Four-Wheel Drive vs All-Wheel Drive

How is all-wheel drive different from four-wheel drive

How is all-wheel drive different from four-wheel drive?

Car shoppers looking to do some adventuring off-road, or just for some added traction, will be considering all-wheel and four-wheel drive vehicles. These two similar systems can sometimes lead to confusion. So how is all-wheel drive different from four-wheel drive?

Differences between AWD and 4WD

Both all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive send power to all four wheels of a vehicle. There are a couple key differences that set these two systems apart from each other.

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All-wheel drive systems can send power to all four wheels, but most of the time the system with prioritize one set of wheels over the other. Power is then sent to the other wheels as needed. For example, an all-wheel drive car will primarily operate in front-wheel drive, but if the system detects the front wheels slipping, power will be sent to the rear wheels. Some all-wheel drive systems will always send a portion of the vehicle’s power to all the wheels, but others do not.

Ford F-150 Front white
Dodge Durango red back
Chevrolet Silverado black front

Benefits of 4WD

Four-wheel drive systems will always send a portion of power to all four wheels of the vehicle. Four-wheel drive systems are most often found on larger trucks and SUVs, and are designed for more rugged use. Four-wheel drive vehicles will have lower gearing ratios, and other systems designed to aid with off-road driving, or extreme weather driving conditions. If you are planning on taking your vehicles off road for a significant amount of time, for-wheel drive is a great choice.

OkCarz offers many excellent all-wheel drive and four-wheel drive vehicles in our inventory, along with the financing options needed to get you behind the wheel at a rate that fits your budget.

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