I have my mothers 98' Accord and it's FR, but I've always wondered the difference in driving feeling when switching. I've been in my friend's MX-5, my uncle's MR2, as a passenger, and they seem to push you back more into the seat lol

Sorry I meant to type FF

 

FR accord?

 

balance

 

Probably something like, "Hey! My car doesn't suck now!"

 

oversteer

 

The first thing I notice is the placebo effect.

Imagining that I feel a difference when there is virtually no difference when going about my daily driving on straight roads and through stop lights and stop signs under normal driving conditions.

Than after a while I start noticing the finer details like a relative lack of understeer and torque steer during turns and how different/less confident it feels driving in the rain.

 

pitch balance.

 

I can turn!

 

poop

 

more power, better steering

 

Driving is fun!

 

Torque steer. It's the enemy.

 

i prefer the fun factor of rear wheel drive cars. i feel as though i'm more in control with a rear wheel drive car. i own a 92 Camry SE. it has a 3VZ-FE, 185hp V6 and a 5 speed trans. great car for the highway, rides nice and all but the understeer is just crazy and it's difficult to drive through the snow. i much prefer rear drive cars.

 

Never owned a FWD car.

 

I have mostly owned and driven FR (front engine/rwd) cars, but my wife has had mainly FF & FWD cars. So I from time to time have entered an autocross in a FF car. I have never had the occasion to run one on the race track.
The difference is when you accelerate in a FF car, during acceleration, the weight is transferred to the rear of the car. The front wheels loose traction, so acceleration is limited. Also, when driving at the corners limits, it is more difficult to accurately place the car where you want it to be because of the natural push/understeer of a FF vehicle. With a lot of modification, both of these tendencies can be overcome to some degree.

 

ref: topgear's explanation of torque steer
"its great... assuming you always want to turn left"

 

Butt dyno. The way a RWD 'squats down' when you punch it.

btw: Many moons ago I had a first year Diamond Star Laser (same as Eclipse, '90, came out in June '89). That car had ridiculous FWD torque pull from its trans-mounted 4-banger. But was still a lot of fun.

 

I notice the lack of plowing through a corner on slick streets as well as the general understeer under hard cornering and in the case of the Eclipse I used to own, the lack of extreme axle hop under hard launches as well as the torque steer when accelerating around a turn.

 

Do you mean FF accord? becausse FR is RWD. any how never owend a FF car. but when i do drive one, i notice im being pushed forward (weight) while making turns.

update, when i first moved to the US from okinawa i owned a 94 sentra.

 

The two situations where the difference becomes clear is:

1. Digging in from a stand still. This is more pronounced going uphill. RWD cars "bite".

2. Powering through, but especially powering OUT of corners. RWD cars can apply full power earlier upon leaving the apex. Think smart missile (RWD) vs dumb rocket (FWD). With an FWD car, you need to patiently aim then shoot. With an RWD, you can shoot and still guide it.

 

The back wants to step out when you hit the gas in a corner.