Just wondering what are the effects in the wet vs in the dry? Also what parts of a tack do you get any benifits? Is it only when powering out of a turn? Is there any benifit going into a turn?

What are the pros and cons of awd vs 2wd?

What do you guys think in regards to AWD sports cars. For example a 911 rwd vs 911 awd same power. In particular if a car is 99% a pleasure vehicle meaning it's not driven much in the rain.

Finally is awd more important for a very high powered car vs a mid powered car? What I mean is for example a Viper may have trouble getting all it's power down, whereas a S2000 doesn't.

 

dunno.

but i recently drove a 2-week old 911TT for about 45 minutes on some local twisties and a quick boot on the highway.

let's just say that there's not much drama driving it as hard you want on twisties (granted, my limit, may be lower or higher than the next guy's).

it was always composed. you could hammer it and it was always planted - got the odd tire-chirp on mid-corner upshifts, but the back never stepped out.

the back did get twitchy under VERY hard braking however...but that's about it. i think it was a function of uneven municipal pavement though.

of course we're talking the top of the line AWD sportscar.

not the same as a track, but my experience nonetheless.

it was a beautiful dry, clear night.

 

About 3 months ago I drove a 911 tt. It was fast sure, but somehow not as exillerating as when I drove a Z06 with equal power. Sure the turbo would be easier to live with, but that's not my top priority for a sports car.

I know what you mean about the turbo being composed in the twisties. It wasn't my car so I wasn't pushing it very hard, but it didn't seem as fun as my S2000.

 

i get you.

the TT is TOO composed.....i was left wanting - experience wise. i wanted an experience and all i got was speed and performance - why is that not enough?

and honestly, i wasn't too impressed with the brakes (non-PCCB) - they had the same feel and power as my spoons with carbon pads (granted mine are aftermarket, but i didn't pay over 100K for my car either ).

 

Lighter car + aftermarket brakes + carbon pads = much better braking I would imagine

 

It's easier to drive hard with an AWD setup. You can power out of the corners earlier, and if you overcook it, the car will drift sideway as oppose to going into the tire wall butt first. The downside is you'll wear out the front tires quicker, leading to increasing understeer as the front tires wear out.

 

yeah, but you would think that the TT had the best brakes available.

 

When I drove the tt I thought the brakes weren't very good, but only because I had to press down harder in order for them to work. You needed a lot more force on the pedal as opposed to the S.

 

rai, pressure wasn't a problem...they didn't quite bite like i expected them to.

it's supposed to stop on a dime, no??

it felt like it needed a quarter....

 

Expert drivers, dry track: RWD>AWD. AWD just robs you of power, adds weight and induces understeer.

For beginner drivers, AWD is easier since it will allow you to make mistakes and compensate for it. For example, you can overcook a corner, get scared and tap the brakes, inducing oversteer, and then just lay on throttle to power out of the corner. Not fast but not in the ditch eiither, which is what would happen if you do that in a RWD car. But that doesn't mean AWD is better for beginners, if you're a beginner driver you should learn not to make mistakes, and you won't do that in a car that corrects them for you.

Wet track, AWD wins hands down. That's because wet track rewards "rally" driving style which is ideal for AWD. When you approach a corner you start a nice 4 wheel slide, which both slows you down so you can make it around the corner and points you in the right direction for the exit. That's the fastest way around in low traction, and hard to do but possible in an AWD car and pretty much impossible in a RWD car.