[resolved] The myth of RWD

[ridr4lif]

Some of the "earlier" 911 turbo's might have been tailhappy, but nothing from the last generation. Im pretty sure the early ones were only rwd, but the newer ones are awd. And i hope your kidding comparing the real car to the video game...LOL.

Perfect example of awd cars understeering. The Audi RS6's that race in the speedvision GT cup get great starts due to awd. But towards the end of the race, they cant steer b/c the front tires are SHOT. Worse than the rears.

TEDD

[Fishy]

And i hope your kidding comparing the real car to the video game...LOL.

Depends on the video game. Some are more sim-like than others and have pretty sophisticated physics models with cars based on real world specs. Not everyone has the ability to jump in a 911 on the weekend and push it to the limits.

-Fishy

[William from NOLA]

I heard some of the earlier 911 Turbos were tailhappy as a mofo. The ones I played with in NFS:Porsche Unleashed sure were a handfull.

-Fishy

They have a ton of oversteer when you are cornering and let off on the gas or brake, but when you are on the gas, they behave as they should :)


I can't remember if I saw it on Best Motoring, Top Gear, or 5th Gear, but on a short track (I think it was Tskuba), the Hyundai Tiburon was only one second slower than a Porsche Boxter on that same track!

[GlassWolf]

I added the poll for ya. hope I got it right.

FWD will have numerically more torque as noted already, due to less parasitic loss to drivetrain, but performance wise, the RWD car will always be quicker. Better transfer when you hit the gas. The front end tends to lift up which breaks traction for a FWD car. In a good properly set up RWD car, even with a bit less torque at the wheels, the power is transfered to the drive wheels when ya hit the gas. Especially if we're talking about a car with an LSD installed.

FWD is more efficient, so better for fuel. It's better in snow since the engine weight is right over the drive tires.. but honestly if these are your goals, get an AWD car instead of FWD, and you'll get far more benefit at the cost of a higher price tag for the initial purchase.
The other drawback to FWD is lower reliability. Ask anybody who's had to replace CV joints in a FWD car how fun they are to work on.

[GlassWolf]

End result is not so much a question of any myths about torque based on FWD or RWD, but the fact that a RWD car will always make better use of the torque it has. You also don't see a lot of large displacement motors with a lot of torque offered as FWD cars, so the comparison is rather apples and oranges.
The only car I can think of off hand for such a comparison is the 240SX, which was offered as both FWD and RWD at different years, and these cars have never had a lot of torque. Most cars I know that have gone from RW to FW, have undergone drastic changes in teh process.. usually going from a large body to a small one etc.

[nist7]

hmmm, lots of thoughful commentary.

In reply to to what Jonathan said, I must speculate that FWD is actually more expensive to engineer and produce than RWD because of the cramped space in which the engine, the driveaxle, and all other components that must fit. And thus the weak tranny and probably why there aren't any FWD cars with 8 or more cylinders.

And KiKi, what did you mean by "The front end tends to lift up which breaks traction for a FWD car." ?

[William from NOLA]

When you accelerate, g-forces are toward the rear of the car. Your suspension in the rear then, bares more of the vehicle's weight than the front, thus the car "squatting" and having less weight on the front wheels in turn providing for less traction.

[nist7]

But with FWD cars, the weight is concentrated on the front. So there shouldn't be nearly as much "squatting" as RWD cars, right?

[William from NOLA]

I wouldn't say as much (in a FWD), but there is definately a lot. It depends on how loose your suspsension is, mainly.

[ridr4lif]

But with FWD cars, the weight is concentrated on the front. So there shouldn't be nearly as much "squatting" as RWD cars, right?

Yes, there is squatting on a RWD car, and thats why RWD cars get more traction than a FWD car. Thats why a lot of drag cars are RWD, when the car accelerates and the weight transfers to the rear, it adds to traction.
Whereas a FWD car, the weight transfers to the rear, and the front wheels "lift" slightly and just want to spin.

TEDD