Not wanting to add more fuel to the fire, but not all "AWD" systems are equal. There are mechanical ones and there are electrical ones. And among those categories, there are many different systems with considerable variation in purpose, function, performance, and effectiveness. For example, the ZR1X corvette has a type of electric AWD, but it is very, very different from the gen5 prius electric AWD. And, unfortunately, the gen5 prius AWD does not appear to be super effective:
Good thing the roads aren't rollers....LOL. That's not a real life test. I've run mine pretty fast on snowy/ice roads in the mtns and it handle really well
You're correct about that, but nobody is saying that they are. Rollers are indeed a challenging test. But some cars with AWD are able to pass this kind of roller test with ease. Unfortunately, the prius AWD is not one of them.
The latest gen Camry failed the last test as well, and needed to be run in sport mode to pass one of the others. He concluded it’s good for some ice and snow, but would get overwhelmed by a lot.
Of course they are. That's their whole point: rollers are like slippery roads. Otherwise, why bother? My takeaway from the video? When stuck on snow and ice or other slippery stuff, switch to sport mode and turn off traction control.
Yes to turning off the traction control. The gen2 didn't have a button for that, and the TC kept me from leaving my driveway. Eco mode would be better than sport though. You want more graduated throttle response when starting off to reduce the chance of spinning wheels when moving from a stop.
No need, just don't get stuck in any giant snowbanks. I have only FWD, and I haven't got stuck yet. It's easy!
Having weight directly above your drive axles really helps. Dealing with the traction you've already got and NOT breaking it, will keep the car under control. If you don't throw a few hundred pound sack of sand into your trunk, that rear axle will slide out from under the car anyways, AWD isn't going to help wheels that has already broken traction. Especially when people don't adjust their driving habits to conditions. IMHO; AWD is just a false sense of security, since most people don't know how to use it properly PS; you can also air down the tires a bit to get better traction. Most of us run our tires over-inflated to get more mpgs.
