AWD vs 4WD - What's the Difference?

AWD vs 4WD - What's the Difference?

There's a lot to take into consideration when you're shopping for a new vehicle, and we here at Town East Ford want to help you throughout the process. With all of the different features and technology that are offered in new models these days, it can be confusing to understand what everything does. All-wheel drive and four-wheel drive are two features that are worth learning more about when it comes to the overall safety and traction of an automobile. You may benefit from one or the other.

What is All-Wheel Drive?

Your powertrain can power either the front wheels, rear wheels, or both sets of wheels, depending on what your vehicle is equipped with. When you have all-wheel drive, the front and rear wheels are being powered. This inclusion can feature full-time all-wheel drive if you need all four wheels to be spinning continuously. A part-time all-wheel drive system will utilize just two of the wheels, switching over to full-time mode if needed.

Don't anticipate making any kind of adjustments yourself when it comes to the switch between full-time and part-time all-wheel drive. This is an automatic feature that occurs when torque is routed through a vehicle's differentials, clutches, and couplings.

What is Four-Wheel Drive?

Four-wheel drive is most commonly found in large/heavy vehicles like trucks and full-size SUVs. Differentials are in the front of the vehicle as well as the center and rear with transfer cases and couplings. This system will move power to all four of your wheels as need be. The full-time and part-time modes are available in this setup as well, and there is a high mode and low mode. Both are controlled using an electronic lever in your automobile. You will choose your high or low mode based on the road surface that you're driving on. For example, a low setting works best for very slick road surfaces. The high setting is used for a bit of added traction.

You can contact us here at Town East Ford if you would like a more in-depth explanation of the differences between all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive. We'd be more than happy to show you some of the models that have these features, and we'll give you the opportunity to test drive one of them.