Front Wheel Drive vs Rear Wheel Drive: Which is Best?
Driving Style And Regional Considerations
Believe it or not, there is some debate as to what sort of options are best here. Front wheel drive vehicles tend to be better for cold slippery environments; rear-wheel drive not so much. Also, front-wheel drive vehicles tend to get better mileage owing to a drivetrain that isn’t quite as heavy. So you get traction and mileage.
Another reason for increased traction of FWD vehicles has to do with the engine and transmission weight resting over the vehicle’s front wheels. Additionally, many FWD cars have all-wheel drive options.
On dry roads, handling tends to be a marginally better with rear-wheel drive vehicles. This has a lot to do with the way the “load” of the vehicle is transferred during the process of vehicular acceleration. Overall weight distribution tends to be a little more stable with RWD vehicles. Also, maintenance won’t be as costly owing mechanically simpler, less expensive components.
Weighing Your Options
Now with these things in mind, you need to figure out what’s going to serve you best. A lot of cars, like Dodge Chargers, combine their sporty, aggressive design with RWD options for reasons of acceleration and panache. But when winter comes in a place like Wyoming, owing to the lack of traction, they have trouble even getting out of the driveway.
That said, if you park properly, and understand how ice is going to affect your vehicle, you may not do so bad when things get slippery. You’ve just got to practice a little bit in an empty parking lot that’s iced over sometime to figure out where your thresholds are as regards overall control. Additionally, “ice eater” or aggressive winter tires and a few extra pounds of salt or sand in the trunk or truck bed are great equalizers for winter driving challenges with rear wheel drives.
There are some other unique advantages to a RWD car, though. For example, RWD vehicles do tend to tow better. Also, when you accelerate, the car won’t pull to the right or left as with FWD vehicles. And if you’re one of those people who loves to “Tokyo Drift”, RWD vehicles are excellent at it. This isn’t good for winter in Wyoming; but it’s fine in Southern California.
Mastering RWD is harder, interior vehicular space is impinged by the transmission and driveshaft tunnel, and the overall weight of the vehicle tends to be greater, decreasing mileage.
Making An Informed Choice
So at the end of the day, which sort of vehicle is best for you? If you want a fast-accelerating, sporty car that requires more mastery, but rewards the driver, RWD is the way to go—though you may see mileage decrease and have a bad time in the snow. If you want something stable, straightforward, better on your gas tank, and lighter, FWD is the way to go.
It all depends on your preferences; but in places like Wyoming where snow can come out of nowhere and frost the roads even in Summer, FWD is definitely advisable—though you can tow more with RWD, and that’s a Wyoming need as well. Explore what’s out there, and for more tips and tricks regarding vehicles, explore our blog at Anybody’s Autos!