What are the conditions for Audi's on-demand all-wheel drive to engage?
2 Answers
Audi's on-demand all-wheel drive engages under conditions such as snow, rain, muddy and slippery roads, tires falling into manhole covers, and clutch slippage. Relevant information about on-demand all-wheel drive is as follows: 1. On-demand all-wheel drive simply adds a viscous coupling between the front and rear axles, making the structure relatively simple. This not only effectively reduces costs but also helps lower the overall vehicle weight. 2. It is suitable for models with a front transverse engine and front-wheel-drive platform, enabling many SUVs or all-wheel-drive sedans based on this platform to be equipped with an all-wheel-drive system. 3. It is the most suitable all-wheel-drive system for urban road conditions. When the vehicle is driving normally, the two-wheel-drive mode helps achieve better fuel economy; when encountering wet or slippery conditions or light off-road situations, the all-wheel-drive system ensures timely escape.
I was pondering this last time when driving my Audi Q5L on mountain roads. Audi's current quattro ultra system is quite intelligent. During normal steady driving, it mainly operates as front-wheel drive for fuel efficiency. But the moment you step harder on the accelerator or take corners faster, the rear wheels immediately kick in. Once on a rainy day when taking an exit ramp, I could feel the rear wheels pushing as soon as I turned the steering wheel more sharply. The system's sensors are incredibly precise - any slight tire slip, the windshield-mounted camera detecting wet roads, or changes in incline angle can all make the computer instantly redistribute power to the rear wheels. Another time when climbing a snowy slope, just as the front wheels were about to spin, the 4WD indicator on the dashboard flashed, and traction was firmly maintained. What impresses me most about this system is its ability to ensure safety without unnecessarily burning fuel.
