Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 16, 2007 Share Posted January 16, 2007 Like most of us, I have driven both. The austin 7 and the morris minor revolutionized the industry by introducing front wheel drive and an east-west engine. Most modern compacts and medium sized cars are based on the same lay-out. Most high performance cars have their drive at the rear. Sans driver aides such as BMW's DSC, Porche's PASM, electronic brake distribution and the likes, which layout makes a better driver's car? Quote Link to comment
tombone Posted January 16, 2007 Share Posted January 16, 2007 I have both type of car , I preffer the rear wheel if i'm the one driving, but if i'm the passenger i preffer the front wheel drive more leg room specially on the middle . Quote Link to comment
Google Posted January 16, 2007 Share Posted January 16, 2007 imho... Neither front-wheel drive nor rear-wheel drive is really better than the other. Today's sophisticated traction and stability control systems are so good they can mask or enhance the true driving dynamics of a vehicle. Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 16, 2007 Author Share Posted January 16, 2007 mayroon kaya niticeable nuances between the 2? Quote Link to comment
Google Posted January 16, 2007 Share Posted January 16, 2007 mayroon kaya niticeable nuances between the 2? imho.... for older cars, may noticable difference.... although mas powerful ang mga RWD, mas mabibilis naman ang FWD dahil mas maikli ang tinatakbo ng power from the engine to the front differentials. Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 16, 2007 Author Share Posted January 16, 2007 imho.... for older cars, may noticable difference.... although mas powerful ang mga RWD, mas mabibilis naman ang FWD dahil mas maikli ang tinatakbo ng power from the engine to the front differentials. Tnx for info man. I never notice any difference myself, but a friend of mine swears that rhd handles better, and fwd has more flex. Perhaps, like you said, there is hardly any difference at all, except perhaps in motorsports Quote Link to comment
hitomi Posted January 17, 2007 Share Posted January 17, 2007 (edited) Tnx for info man. I never notice any difference myself, but a friend of mine swears that rhd handles better, and fwd has more flex. Perhaps, like you said, there is hardly any difference at all, except perhaps in motorsports yeah in motorsports, i think its FWD=tendency to oversteer while RWD=tendency to understeer. that's why bmws - the best handling production cars on two wheel drive - still retain the rear wheel drive layout even when the majority of consumer car makers have switched to FWD which is cheaper to manufacture. on the other hand, people say that once you've gone 4WD or AWD, you'll never go back, but that's OT Edited January 17, 2007 by hitomi Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 17, 2007 Author Share Posted January 17, 2007 yeah in motorsports, i think its FWD=tendency to oversteer while RWD=tendency to understeer. that's why bmws - best handling production cars - still retain the rear wheel drive layout even if the majority of consumer car makers have switched to FWD which is cheaper to manufacture. on the other hand, people say that once you've gone 4WD or AWD, you'll never go back, but that's OT Thanks to Audi, the mother of all AWD...too bad i havent driven an AWD yet. Quote Link to comment
yobag Posted January 17, 2007 Share Posted January 17, 2007 i prefer the rear wheel drive layout Quote Link to comment
c32 Posted January 17, 2007 Share Posted January 17, 2007 yeah in motorsports, i think its FWD=tendency to oversteer while RWD=tendency to understeer. that's why bmws - the best handling production cars on two wheel drive - still retain the rear wheel drive layout even when the majority of consumer car makers have switched to FWD which is cheaper to manufacture. on the other hand, people say that once you've gone 4WD or AWD, you'll never go back, but that's OT bro u had it upside down, FWDs tend to understeer while RWD tends to oversteer, but there are some RWD cars that were intentionally set to understeer... in terms of handling, both drive layouts can be tuned to handle properly, a FWD car's suspension can be set to do powerslides without touching the e-brake... the only limitation to FWD is that power is very limited since too much power will make the front tires spin, unlike RWD where it can take a lot more power since the rear end can accept really wide tires... bottom line, given the proper tuning, both cars can be fun to drive... Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 18, 2007 Author Share Posted January 18, 2007 bro u had it upside down, FWDs tend to understeer while RWD tends to oversteer, but there are some RWD cars that were intentionally set to understeer... in terms of handling, both drive layouts can be tuned to handle properly, a FWD car's suspension can be set to do powerslides without touching the e-brake... the only limitation to FWD is that power is very limited since too much power will make the front tires spin, unlike RWD where it can take a lot more power since the rear end can accept really wide tires... bottom line, given the proper tuning, both cars can be fun to drive... So tuning pala is the great equalizer between fwd and rhd... Quote Link to comment
milhouse83 Posted January 18, 2007 Share Posted January 18, 2007 So tuning pala is the great equalizer between fwd and rhd... Any regular everyday driver will never discern the difference between the two no matter what, but no amount of tuning will ever make the two indistinguishable to a keen driver . The differences between FWD and RWD are just simply like night and day. Another main disadvantage of FWD is torque steer. That's when the car has bias to veer towards one slide while under heavy acceleration. This is mostly due to the unequal length of the half shafts. It's not only FWD that understeer though. There are few RWD that are famous understeerers like the 350z, Mustang, and the M5. Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 19, 2007 Author Share Posted January 19, 2007 I agree that a regular driver cannot discern the difference between the two layouts. I never notice iot myself except on certain occasions such as the twisty, endless ascent to the Edsa Shang Mall all the way to the 7th or 8th level. I feel more comfortable with a rwd, a torquey rwd. Pero in a circuit, i wonder which layout is preferred by most racing drivers Quote Link to comment
milhouse83 Posted January 23, 2007 Share Posted January 23, 2007 (edited) Race cars tend to be RWD or MR since with FWD there is actually a limit on how much power you can put into the front wheels before the car becomes unwieldy because of too much understeer. That's why you don't see manufacturers put out high-power FWD cars. Take this Vauxhall Vectra VXR for example..255HP, 160mph, FWD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVfF_dGyimU Edited January 23, 2007 by milhouse83 Quote Link to comment
lomex32 Posted January 23, 2007 Share Posted January 23, 2007 How about the Volkswagen Beetle? imho.... for older cars, may noticable difference.... although mas powerful ang mga RWD, mas mabibilis naman ang FWD dahil mas maikli ang tinatakbo ng power from the engine to the front differentials. Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 24, 2007 Author Share Posted January 24, 2007 Race cars tend to be RWD or MR since with FWD there is actually a limit on how much power you can put into the front wheels before the car becomes unwieldy because of too much understeer. That's why you don't see manufacturers put out high-power FWD cars. Take this Vauxhall Vectra VXR for example..255HP, 160mph, FWD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVfF_dGyimU hey that's a good example man! I always liked Jeremy Clarkson when he describes a car that he doesn't like. The new M5 got lambasted also but there is a redeeming value, once in "M" mode, the car accelerates and handles as good as a Ferrari F430. Both the M5 and the F430 are RWDs. Quote Link to comment
cumpadre Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Center of gravity and placement of the engine plays a great role too in terms of handling. Thats why there are lots of layout like FR,MR,FF, RR etc. Proper Suspension tuning = better handlling. But of course, comfyness will suffer. Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted January 30, 2007 Author Share Posted January 30, 2007 My FWD hall of fame choice - The Austin 7, for ushering in an era of nimble, highly maneuverable, small cars with small gutsy engines. I personally think it should be known as the Father Of Modern Compacts (and subcompacts). My RWD hall of fame choice - (well this is a tough choice to make) but i'd say it has to be the original M5. With an engine and chassis package unlike anything seen before, it was able to extract all the best virtues of a RWD. The M5 definitely has raised the bar so high for the RWD format. Quote Link to comment
heightdeprived Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 yeah in motorsports, i think its FWD=tendency to oversteer while RWD=tendency to understeer. I think it's the otherway around, say for example, in an FF car (Front Engine [/b]F[/b]ront Drive) when the gas pedal is floored amid a curve, an understeer can be induced while to induce oversteer, you can pull of the e-brake, while with FR, flooring the gas pedal amid a curve will induce oversteer but with a weak front tire traction it can also end-up to understeering, Quote Link to comment
heightdeprived Posted February 8, 2007 Share Posted February 8, 2007 mayroon kaya niticeable nuances between the 2? you'll probably notice that on a steep climb, wherein the FF is having a hard time climbing up and keeps the tires on spinning while the FR was able to take on the load, (experienced that in Baguio, we're riding a Honda City and the car in front didn't break a sweat negotiating the hillclimb, it's a Box type model Mitsu Lancer) Quote Link to comment
willow_boy Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 My vote goes to the Front-wheel drive. Car's easier to control over rough terrain, such as heavy snow. Quote Link to comment
posta_code Posted March 8, 2007 Share Posted March 8, 2007 real sports performance cars are RWD Quote Link to comment
Sakristan_Mayor Posted March 9, 2007 Author Share Posted March 9, 2007 real sports performance cars are RWD I think from an engineering pov, rear better for supercars, most kasi are rwd with a few fwd like the audis and the carrera 4 Quote Link to comment
monsty Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 fwd cars will be more efficient because power is transfered over a very short distance. engine to front wheels. rwd cars lose power cause driving force has to pas thru several mechanisms to get to the rear wheels. In 4wd's engine power passes thru two sets of gears to get to the tires. more areas for friction etc. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.