With so many specific terminologies, it becomes critical to understand the working principles of these drivetrain configurations.
In this post, there is a thorough explanation about various drivetrain configurations – FWD, RWD, AWD and 4×4. These are all the setups that 4-wheelers come with. These represent Front Wheel Drive, Rear Wheel Drive, All Wheel Drive and 4 Wheel Drive, respectively. While these terms might be self-explanatory, the working principles are quite specific and intriguing to learn about. All these setups have distinct applications. Let us take a look at the details of these here. YouTuber, DCV Expeditions does a great job of breaking the working down into simple language.
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FWD vs RWD vs AWD vs 4×4 Comparison
Front Wheel Drive
In this type of configuration, the power from the engine is sent to the front wheels only. Hence, the grip and traction on the front wheels is critical. Most regular cars have this configuration. These have great pulling power which is essential on highway runs. But these are not at all suited for off-roading adventures, especially on ascents.
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RWD
As the name suggests, the power from the engine is sent solely to the rear wheels in this configuration. There are not a lot of regular cars that boast this setup. Interestingly, most driving-focused performance cars have this setup. It pushes the car from the rear, which is better for the overall driving dynamics. The last-gen Toyota Innova Crysta had this drivetrain with a ladder-frame chassis lending it better off-roading prowess than the FWD cars.
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AWD
AWD stands for All Wheel Drive. In such configurations, the engine sends power to all four wheels. Mostly, the power to each wheel is pre-determined. But such an arrangement ensures that even if one or two tyres of a car are in the air or have no traction for any reason, the other two tyres can pull the vehicle out of a difficult situation. There are many SUVs which have the AWD drivetrain. These are designed for mild off-roading excursions. A prime example in our market is the Mahindra XUV700. It is a luxury SUV with some off-roading credentials due to this setup.
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4×4
Finally, 4×4 refers to the sophisticated version of the AWD. Here, all four wheels can be supplied with power independently. Therefore, if the ECU of the car detects that any wheel of the car has no traction, the engine won’t supply any power to it. Instead, it will direct that power to the other wheels. That is not the case with AWD. That is why hardcore 4×4 cars are so capable. In fact, they can even pull out other cars from difficult scenarios. The video captures the real-world performances of all these setups.
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