AWD vs FWD

Big L

Member
How about some pro and con comments on awd vs fwd? Daughter driving mostly Statesboro to Athens area, so not much prevalence of icy roads/snow. AWD is more costly and something else to tear up/repair, but are there real safety advantages for our area?

Thanks in advance for any input!

L
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
In a situation where I really need traction (offroad, serious snow/ice, etc) I want 4WD. I drive 80-mile round trip every day, sometimes with over a foot of snow on the road. 4WD is mandatory here. In your area, AWD is probably fine for the occasional snow or pulling off the road into an iffy spot. Much better and safer than standard FWD. I would rather my wife or daughter have it than FWD.
 

Semi-Pro

Full-Pro
Awd is better than 4x4. Awd uses more fuel that 2wd. 2wd wears the front tires out quicker
 

normaldave

GON Weatherman
South Georgia, normal driving, FWD should be plenty.

Any interest in getting off the beaten path, traveling to winter destinations, or as mentioned absolute confidence in rainy weather, then AWD. I would say maintenance costs these days with available technology wouldn't be all that dramatically different between the two.

I have AWD and true 4WD in the same vehicle. Let me add that I can feel my truck grab and steer more "sure-footed" when I switch from RWD only to AWD, certainly more dramatic in the rain.

Looking new or used? Rav4, or CRV, Forester, remain popular choices.
 
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hayseed_theology

Senior Member
South Georgia, normal driving, FWD should be plenty.

Any interest in getting off the beaten path, traveling to winter destinations, or as mentioned absolute confidence in rainy weather, then AWD. I would say maintenance costs these days with available technology wouldn't be all that dramatically different between the two.

I have AWD and true 4WD in the same vehicle. Let me add that I can feel my truck grab and steer more "sure-footed" when I switch from RWD only to AWD, certainly more dramatic in the rain.

Looking new or used? Rav4, or CR-V, Forester, remain popular choices.

Totally agree. We recently purchased a KIA Telluride. Our local dealership over in Albany only stocked FWD models, but for the reasons normaldave mentioned, we upgraded to the AWD.

AWD does sacrifice a little fuel mileage as well.

Like most modern AWD vehicles, the Telluride has different drive modes which transfer different amounts of power to the rear wheels depending on the conditions/setting. It also has the option to "lock" the center diff which makes it a straight 50/50 split like traditional 4x4.
 

normaldave

GON Weatherman
Totally agree. We recently purchased a KIA Telluride.

Good to hear owner feedback on the Telluride/Hyundai Palisade. They kinda snuck up on me, in that I didn't follow the news on them as a new model being assembled here in the Hyundai plant in AL/GA.

I did a spec by spec comparison for capabilities between my '02 Mitsubishi Montero Limited and the Kia Telluride AWD and was amazed at how close the two vehicles were in terms of engine, gearing, AWD, overall size, etc. The only thing the Telluride/Palisade was missing was the 2 speed low gear transfer case of true 4WD. On the other hand, the technology of the AWD system and electronic traction control combined with the center diff lock likely exceeds in capability for the driving most of us will ever do.

How do you like yours in comparison to other vehicles you have owned? I guess the "new" hasn't worn off yet...

FWIW, the Telluride is at the top of my replacement vehicle list, when they start getting in the 5+ year old range, and assuming they hold their surprisingly good quality ratings.

Here's a good review of an off-road adventure with the new Telluride, so OP, get out your checkbook. ::ke:
Kia Telluride AWD off road chops...
 

natureman

Senior Member
Bought my first AWD vehicle this year. A Subaru Outback. After owning 20 vehicles in my lifetime I have got to say it is the best handling vehicle I have ever owned. I researched it for about a year before I bought it. AWD does not appear to be anymore costly to maintain. I am getting 30mpg combined with the 2.5 non-turbo.
 

GoldDot40

Senior Member
Our Kia Sorento has AWD. Still has a button to engage/disable it. We've never used it.
 

DannyW

Senior Member
Little confused....are you asking for opinions on All Wheel Drive (AWD) vs Front Wheel Drive (FWD)? Or AWD vs Four Wheel Drive (4WD)? Big difference in AWD and FWD, less of a difference in AWD and 4WD...

I have a 4Runner with "full time 4WD" which is another way of saying it has AWD. I like the way it corners and in general how it feels more connected to the road than a FWD vehicle.
 

antharper

“Well Rounded Outdoorsman MOD “
Staff member
Totally agree. We recently purchased a KIA Telluride. Our local dealership over in Albany only stocked FWD models, but for the reasons normaldave mentioned, we upgraded to the AWD.

AWD does sacrifice a little fuel mileage as well.

Like most modern AWD vehicles, the Telluride has different drive modes which transfer different amounts of power to the rear wheels depending on the conditions/setting. It also has the option to "lock" the center diff which makes it a straight 50/50 split like traditional 4x4.
That KIA Telluride is one fine vehicle, built right here in Georgia , by me ?. Y’all are about to work us to death though , our last production meeting we were told we are 3 months behind on Telluride sales . So yes I had to work today
 

transfixer

Senior Member
Only downside to awd other than less fuel mileage is you need to make sure all 4 tires stay the same air pressure.. and that all tires wear evenly..(regular rotation ) if one tire has a smaller circumference due to wear or air pressure it will cause unnecessary wear in the the pto/diff/transfer unit.. especially on those controlled by the computer
 

natureman

Senior Member
Only downside to awd other than less fuel mileage is you need to make sure all 4 tires stay the same air pressure.. and that all tires wear evenly..(regular rotation ) if one tire has a smaller circumference due to wear or air pressure it will cause unnecessary wear in the the pto/diff/transfer unit.. especially on those controlled by the computer
Subaru Outback uses different front/rear air pressure. You are correct about tire rotation. Also, the spare is one of the compact types, and best to swap out for a full size one.
 
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hayseed_theology

Senior Member
How do you like yours in comparison to other vehicles you have owned? I guess the "new" hasn't worn off yet...

FWIW, the Telluride is at the top of my replacement vehicle list, when they start getting in the 5+ year old range, and assuming they hold their surprisingly good quality ratings.

Here's a good review of an off-road adventure with the new Telluride, so OP, get out your checkbook. ::ke:
Kia Telluride AWD off road chops...

We love our Telluride so far. We've had it 2 months now. Taken a couple long trips in it. We had our 3rd child in August. We have a 5 yr old, 3 yr old, and a 3 month old. That's 3 car seats. They fit 3 across on the bench seat, and that allows us to lay the back row down for luggage and big grocery trips. We can pop the rear seats up and rearrange seats when we have grandparents riding with us.

As far as compared to the other vehicles we have, the Telluride is my wife's and it replaced her 2011 Ford Escape. The Telluride is light years a head of that vehicle in terms of space, technology, and refinement. Don't get me wrong - the Escape was a solid vehicle. The Telluride just hit a home run for us in terms of styling, features, layout, and reliability. We needed a 3 row SUV and wanted something with the modern safety features (we'd never even had a vehicle with a backup camera before this).

I drive a 2005 Grand Marquis and a 1995 F-150. The Telluride EX is pretty swanky compared to those. One of the big complaints is that it's underpowered, but my car and truck both have a V8 - the Telluride has more HP and "get up and go" than those V8s. I never thought the Telluride was underpowered until I put the hammer down while driving a friend's 2021 Explorer ST.:eek:

The Telluride doesn't look big on the outside. It feels small on the inside and when you are driving it, which makes my wife feel more comfortable. And yet, it has 8 seat belts and plenty of cargo room when we have needed it.

My in-laws have a new Honda Pilot. There are a couple things I like better about it, and it was a little cheaper. But, I'd take the Telluride 11 times out of 10.

Prices are crazy right now with demand being so high. We ordered ours and I had to argue with the dealership to get it for MSRP. Dealers doing a $2k - $10k markup over MSRP has gotten to be the norm. Craziest one I've seen was a dealer asking $13k over MSRP... on a used one with 6k miles. Never thought I'd buy a new car in my life, and this will probably be the first, last, and only one. My wife and I were just so convinced this was the best vehicle for a our growing family that we were willing to invest a little more to get exactly what we wanted. We plan to keep it for a very long time. So far, we are very happy with our purchase.


That KIA Telluride is one fine vehicle, built right here in Georgia , by me ?. Y’all are about to work us to death though , our last production meeting we were told we are 3 months behind on Telluride sales . So yes I had to work today

When we ordered ours, everyone was telling us 3-6 months on the wait. We picked ours up 2.5 weeks after we ordered it. The dealership was just as shocked as us. Apparently the day they submitted the order was the day that particular combination of color/trim/options were being built.

And, it really did mean something to me that it was made here in GA.
 
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antharper

“Well Rounded Outdoorsman MOD “
Staff member
We love our Telluride so far. We've had it 2 months now. Taken a couple long trips in it. We had our 3rd child in August. We have a 5 yr old, 3 yr old, and a 3 month old. That's 3 car seats. They fit 3 across on the bench seat, and that allows us to lay the back row down for luggage and big grocery trips. We can pop the rear seats up and rearrange seats when we have grandparents riding with us.

As far as compared to the other vehicles we have, the Telluride is my wife's and it replaced her 2011 Ford Escape. The Telluride is light years a head of that vehicle in terms of space, technology, and refinement. Don't get me wrong - the Escape was a solid vehicle. The Telluride just hit a home run for us in terms of styling, features, layout, and reliability. We needed a 3 row SUV and wanted something with the modern safety features (we'd never even had a vehicle with a backup camera before this).

I drive a 2005 Grand Marquis and a 1995 F-150. The Telluride EX is pretty swanky compared to those. One of the big complaints is that it's underpowered, but my car and truck both have a V8 - the Telluride has more HP and "get up and go" than those V8s. I never thought the Telluride was underpowered until I put the hammer down while driving a friend's 2021 Explorer ST.:eek:

The Telluride doesn't look big on the outside. It feels small on the inside and when you are driving it, which makes my wife feel more comfortable. And yet, it has 8 seat belts and plenty of cargo room when we have needed it.

My in-laws have a new Honda Pilot. There are a couple things I like better about it, and it was a little cheaper. But, I'd take the Telluride 11 times out of 10.

Prices are crazy right now with demand being so high. We ordered ours and I had to argue with the dealership to get it for MSRP. Dealers doing a $2k - $10k markup over MSRP has gotten to be the norm. Craziest one I've seen was a dealer asking $13k over MSRP... on a used one with 6k miles. Never thought I'd buy a new car in my life, and this will probably be the first, last, and only one. My wife and I were just so convinced this was the best vehicle for a our growing family that we were willing to invest a little more to get exactly what we wanted. We plan to keep it for a very long time. So far, we are very happy with our purchase.




When we ordered ours, everyone was telling us 3-6 months on the wait. We picked ours up 2.5 weeks after we ordered it. The dealership was just as shocked as us. Apparently the day they submitted the order was the day that particular combination of color/trim/options were being built.

And, it really did mean something to me that it was made here in GA.
I hope you get many years of great service out of it , my wife wants one ? , she drives a Sorento now and loves it . 70 k on it and not a single issue yet
 

tad1

Senior Member
How about some pro and con comments on awd vs fwd? Daughter driving mostly Statesboro to Athens area, so not much prevalence of icy roads/snow. AWD is more costly and something else to tear up/repair, but are there real safety advantages for our area?

Thanks in advance for any input!

L

Statesboro to Athens seems like a non issue..
Hope I’m not stating the obvious by saying keeping good tires on it can make the difference. Terrified of my kids starting to drive....
JT
 
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