I've had RWD cars for the past 25 years or so. 300ZX and GS300. Reasonably good HP and torque but haven't had any tire spin problems - RWD and whatever transmission intelligence has kept tire spinning to a minimum.

RWD cars do seem more expensive than FWD. I no longer want to spend more than $20-25k for a new car. This mostly limits me to FWD I think (except for maybe Subaru? not sure how much they cost).

But, I want some decent pickup. I'm used to 200+ HP with plenty of torque; I probably don't need much more than that as I've never really felt wanting for more.

I've had FWD cars before; I'm used front wheel spin for these cars (again, long time ago), especially when turning from a standing start - this is necessary for certain roads and traffic conditions. Today, FWD cars (ie - V6 Camry, Maxima, others) seem to have decent HP / torque. How they avoid front tire spin? Do they limit torque from a standing start so that pickup is slow but you don't spin the wheels? Is the HP / torque only really beneficial once you're actually moving at a certain speed or higher? Or is it usable for standing starts as well?

I have had a Few VW GTI. that were reprogrammed to close to 270 and the car is very drive able. VW does have great traction control but it also could be turned off and had a Launch mode that made it take off better than dropping the clutch.
Go drive one stock, you will like it. Then if you buy call APR and add 50 hp and better MPG.

Major +1 on the GTI

200-220 is the limit for me when it comes to FWD


Latest MKVIIs have front limited slips from the factory that are not just selective application of front brakes.


My wife has had her MKVI GTI for 5 years and 50K + and it has been very reliable and very enjoyable to drive. No modifications, just a second set of wheels with snow tires.

I had an 850 Turbo, a '94, I bought for $3,000 in 2007. 225 HP, and plenty torque. Beat the snot out of it, sold it in 2010 after the condenser failed with 171k on it, for $700.

They are easy cars to work on, parts are not outrageous, and when you fix something, it stays fixed.

It had a locking differential (¿something?), and with all that weight over the front wheels, I do not remember much spin.

But I agree that the boost came after you were already moving, not for 0-40.

The Subarus have Sport Shift, which makes you feel like you're taking off with their Symmetrical All Wheel Drive when you ride 1st gear up to 45mph, but the new loaner I recently got seemed plasticy on the inside.

Camry...I would rather drive my own two feet. Get a GTI like mentioned. Little to no torque steer and much faster then the 200hp numbers suggest. A brand new leftover will be close to your $25k ceiling in 2 door with a manual transmission.

Mazda Speed3?

Mostly torque vectoring or slight braking of the inside wheel in turns. GM has developed what they refer to as HiPer Strut suspension along with Ford's RevoKnuckle split the steering and suspension functions from each other so more of the tire patch stays on the ground while going around a corner.

It's amazing how much technology has done for that. My 90 SHO would torque steer you into a ditch if you weren't careful, now cars have 300hp and act tame.

Thanks guys.

Not considering make/models yet. But mostly wondering if HP/torque specs are meaningless for FWD from a a cold start; useful only when the car is already moving (ie - getting from 40 to 70mph).

For FWD, is the car torque limited to avoid wheel spin? I'm guessing yes. So higher HP/torque numbers don't really mean much for standing starts, right?

If I care about standing starts, then it might be better to stick w/ RWD and/or AWD?

You can spin tires with fwd, even the Prius could do it.

The volt with almost 300 ft-lbs can easily light em up.

Jeremy Clarkson put the issues with front wheel drive on higher performance cars more succinctly than anyone else.
"Asking the front wheels of a car to do their normal job of steering while handling more than 170hp is like asking a man to wire a plug while juggling... penguins... while making love... to a beautiful woman while on fire, on stage... in front of the Queen. It's all going to go wrong."

Why must you buy new??
Nothing wrong with a couple years old. Not sure what you are looking for but the 2.3L Ecoboost Mustang will be in your price range and a hoot at 310hp with room to grow.

I just bought my 1st FWD vehicle with 266hp and there is not much torque steer though it is a heavy front ended minivan.
If gets along for it's size. Body roll is a bit heavy but I will likely be adding front sway bar, front strut tower brace, lower frame brace, and air bag system for the rear springs.
Yes, Megan racing does actually make all these things for the Toyota Sienna. If I could afford to drop it an inch or two there are even a couple of companies making coilover kits but a lowered suspension would not be nice on the road to the gun club.

My daily driver is 2012 Toyota Camry SE V6. 268 hp with a little stiffer suspension than the other Camry models. With the traction control off it will easily break loose. Traction control on all I get is a chirp on dry pavement. When the wheels spin in the winter, I can hear the ABS kick in (I assume that's what they're doing to keep the wheel spin down on dry pavement as well).


While I wouldn't call it a sports car, it is fun to drive, big enough to comfortably carry 4 adults with luggage and has been very reliable (I've put on 75K with no issues whatsoever).

I had a Dodge SRT-4 for years. If you slammed it from a stand still. It suffered from severe wheel hop. Fun car to drive. It was surprisingly fast from a roll. But from a stand still no thank you: I'll take a rwd any day.

I've had several high-powered FWD cars in my lifetime. From high-rpm dragstrip launches to road course track days to daily short commutes.
The latest is a 290hp '12 Maxima. The DSC keeps tirespin to a minimum. The car just goes.
Anything with a viscous (or similar) LSD in the transaxle, plus DSC, will be good to go. It all really comes down to tires, tires, tires.

You can get a base Mustang V6 for about $23K. Sweet ride even in base trim.

I think my V6 Accord has 278hp but at any rate, it really surprised me at how quickly it gets to speeds. I've had a fair share of muscle in the past to include vettes and Mustang GT and as I mentioned, it will surprise you. Especially on ramp to speed on the x-ways. I'm impressed at Honda being my first.

I had a 2004 Acura TL. 270 HP 6 speed manual. It had a limited slip dif.

Fun car but torque steer! I enjoyed the car but hard acceleration from a stop you had to be prepared.

From what I have read most new cars computer management controls use reduced power/braking to control torque steer.

Current drive is a 5.0 Mustang RWD

i have a 2000 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP.

I've done enough work on it to run 12.98 and get 26mpg.

412ft/lb and 396hp.

No LSD. I don't let anyone drive it. Last time I did, my wife almost killed us. Torque Steer FTW.

As long as the car has a LSD you remove the tq bias that you would otherwise see.