quote:

Originally posted by Jimbo54:

quote:

Originally posted by Snapping Twig:
AWD needs all tires to be similar in diameter, so if you have worn tires and need ONE new tire, on an AWD you will need to replace all four.

This is why it is imperative that you religiously rotate the tires every 5,000 miles with AWD. That and an alignment every couple of years.

Jim

It’s been our experience that fwd cars require more tire rotation than AWD cars as the front tires are doing virtually everything. AWD vehicles, with everything else being equal, have been getting longer tire life for us. I would never put my wife in a fwd car but that’s just me and where we live.

A) I’d say AWD, for a young driver, as it’s more predictable when it slips, etc.

B) I’m in a rental Ford Ecosport, for the last couple weeks. It’s not much on the highway, but very handy around a city.

We acquired a Toyota Highlander SE-Plus AWD Model Year 2019 December-06,2019.In this part of North Carolina we can get a dusting or up to your knees in Snow fall. As a former resident of Pennsylvania Winter and Snow is not something new to me. We simply follow the recommended Toyota maintenance schedule. So far no complaints.

quote:

Originally posted by Powers77:
I lean towards AWD in your stated situation. Even if your daughter is skilled enough to keep it moving with FWD on slick roads in the Mis South she will be in the minority. Bad driving by others can put her into situations she might not get out of with FWD. For example, others stopped at the bottom of a hill.

Very good point. There are so many people that are poor drivers in snowy conditions that place good drivers in bad situations. Also drivers trying to get somewhere with with ill equipped tires for the situation.

I've driven all over the East Coast, live in coastal Maine now.

I feel that AWD gives a false sense of security and allows for more mistakes than FWD.

I'm a fan of FWD with QUALITY tires, but the cheap Walmart sales specials.

My kid drives a 2004 Hyundai Elantra, FWD, Michelin Defenders and has zero issues in heavy rain to light snow.

We have a 2018 Subaru Crosstrek. Just put tire #13 on it. Still in warranty. Lucky it wasn't #16. Some weird circumstances but no kidding about rotating tires. Last Subaru we will have. Did not do enough research for this one. Wife liked it because it was one of few cars with a CD player.

I’m sorry but saying it gives a false sense of security is stupid. Does the safety on your 1911 give you a false sense of security so you just carry it cocked? If you can afford the extra cost it will be beneficial. Not necessary but beneficial at times based on your expected use. If it is snowing and slick here I have FWD and AWD cars in my driveway. I have never thought I wouldn’t take the AWD because it might make me cocksure. If you drive stupid in the snow in AWD you probably drive stupid with FWD as well. Besides which I literally have driven past multiple cars off the road or trying to fishtail up a hill while my AWD went up and down the same hills like a mountain goat. And this is with OEM tires. I know I could improve the performance if need be.

Why are you on tire #13? I handed down my 17 Crosstrek and it’s still on OEM tires. What is happening that you are destroying tires? Whatever it is, it has zero to do with the car being a Subaru.

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Originally posted by BoatsNbullets:
I grew up driving rwd and fwd thru every snow storm we had.

This. I started driving RWD in Connecticut and have lived in NH the last 40 years. Just FWD and 4 snow tires with a bundle of shingles in the trunk to keep the ass end from breaking loose. My wife bought an AWD 4 years ago because of her often snowy commute. Now she's retired it's nice to have as an option but the car I just bought is FWD.

I would consider the cost difference between awd and dedicated winter tires.
Winter tires have superior traction whether you are starting stopping or cornering. If you have never driven with them you cannot understand what a difference they make.

AWD is a nice feature had it in an Expedition as well as an Explorer. Those systems were not geared towards performance driving though. I believe they directed power to RWD progressively so that by 30 mph you were 100%.

Having the Blizzaks on a Nissan Altima vs the Explore I’d take blizzaks up to the point clearance was a concern.

There are some cost savings in rotating seasonal tires that many fail to consider. You don’t replace perfectly serviceable summer tires in fear of winter traction issues, adding perhaps 10,000 miles depending on your level of trust.

I won’t own a front wheel drive car. I find the driving dynamics, particularly in slippery road conditions to be intolerable. Most AWD (non performance oriented) might not be that much better than FWD but they are better enough that I would always spring for AWD over FWD.

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Originally posted by bubbaturbo:
We have a 2018 Subaru Crosstrek. Just put tire #13 on it. Still in warranty. Lucky it wasn't #16. Some weird circumstances but no kidding about rotating tires. Last Subaru we will have. Did not do enough research for this one. Wife liked it because it was one of few cars with a CD player.

ALL cars need tires rotated....what did you do diffetent to warrant so many replacements?

quote:

Originally posted by Gibb:
I feel that AWD gives a false sense of security and allows for more mistakes than FWD.

I tend to agree with this statement, perhaps worded a little differently. There are a lot of benefits to AWD in the winter, but the issue that I see around here is that people with AWD (and 4WD) have the traction to get moving, they become overconfident and drive faster than conditions allow and that's what gets them into trouble. I see far more AWD and 4WD SUVs in the ditch during the winter.


That said, in our driveway now we have 1 FWD, 1 AWD and 1 4WD (that's mostly driven in 2WD with a lot of weight in the bed). The FWD with decent tires is no slouch in the snow/ice.

I prefer awd and own two Lexus RX330 RX350. Love the trouble free traction.

quote:

Originally posted by ShouldBFishin:

quote:

Originally posted by Gibb:
I feel that AWD gives a false sense of security and allows for more mistakes than FWD.

I tend to agree with this statement, perhaps worded a little differently. There are a lot of benefits to AWD in the winter, but the issue that I see around here is that people with AWD (and 4WD) have the traction to get moving, they become overconfident and drive faster than conditions allow and that's what gets them into trouble. I see far more AWD and 4WD SUVs in the ditch during the winter.


That said, in our driveway now we have 1 FWD, 1 AWD and 1 4WD (that's mostly driven in 2WD with a lot of weight in the bed). The FWD with decent tires is no slouch in the snow/ice.

Thank you, you put it better than I did but hit my thoughts exactaly.

4WD and AWD make it easy to get going, give a false sense of road conditions, but steering and stopping are a whole 'nuther sumpthin.

I drive around 1,000 miles a week, and see far more AWD vehicles off the road, followed by 4wd trucks.

People tend to run the tires down on AWD cars due to needing to replace all 4 each time, and while the car feels like it's still ok, its really the traction control keeping you going straight. Hit the brakes or take a corner and the real lessons start.

In a FWD car, the tires slip on takeoff, and you feel it in the steering wheel. It's a reminder of the road conditions, and you can adjust for it. Take a corner, and start to slip, stay on the gas a bit and pull the front end. You may spin, but generally you stay out of the ditch.

So the argument is that if you are stupid enough to drive too fast for conditions AWD vehicles get you in more trouble. This is tantamount to saying you shouldn’t drive 4wd vehicles off road because their traction might make you over confident and get you into spots you can’t get out of.

This is a stupid argument every time we have it. Soon someone will comment about snow tires equaling AWD performance while ignoring the fact that snow tires can be put on AWD vehicles as well. If you live in slippery conditions, putting snow tires on something like a Subaru is about as good as it gets. Yes, ice makes all cars slide. Yes, if you drive too fast for conditions it will bite you. If it’s snowing and you choose your fwd over your AWD then you are making a horrible decision grandpa. I say that as a granddad. Live in snowy, hilly country and watch the fwd cars struggle. Can you do it? Sure, but I for one will take my sons Subaru every time.

Subaru AWD with snow tires is awesome - if you can’t get through it, you should really have stayed home. That said, I have a 2015 AWD Genesis with snow rated all-seasons.

It is very good in CT winters - meaning, we have decent plowing, and I don’t really have to be out in the bad conditions.

FWD with snow tire is probably sufficient. If the choice is FWD with snows or AWD with all-seasons, FWD with snow tires wins.

The only time that I have gotten a Subaru stuck was in an 18 - 20 inch snow. Tried to get through somewhat of a drift and snow packed up underneath it lifting the tires from contacting the surface.

Lol. I can’t rotate tires on my awd. They are directional and the rears are bigger. The car came with a staggered setup. My winter tires are square so I can rotate front to back (directional). I did have a flat on one I couldn’t patch so I stuck my two bigger than the front all seasons on until I get find two new snow tires.

pita. I guess i could’ve just turned awd off for the winter.


Fwd should be good for OP and if needed, a set of snow tires.


I got my 18 yr old daughter an awd subaru for the winter. With four snow tires.
She was fine the last two years with fwd in her mom’s car so she knows how to drive in the snow but i wanted her safer so i got her an awd car and then stuck snow tires on it.
My car is awd and i run snow tires in the winter too.

My last car was a subaru legacy and i got about 45k on original tires. Regular rotation. Replacement tires were still okay at 77k with 5/32 when i switched to bmw.

Weigh the cost factors for yourself. How much is your safety worth for driving in your expected conditions.

Also awd uses more gas. People always seem to forget that.