FWD or RWD?

Author
Discussion

ChilliWhizz

Original Poster:

11,992 posts

162 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
quotequote all
I'd like to make this a poll but I don't know how.... Mods?

Anyway, it seems the FWD Vs RWD split across the PH community is as controversial as the diesel vs petrol split... i did a search on this subject before I posted but nothing really came up...

I'm just curious about what the split might be.. I grew up in the sixties, my first car was front engine and rear wheel drive and I loved it.... (But only two seats) My second car was front engine and front wheel drive ('65 Cooper s) when No 1 Sprog arrived... I loved that too...

So, apologies in advance if this has been done to death, but I couldn't find a thread that specifically addressed this subject..

A poll would be interesting I think..

Cheers, Chilli.....

2 sMoKiN bArReLs

30,260 posts

236 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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...or 4wd biggrin

kambites

67,583 posts

222 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
quotequote all
It's more controversial that it should be because people are very good at misundering the point of the other side. smile

My general preference goes RWD > rear-biased 4wd > FWD > front-biased 4wd but a good FWD car will still be vastly better than a poor RWD one.

Edited by kambites on Wednesday 7th December 19:02

Ahbefive

11,657 posts

173 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
quotequote all
AWD for me.

Loyly

17,998 posts

160 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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The driven wheels are less important than the quality of the drive overall, for me. I'll take a Megane RS over a 318i any day!

Ahbefive

11,657 posts

173 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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^this is also true.

liner33

10,694 posts

203 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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Is there a diesel vs petrol divide? Thats just an economic divide isn't it? Barring commercial vehicles surely no-one buys a diesel unless they cant afford the petrol


Hungrymc

6,672 posts

138 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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liner33 said:
Is there a diesel vs petrol divide? Thats just an economic divide isn't it? Barring commercial vehicles surely no-one buys a diesel unless they cant afford the petrol
And there is an argument that FWD primarily exists for its packaging advantages. More space in a smaller car preventing you having to pay more for a bigger car... so an economic divide?

The right answer has already been posted. A well executed version of any is far better than a poor attempt at the others.

Jag_NE

2,986 posts

101 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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liner33 said:
Is there a diesel vs petrol divide? Thats just an economic divide isn't it? Barring commercial vehicles surely no-one buys a diesel unless they cant afford the petrol
assuming we are talking about a car where there are comparable diesel and petrol equivalents, its more so where the perceived value lies.

i know plenty of minted people who could more than easily afford the extra 10 quid a week to run the petrol but don't recognise the value of that extra 10 pounds (or may even prefer how the diesel drives). the petrol version isn't necessarily a status symbol at all and to be honest with PCP and lease, I wouldn't say that cars in general are a status symbol at all on the lower side of 40k.

Joe5y

1,501 posts

184 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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Personally a RWD would be the preference but for a daily commuter car I don't think I'd really care.

MRobbins1987

509 posts

131 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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You can have fun with either, however I will say that to get the most from rwd you need far more skill than you would to pedal a fwd car at the same pace.

ZX10R NIN

27,635 posts

126 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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Doesn't matter as long as the car itself is a fun steer.

benjijames28

1,702 posts

93 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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To me it's about the over all package, and it been fit for purpose.

I can only run one car, if the budget was there I would be running a 4wd, something like an Audi Quattro. Keep a set of winter wheels in garage and you have a go anywhere, anytime motor.

My ideal car is probably a Audi a4 avant 3 litre diesel Quattro s line. That would fit my needs perfectly.

Ahbefive

11,657 posts

173 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
quotequote all
benjijames28 said:
My ideal car is probably a Audi a4 avant 3 litre diesel Quattro s line. That would fit my needs perfectly.
That is a sad state of affairs.

wiliferus

4,064 posts

199 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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When I did my advanced course my instructor said "FWD for boys, RWD for men...."

I drive a FWD btw... smile

jhonn

1,567 posts

150 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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In the family fleet there are FWD, RWD and 4WD - under normal driving conditions I can't say that I have a particular preference of one over the other.

When conditions are slippery (snow or mud) I prefer FWD or 4WD. If I had to choose one, it would be 4WD.

mike9009

7,016 posts

244 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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I would prefer my FWD motor for a track day and my RWD rear engined motor for a leisurely trip to the coast.

Mike

schmalex

13,616 posts

207 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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Ahbefive said:
benjijames28 said:
My ideal car is probably a Audi a4 avant 3 litre diesel Quattro s line. That would fit my needs perfectly.
That is a sad state of affairs.
Why?

TameRacingDriver

18,094 posts

273 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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RWD would always be my preference if all things were equal, but they rarely ever are. Most decent RWD cars are a considerably different proposition and rarely have direct FWD rivals, for example, sporty modern RWD cars you can buy: BMW of some description, Boxster, GT86, MX5 etc; sporty FWD cars you can buy = hot hatches. Horses for courses. Your average Joe could likely drive a FWD car much faster in most conditions than a RWD and may very well prefer it for that reason, but I prefer the challenge of driving a RWD car well, and by and large, the RWD cars are more sporty/special from the off, and I'm not bothered whether it's slower or not, it's irrelevant for road use.

AWD cars would be good on those thankfully rare occasions where it snows or it's very wet, but otherwise, I find them about as involving as most FWD cars (probably because many of them primarily are FWD).

Monkeylegend

26,428 posts

232 months

Wednesday 7th December 2016
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FWD is for girls.