. I will give you an example with my 1997 Explorer. It was a large V-8 with AWD, and the snowplows in my town would pile up about a foot of snow at the bottom of my driveway. This stuff is really heavy, and almost impossible to get thru. After struggling in "low" gear and lodging the car somewhat I found that I had to rock my way out. It came abundantly clear that you could easily burn out the transmission (because of its high gear, like any car) or the transfer case with this situation.

I had a Land Rover, and while not dependable (computer went out twice in its first year of existence), it truly is a great 4 wheel drive vehicle. In the lowest gear in low drive, the car could only manage 6-8 MPH. The Ford would do 60 in "low gear." I could have driven the Land Rover all day with no effort through the packed foot of snow (1 in 1000 of us may encounter situations we need to do stuff like this with any regularity). One more example about the Land Rover. I had this 4' x 4' x 4' evergreen bush about 20' from my concrete driveway. Even digging down a foot around the base of the shrub and using a 30', 30,000 pound nylon strap, the Land Rover showed no signs of extracating this bush. I had it in low-low and all 4 tires were spinning on the concrete and the truck started to go sideways. I stopped that follie in a hurry and had to dig this little bush out by hand.

Front wheel drives do just OK because of the 60-40 front to rear weight ratio. This advantage lessens when you put more weight in the rear (passengers).

Ford charges almost $3,000 for the priviledge of 4 wheel, but the unspoken part is that they had to spend twice for the muffler system. The transfer box gets in the way of the dual muffler system, so instead of costing $1,100-1,200 to replace, it is about twice that. Instead of one simple catalytic converter, my 1997 had two simple catalytic converters that went into one very costly catalytic converter in the middle with a bunch of extra oxygen sensors. The only one coming out on top in this deal is Ford.

I am highly unlikely to waste my money on another 4 wheeler. What is better for most people? Years ago, we bought a Ford Aerostar, brand new, so I bought only the features we needed. Vans are notorius for their light rear ends and problems in snow, so for $140, I bought Ford's "towing package." I forget what all it included, but one feature was the limited-slip differential. I believe Ford still offers this on their rear wheel drive vehicles, and maybe for about the same money. This Aerostar was a six cylinder, and it made the Explorer look foolish. The Aerostar had all-weather tires, not expensive ATVs, but in 10 inches of snow, I could push the pedal to the floor and this thing would take off like a rabbit and leave the Explorer in its dust, with very little slippage. Consider the added weight of the Explorer, with all the loss of power it faces with two gear boxes (and considering its high-high and high low trans) and four bulky wheels, it was a dog. The Aerostar also had a high ground clearance, and it outperformed the Explorer across the board. The differential on many of these AWD cars is "touring" gear ratios. The Explorer would turn 2,000 RPM at somewhere around 70 MPH if I remember correctly. In short, the Aerostar, despite its light rear end and limited slip differential has out-performed every 2 wheel front drive and every 4 wheel or AWD car I have owned, and for a lot less money.

It makes me wonder if there is any AWD car out there today that could beat the performance of a rear wheel drive, limited slip difference car. If it does, it probably is not worth the $3-5,000 or more you pay for the highly sophisticated systems on some cars. Many are still not proven. I still prefer to park my own car, and I still prefer driving my own car out of emergencies.

If you think 4wd is not better at cornering you probably have never went against one at the autocross. The subies are dominant in their class, beating out more powerful M3 BMWs as if they are air cooled VW beetles. If the subies had better weight distribution they would be even tougher.

Also you will note that after the 4wd turbine cars were so dominant at Indy they were outlawed at Indy and in F1. In off road ralleys they are the thing to have if you want to compete.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

This thread's getting out of hand - but it makes for some good reading.....(I guess.)

Lots of automotive expertise/opinion, as well as ancillary rumor/accusations flying around from old wounds & scores trying to be settled...

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'06 E320 CDI
'17 Corvette Stingray Vert

When my wife got her 300E stuck on a friends street in 6" of slush/ice/sleet on the street, I cruised on over in my 300SD, put a tow cable between our tow hooks and proceeded to drag the 300E about 1,200 feet uphill to the main road without an issue. She only told me afterwards that she had been on the brakes for half of it! I never noticed The 300E also had a lot of what was on the street on the hood/window.


617 power forever!

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-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

My Subie feels very planted on the road and it likes to go up to 80-90 MPH and stay there. Of course those speeds would be a little crazy in the rain or snow, but I'm still able to comfortably go a little faster than the herd. There is less chance of fishtailing since all four wheels are pushing or getting engine braking at the same time (at least with the manual trans, not sure about automatics). It is confidence-inspiring, though I'm always aware that there might be a false sense of security, and common sense should dictate. Getting the best tires you can afford is more important than any particular drive system.

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma

Common sense never dictates. Certain people drive at speeds that are ridiculous and then they claim the "slippery road" caused them to end up with the vehicle on it's roof. Somehow those four driving wheels didn't help them all that much, despite the claims of their friends and the vehicle manufacturer.

Once day, when they kill somebody, they might get some common sense for the remainder of their lives and realize that their excessive speed got them to their destinations a good two minutes faster than the traffic that actually had the common sense in the first place.

The average person is a moron.

I can't wait to see the lawsuits regarding the new lane departure warning systems and automatic collision avoidance. (Gee, my car was supposed to avoid that truck!) I suspect lots of high priced lawyers and lots of black box evidence will be involved.

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1985 380SE Blue/Blue - 230,000 miles
2012 Subaru Forester 5-speed
2005 Toyota Sienna
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
1999 Toyota Tacoma

Reminds me of those stories of people who turn the cruise control on and go off to do something else thinking the car will drive itself

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1982 300GD Carmine Red (DB3535) Cabriolet Parting Out
1990 300SEL Smoke Silver (Parting out)
1991 350SDL Blackberry Metallic (481)

"The thing is Bob, its not that I'm lazy...its that I just don't care."

AWD or 4WD will make a vehicle traveling on slippery highways more stable. here is why....if it is very slick, if only two wheels are driving it is able to lose traction with the driven wheels and the vehicle will slew to one side or the other. If FWD that will mean it will simply begin to plow off the road.

I have driven my Montero on slippery highways and in windy conditions I stopped and engaged 4wd high range and straight line stability improved markedly.

I am a rear drive lover and find in most cases 2wd with no LSD is just fine but particularly in my Mitsu which is high center of gravity and short wheelbase and has LSd on the rear axle and perhaps a front weight bias (not really sure about that) the difference when driving on a truly slippery highway is remarkable. I believe this will apply to cornering too but when slippery I am pretty careful with that.

The AWD Magnum I had was good too.

Though Once I got stuck in the end of my driveway and the car simply would not move. I switched off the traction control (or stability control) and drove right out.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

My old 4-matic wagon is absolutely awesome in the snow. I've never put a snow tire on it either. I've cut a flying U-turn on 6" of snow at 35MPH to end up 2 lanes over facing opposite direction. This was to prevent hitting 2 train engines that blocked the roadway without any fore-warning, with only 4-5 car lengths to react.

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90 300TE 4-M
Turbo 103, T3/T04E 50 trim
T04B cover .60 AR
Stage 3 turbine .63 AR
A2W I/C, 40 LB/HR
MS2E, 60-2 Direct Coil Control
3" Exh, AEM W/B O2
Underdrive Alt. and P/S Pulleys,
Vented Rear Discs, .034 Booster.
3.07 diffs 1st Gear Start

90 300CE 104.980
Milled & ported head, 10.3:1 compression
197° intake cam w/20° advancer
Tuned CIS ECU
4° ignition advance
PCS TCM2000, built 722.6
600W networked suction fan
Sportline sway bars
V8 rear subframe, Quaife ATB 3.06 diff

No surprise seeing as how complex and effective those early 4matics are...when they work of course.

__________________
1982 300GD Carmine Red (DB3535) Cabriolet Parting Out
1990 300SEL Smoke Silver (Parting out)
1991 350SDL Blackberry Metallic (481)

"The thing is Bob, its not that I'm lazy...its that I just don't care."

SUV Disintegrated into Pieces by Head On Collision with 18 Wheeler - YouTube

Let up on the gas pedal of an SUV, and you are toast.

??? The SUV in question is just starting to climb a hill - odd time to let up on the gas. I see a driver who allowed his vehicle to drift to the left, placing his left tires onto a slipperier surface than the right tires, panicking, overcorrecting and bouncing off the truck on the right, before bounding off to the left. This couldn't happen in a car?