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The Beauty of All Wheel Drive
Posted Monday, January 4th, 2010 in Featured Articles, Group Discussions
I write this as a good portion of the midwest is covered in that wonderful white fluff we call snow. As pen touches paper I find myself in a situation very dissimilar to where I have been since the very day I bought my first car. That is owning ONLY front and rear wheel drive cars. Many of you who know me are gasping wildly and perhaps even choking back a tear, or at the very least choking on your beverage at the very thought of Mr. Quattro being without an all wheel drive funmobile. Well, here I am, and I have found myself musing yet again on things such as weight bias, engine placement, steering purity and which wheels get the power.
For years if you endeavored to dare bring up which wheels should recieve the drive I would likely have stomped you down with, “you have 4 wheels, why not use them?!!?”. Then after many a hot lap at a road course near you I fell in love with the sheer handling sensuality that brands like Lotus and BMW have provided us via rear wheel drive and even weight distribution. For the first time I was acutally experiencing steering communication that can only be provided when front wheels are unencumbered by axles, a diff, all that other stuff getting in the way of the love letter the front wheels had been sending me. Message received ! Over the subsequent years I owned many of the worlds finest rear wheel drive cars. Over time I began to think , surely, surely this is the most pure, most proper set up for driving bliss. Sure, The XJR was never going to make it up my drive way on Eagle F1′s and certainly the 911 was a handful in an ice storm, but undoubtedly it was WORTH the deficiency.
Only more recently have I again been given pause to my “all wheel drive is best” mind set. Lately Mr. Quattro has been drawn back to the days of autocrossing my Scirocco 16v thus twisting and contorting my brain into being convinced that front drive has something to offer. Back in 2006 when I took delivery of that candy white MkV Gti I remember reveling in the lift throttle oversteer, the AMAZING steering information funneling through that flat rimmed steering wheel. I was beginning to seriously question the extra weight of the awd platform, beginning to question whether the insurmountable mountain which was a steep driveway was WORTH putting up with. Then, if only to further complicate matters I had what must certainly be one of the top 10 drives of my life in a FWD Lotus Elan!?!? Heresy! You might say. Now, first before you think me completely mad, let me share that also in the top ten are an unbelievable evening in a sorted E30 M3, a torrid excursion in a Lamborghini Gallardo, and a 300 mile flame blasting, slide enducing all-out-focus-fest in a tuned Lotus Esprit just to name a few… so there has been serious consideration given when I say… TOP 10 DRIVE. The day was perfect, the road (that only Car & Driver and myself seem to know about , and we aren’t sharing the secret) was warmed by the sun and the ambient temperature hovering just about 48 degrees F. The next hour and a half had me literally laughing out loud and at one point exclaiming , “If FWD can be like this , why aren’t they all like this?” Fantastic traction out of corners, always putting the power down , even when the chassis went light, always neutral , resisting understeer till the bitter end, rotation to the point of near ridiculousness surely motoring experiences (at least dynamically speaking ,and to be honest the car could use a tad more power and a real gear selector) come no better. I had just experienced motoring Nirvana in a car with obvious flaws, and the handling and performance was so good it far eclipsed what may be the worst shifter in a car ever and it was built in 1991?!!? I tell you no lie. Add to that the days I spent hunting down E36 M3′s on the track with an 07 GTI, certainly this FWD had something to say, some unique persepective to offer the enthusiast driver.
Which brings us full circle back to AWD. I remember the first time I drove a 335 with x drive. After spending more than a few pleasant hours in our own 335i coupe, i was prepared for the AWD car to plough, to rob me of precious steering feedback which I covet in a performance car. Shock of shocks , BMW had actually preserved much of , if not all of the steering purity. Now, while the 335 may not be the last word in messages coming through the steering wheel, I was more than pleasantly surprised. It had another thing that our 335 was lacking. Traction, blessed fantastic traction. ”Yes, your Corvette just got obliterated” traction. Still progressive enough to slide, yet not wasting tenths in an off the line romp. JOY. Even when tuned to 500 hp our project S4 had gobs of traction to spare and through careful alignment we were even able to get it to handle properly.
Recently on a rain soaked day I found myself out in our Volkswagen GTI development car. It is upgraded in both the software and suspension departments. I was getting on one of my favorite on ramps when I decided to boot ‘er in second gear. Wheel spin. Egregious , torrid wheel spin. ”ok” I thought , that was a bit ham-fisted , lets try a roll on in 3rd. Smooth roll on the throttle, full boost, subtle wheel spin that faded to hidious obnoxious wheel spin. It brought to mind a night far more rainy than the day in question. Travel back to that overcast London like evening. I had just brought home a Lamborghini Superleggera. The kids naturally had to know what the savage brutal force felt like. ”To bad” I thought, “It’s raining cats and dogs and I’ll have to be progressive with my inputs” Out on the road, strapped in tightly, aimmed straight and roll away in 1st gear. Bury the throttle, 2nd, buried, 3rd, buried. lift. Traction control was left on just incase my enthusiasm was a bit to boyish. You know how many times I saw the “tc” light blink ? Want to guess how much wheel spin there was? NONE. Hooked up, gone. That same car would allow heinous dry condition drifting with the correct steering input, had fabulous steering feel and on a hard launch the AWD system was totally transparent. Sigh, AWD FTW.
So, here I sit, again convinced that AWD is the superior platform (though unquestionably all three offer huge advantages distinct to their given cache). Rather than going out and being a proper Sebatian Loeb impersonator I guess I’ll have to settle for a drive in the Mini Cooper and grab the ebrake. No matter what you drive be sure you do so passionately!
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