Affordable Vehicle for Snow

anomander
Sun, 04 Sep 2016 16:40:04 +0000

Car and Driver magazine did a test some years ago comparing AWD vs FWD and RWD on snow and ice, with and without snow tires. I found the link - it’s interesting reading especially for those that think AWD is the best under all circumstances. I’m sure both AWD and winter tire technology has improved significantly since then but the results should still be relevant.

Here’s the article and I’ve quoted the summary from the end.
http://www.caranddriver.com/features/winter-traction-test-what-price-traction
"*So What’s the Bottom Line?

Four-wheel drive helps get cars going. When it comes time to brake or change direction on low-traction surfaces, the extra mass of the driveline becomes more of a detriment. Folks who live in hilly places that get snow may need the climbing capability of four-wheel drive. If it snows a lot in those hilly places, they should probably invest in winter tires, too. Even flat-landers who happen to have steep driveways may wish to consider a four-wheel-driver.

Almost everyone else will most likely be better served by using winter tires. Acceleration takes longer, but in an emergency, the handling behavior and improved lateral grip of two-wheel drive and winter tires – in the slippery stuff – are the safer bets.

Winter tires boosted the rwd Benz’s acceleration times more than they did the fwd Audi’s, but in almost every other test, the inherently front-heavy Audis derived more benefit from the winter rubber than did the more evenly balanced Benzes. This finding certainly suggests that front-drive cars benefit from winter tires as much or more than rear-drivers do.

And finally, unless snow or ice covers your roads many times in a winter, the snow benefits of winter tires may not outweigh their drawbacks on dry pavement.*"