Question about AWD, FWD, RWD

[chickeness]

Hi...

Question: A car with a same weight and a same PS.
The only difference is, this individual has a different Wheel Drive or whatever you call it.

Which runs faster? AWD, FWD, RWD? Or they both run the same???

[the_wildthing]

This question, along with your username, reminds me of the eternal question: which came first, the chicken or the egg?

And the question lacks definition of so many variables, like what kind of vehicle, what type of surface, whether in a straight line, through an entire race course. So many factors affect how fast something could go. Hence you have different vehicle configurations for different types of racing.

[chickeness]

well its in a laymens term. let just say that the car brand is same and the surface is cement, and in the straite or curvy way.

[KoKoNAT]

To answer your original question:

On a straight line, the car with the highest power output will be the faster one, regardless whether its Front-, Rear- or All-Wheel Drive.

[alwayz_yummy]

awd -> traction
fwd ->common drive
rwd -> now....drifters haven!

[tr1ck5h07]

depende rin sa hp ng test car mo.

if you have 300 or more hp, a 4wd will be able to put more of that power onto the road than a FWD or RWD. Thus it would have an edge in takeoff.

[OTEP]

It's probably a close match. However mechanical drag (due to increased number of moving components) and weight does not favor the AWD.

Launching an AWD vehicle can also get tricky since there is very little tire slip. Most of the shock is absorbed by the drivetrain particularly the clutch (unlike in FWD or RWD where the tires can be slipped/smoked).

[ian_rex]

To answer your original question:

On a straight line, the car with the highest power output will be the faster one, regardless whether its Front-, Rear- or All-Wheel Drive.

quite true. but when standing still, the one that has greater torque and greater torque band will have a headstart.

[mbeige]

Is it true that on rolling starts, mashirap yung 4wd? And that the advantage of 4wd is when you're on a standing start?

[KoKoNAT]

Maybe its true especially for a 4WD truck like a Hummer, a Land Rover or a Land Cruiser. Even with a V8 engine, it'll be hard-pressed to move a 3-tonne hunk of metal from a standing start.

But for an AWD car like an Audi or a Subaru, it shouldn't be a problem.