[PatientM]

Morning! To all my Cali brothers and sisters, why get an M3 AWD in California? Was talking to a buddy who said he just wanted the fastest M3... aside from that I don't see any upside? I put in for 6mt ... but it had me thinking... why else?

[Gfit]

The purpose of AWD on a high HP car is not for snow or bad weather.

[astroricardo]

for me: 1. Many of the fastest cars over the last 25-30 years have been AWD; 2. In the past if you wanted the fastest model, you got the manual. That hasn't been the case for some time. 3. Traction has been a problem for the M3 for a long time... xDrive is the solution. 4. First AWD M3!

[yami sukehiro]

because i want to floor it without spinning?

[Habber]

I should start a thread about me getting a RWD in snowy city.

Manual trumps traction all the time 😝

[jmg]

Because it's the first M3/4 with AWD and I've had 2 RWD M3's already, so it was time to try something new.

[forza1976]

#becausefaster

[1BAD4DR]

Because all wheel drive twin turbo pulls nasty / thread

[Limegrntaln]

Easy explanation

[Hit_Apex]

That's a lot of weight to haul around for the occasional launch opportunity.

[Pekingduck]

Because most people don’t have the talent for rwd 500whp and bringing it to edge. Plus it hard to manage traction with most of torque coming lower section of the rpm.

[xXMPowerXx]

Just driving around day to day AWD is better. Pulling quickly in to traffic, making quick turns, merging on to traffic, etc… all done better with AWD.

[GoldfishTX]

Originally Posted by Hit_Apex

That's a lot of weight to haul around for the occasional launch opportunity.

This regularly parroted response to xDrive is as silly as ever. It's 100 lbs on a nearly 4000 lb car in every trim. I'd be absolutely amazed if an xDrive car set to rwd and a competition rwd are distinguishable by 99.9% of drivers.

[Vic55]

The ability to launch with grip, enter and exit turns with more confidence, and just an overall safer experience as there is rain here sometimes LOL.

I have had both the RWD Comp and the X- clearly the X is more inspiring and confident in all manners of grip. Ive also done a minor tune so the X is ever more important even via a roll.

Anyone who thinks their tires are always up to proper temps and CA roads are great enough with just RWD cars doesnt rip their cars safely or doesnt rip them at all.

And if one cares about resale, the X holds better...

[MunkyTool]

Daily driver and my family is often in the car. Any amount of extra grip /safety is worth every penny to me.

[KANdaddy]

When BMW developed the Xdrive system for the G80, inclimate weather ability was like 5% of the reason. This system is mostly RWD biased, even when set to full AWD. It's all about performance and allowing the car to access the exact amount of grip needed for any performance driving situation. It's very dynamic that way. Not all on/off like a traditional AWD system.

[BLKSAPPE92]

Originally Posted by xXMPowerXx

Just driving around day to day AWD is better. Pulling quickly in to traffic, making quick turns, merging on to traffic, etc… all done better with AWD.

Not true the only thing AWD does better is accelerate in a straight line. It downed corner, brake or maneuver any better. Take it from someone who grew up in snow and ice with lower HP awd cars they only can out perform accelerating in straight lines

[BLKSAPPE92]

Originally Posted by Vic55

The ability to launch with grip, enter and exit turns with more confidence, and just an overall safer experience as there is rain here sometimes LOL.

I have had both the RWD Comp and the X- clearly the X is more inspiring and confident in all manners of grip. Ive also done a minor tune so the X is ever more important even via a roll.

Anyone who thinks their tires are always up to proper temps and CA roads are great enough with just RWD cars doesnt rip their cars safely or doesnt rip them at all.

And if one cares about resale, the X holds better...

You clearly never lived in the snow and ice your entire life awd does nothing for cornering, maneuvers or braking with wet traction. The reason AWD wins is because of high HP they brake way early, corner and then use higher rated HP to pull away in a straight line they do not handle better then RWD

[BLKSAPPE92]

Originally Posted by MunkyTool

Daily driver and my family is often in the car. Any amount of extra grip /safety is worth every penny to me.

You don't really make alot of sense. You can only accelerate faster on dry, wet, snow or ice it doesn't help you corner or maneuver any faster. So all it really does it help you get to a faster speed then with the same handling and braking capability of a rwd which dangerous

[Vic55]

Originally Posted by BLKSAPPE92

You clearly never lived in the snow and ice your entire life awd does nothing for cornering, maneuvers or braking with wet traction. The reason AWD wins is because of high HP they brake way early, corner and then use higher rated HP to pull away in a straight line they do not handle better then RWD

Dont discount what you dont know (where I have lived) and I wont disrespect your knowledge about where you currently are at.

So I ask this as you seem to be an expert on the value of RWD vs AWD in all conditions and with high performance cars. I do know a thing or two about a thing or two having had 13 M's with a blend of both RWD and AWD along with countless other cars that have over 500hp in the RWD and AWD variations. I also have had both G80's in the RWD and X drive (still have the X):

What about the tq transfer from the rear axle to the front- does that not help via grip and handling entering and exiting turns? Also where do you come up with this higher rated hp comment(s). Im just trying to understand your comments in a more educated manner.

Again asking for your education here and not trying to create a non SME debate. And dont forget I mentioned that I tuned my car too which is also a factor.

jmg
CanAutM3

[MunkyTool]

Originally Posted by BLKSAPPE92

You don't really make alot of sense. You can only accelerate faster on dry, wet, snow or ice it doesn't help you corner or maneuver any faster. So all it really does it help you get to a faster speed then with the same handling and braking capability of a rwd which dangerous

I don't think you understand how 4WD works beyond accelerating

[jmg]

Originally Posted by BLKSAPPE92

You don't really make alot of sense. You can only accelerate faster on dry, wet, snow or ice it doesn't help you corner or maneuver any faster. So all it really does it help you get to a faster speed then with the same handling and braking capability of a rwd which dangerous

Its true that AWD does not improve braking or increase grip in the dry or wet when there is no grip to begin with (ie al tires are hydroplaning)

It does, however offer more "grip" in the sense that the system will send power to the wheel with grip. So in a RWD LSD equipped vehicle compared to a AWD vehicle, the RWD has 2 available options for grip, while the AWD has 4. For instance, if both rear wheels on a RWD have lost grip, the RWD car is out of options for power delivery. An AWD car that has no traction in the rear wheels, still has 2 front wheels it can deliver power to.

So wet, dry, or icy, grip is dynamic and changing, based on the road conditions, and weight distribution of the car over all 4 wheels. In a corner, for example, the weight goes to the front of the car during braking, as the car apexes and the brakes are gradually released, the throttle is applied, the weight starts to transfer to the rear. Too much power, and the rear wheels brake traction and you have a potential oversteer situation. Too little power and the exit speed isn't as fast as it could be.

When tracking a RWD vehicle, I try to get the car pointing down the road as much as possible to accelerate as fast as possible without losing control of the vehicle. When I feel the rears losing grip and start to step out, I dial in some counter-steer, and feather the throttle to reel in the rear. This costs fractions of a second, which is what we are fighting for on the track.

With AWD, we can get on the throttle a little bit sooner because the system is making dozens if not hundreds of decisions a second to send power to the wheels with the most grip, so when the rear tires start to loose grip from too much power, some of that power is sent to the front to both tame the car, and still maintain forward acceleration. This saves fractions of a second, which, again, is what we are fighting for on the track. Also, it is confidence inspiring, which also could lead to faster times.

So you gain traction from the apex to corner-exit, but not necessarily corner entry nor pre-apex.