Drivetrains Explained

Just about every vehicular drive system imaginable is currently in production—each touted by its manufacturer as the obviously superior choice for you. With conflicting claims and confusing terminology, it's hard to know what's what, and what's best for you. The optimum drive-system choice for a given vehicle depends on many factors. If you're realistic about the type of driving you do, you can narrow down the possibilities—and probably save a lot of money in the process.

Front Drive
For modestly powered passenger cars, front-wheel drive (FWD) is the best compromise of performance, cost and efficiency. By putting the weight of the engine over the driving wheels, traction off the line is excellent. Plus, overall advantages include reduced vehicle weight and interior roominess thanks to not having a long driveshaft/raised tunnel down the center of the car.

The optimum drive-system choice for a given vehicle depends on many factors.
The downside of FWD is mainly in aggressively sporting driving, where the front tires—burdened with steering, most of the braking and all the power delivery—get overloaded in turns. The result is something called understeer, when the front tires begin to slide much more than the rear tires do, and the car won't answer the steering faithfully. This is almost never an issue for normal drivers, since they don't maneuver very aggressively, even in a panic situation.


Another downside to front drive is torque steer, which is feedback through the steering caused by heavy applications of engine power. Refinements to the design of the front suspension and the driveshaft layout have made torque steer something of a non-issue in current vehicles, at least in cars with less than about 250 horsepower or so.

Rear Drive
Rear-wheel drive (RWD) is favored in powerful sports cars, due to its superior performance in high-energy driving and racing. With power being sent to the rear wheels, the front tires have less work to do and the vehicle has better handling balance as it reaches its absolute cornering limits. Understeer is reduced, and a skilled and experienced performance driver can enjoy a superior feeling of control and connection with the car.