Does It Feel Different to Drive an AWD Car Vs. a FWD Car?

Driving front-wheel and all-wheel drive cars can be quite different experiences. All-wheel drive cars deliver power to all four wheels most of the time. The biggest difference is how the vehicles steer. You will also feel a difference in how the vehicle performs in the situations all-wheel drive was designed to address.

Cornering Control

  • FWD cars have a natural tendency to understeer when taking corners at higher speeds. This means the vehicle basically keeps going the direction it was pointed in instead of turning around the corner like it should. AWD cars have less of a tendency to understeer. You will feel more control in an AWD car as you take curves and corners at greater speeds than you were able to in a FWD.

Off-Road

  • If you ever take your vehicle off-road, you will feel the difference between AWD and FWD. In a FWD car, if the front wheels start to spin, you will likely stay stuck; no power goes to the rear wheels. In an AWD, traction control systems sense where the power is needed most and which wheels have the best traction. Maximum power is then delivered those wheels to help you navigate terrain that would likely leave a FWD vehicle stuck.

Acceleration

  • Often when you try to accelerate on snow or ice in a FWD car, you will feel your wheels spin before they manage to find purchase to help you get off the line. This can be a problem at stop signs or lights in inclement weather. In an AWD car, you will feel all four wheels trying to grip to provide you with better, slip-free acceleration.

Braking

  • It is a myth that AWD cars perform better when braking. FWD and AWD cars should feel the same, and similar-sized cars with similar braking systems will stop in about the same distance whether FWD or AWD. This is because even in cars where the drive power is delivered to the front wheels, all four wheels still have brakes the respond in basically the same way as they do on an AWD. If anything, most AWD cars are heavier than their FWD equivalents, so braking might actually be worse.