Quote:
Originally Posted by DC Newbie
Correct. Due to higher weight alone awd will be a little slower than rwd. Due to higher ride, and softer suspension, xDrive will not handle quite the same as a rwd with sport suspension. As an owner of an xDrive, I acknowledge and accept this. I will say, however, that even if you are an aggressive driver, the performance advantage of rwd will not really be that noticeable unless you're on the track, or driving dangerously on public roads. (Controlled oversteer and power drifts are fun, but they are not part of everyday driving.)
I chose AWD because It will handle better in rainy weather and snowy conditions. And I do a lot of my driving in these conditions. If I didn't, I would have chosen RWD, because it IS the sportier option.
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Again, I am not an xDrive detractor, but I do disagree that only on a track (or driving dangerously) can the differences between xDrive and RWD be appreciated. In good traction conditions, when xDrive is at it's best, it is heavily biasing the rear wheels... but even at it's best, the increased drag on the front wheels is still felt. If you drive an equally equipped xDrive and RWD back-to-back, I think you'd feel it too.
Also, just to be clear about the advantages of xDrive, it will never offer a "handling" advantage... in any road conditions. It offers an acceleration traction advantage, which is best appreciated in slippery conditions. This has nothing to do with braking/cornering traction, which is more a function of tires in slippery conditions. And unless you're driving very aggressively in the rain/snow (where you're on the gas hard in a turn while exceeding the lateral grip of the tires) the acceleration traction advantage has nothing to do with cornering. Where xDrive offers the appreciable advantage is acceleration traction (from a stop, up a hill, etc.) in snowy/slushy/icy conditions... OR (and this is for you 300hp ; ) from a dead stop when drag racing from light to light!