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      02-28-2020, 09:16 AM   #28
RM7
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Drives: Camaro SS 1LE
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Red Bread View Post
AWD doesn't help at all in braking. Living in Texas and frequently driving in New Mexico, the first cars to go off the road in initial snowfall are Audis or Subarus driven by over confident drivers. I also see lots of STI's and WRX's driven in bad weather on summer tires.

A Viper on snow tires > Subaru on summer tires.
Engine braking.

But I digress,

A lot of people drive on snow on warm ground, the snow is melting almost instantly, the biggest issue is the slush beneath and the AWD does help them maintain forward movement in those conditions, which in turn gives some gyroscopic stability. Often a 2WD car can't move in those conditions because there's just not enough weight on the drive wheels and the torque just all goes to those wheels at once. It's not the worst conditions though, the relatively warm ground means when it's plowed or has melted a bit, you are better off with good snow/winter tires. Most places that are below 50 degrees latitude and below 7000' never really have to worry that much. The sun goes high enough in the sky in the winter to burn off the ice and snow from streets that are black and absorb the rays, etc.

On the other hand, in places where you get ice and snow compacted and impacted that stays on the roads all winter, until around late March when the same effect above starts to happen, it's a different issue completely. Just getting a car moving at an intersection or stop is no small feat. Winter tires become not just a luxury, but a necessity, including studs. Studs are for these ice conditions. The term "skating rink" comes to mind, but not just on level, but all sorts of grades, up and down. Most people that don't live in this don't really know or understand it. AWD can be a huge benefit because you try to "go" at any intersection and the wheels just spin. I watch it every day, FWD, RWD, they try to move and the car just sits there spinning wheels. At some point, it's a safety issue. I had one situation a few winters ago where I had a car come spinning through an intersection the wrong way when I was making a LH turn. Only hitting the gas on my AWD BMW got me clear and that sure wouldn't have worked with 2WD, it would have just spun wheels. Braking is about the same and more dependent on tires, although engine braking is a bit better obviously, but the ability to move the car from a standstill or accelerate can't be downplayed enough in these specific environments.

From a sales standpoint, it makes more money to convince everyone they need it, just like the "better have it and not need it than...".
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