I have become a Nitro Junkie, and I have to face this new reality right now.

I passed everything on the Banff - Invermere highway today, and I am not talking junk (SUVS, trucks, Acuras and Lexus ****).

The adrenaline rush is such that I do not need any Coffee for a long time. Still the eyes are moving across the ceiling and not the floor.

Hard labour on the hands with the steering wheel, hurting in the upper arms both left and right, heart palpitations, I need some cream, sometimes when I turned left the car goes right and Vice versa.

One thing that I discovered is on black ice and turns. When I was going out to the ditch I pressed the clutch than the brake a little bit, shifted down and than gas to the bottom and the car regained the traction.

The procession of Fords and Dodges was left behind and they had to slow down to 30 because of the lack of visibility.

One time already in the ditch I just shifted 2 gears down and we jumped out to the road again. Holly!
That was in 0.5 m BC wet snow. It felt good to be on hard surface again, yet the snow cloud was visible for the long time.

Michelines behaved and they stood up to the task.

How does this monster car know when to engage rear wheels only? It seemed to know when to go on front wheel drive or rear wheel drive, very much to our appreciation.

 

Our Quattros do not become a FWD or RWD at all. It's full time AWD supported by the Torsen system (NOT haldex AKA ****) usually meaning the max torque divide will be around 20:80. ( i heard someone mention 17:83 to be exact) Haldex AWD is engaged when it sensors a slip, but Torsen just divides torque straightly. So in easy words Torsen=CVT transmission Haldex=sluggish automatic.

BTW any suggestions when meeting black ice in an automatic?

 

the torque divide on these cars is pretty much 50/50. it is only on the newer audi models in the last few years that they have made it more rear wheel biased such as a 20/80 split

 

you DO realize, that the CVT tranny's are only on the FWD models, not AWD, right?

 

Yes, I was just comparing the AWD technology to transmission types. I'm just saying that Torsen AWD is like CVT where the torque split is instantly variable, unlike Haldex system where the clutch has to be engaged.

 

The actual terms are easier to understand, Quattro is proactive with power going to all wheels at all times and when slip occurs the power just needs to be pushed to one end or the other to balance it out. A Syncro/Haldex system is reactive where the power is only at one end of the car and as slip occurs it then pushes power to the other end to gain more traction. On top of the Quattro system brakes and free-wheels with power going to all four wheels whereas Syncro/Haldex is only AWD going forward and only under load.

 

I do not drive an automatic but my wife does drive an A6 which is a heavier car so I do not know either it applies to A4.

So when she is on black ice, after swearing and calling 911, she.. Just kidding!

She says that the idea is to put more weight on front wheels by slowing the vehicle down but not locking the wheels. The first thing to do is to get your wheels turning at the vehicle speed by shifting to N. Than she pumps the brakes slightly and steers when the brake pedal goes down. Once the car is under control she engages the gear.

 

May I suggest you do some reading about the newest Gen. Haldex ...

 

steve: Yeah haha I'm probably a little out of date with it.... I've heard the newest generations have must faster response than the previous ones, but I tend to lean towards the Torsen system more.

 

No question that Torsen is amazing, especially in slippery conditions (I was driving a B8 A4 today in freezing rain and couldnt understand why everyone was driving so slowly !). My winter beater last year was an RS4 and it was absolutely the best winter car I've ever driven. I decided I wasnt going to avoid getting the TTS because it was Haldex and it has performed very well ... I have not experienced it feeling like a FWD car so.