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Mmmm, Dock, you are losing yourself in a trail of silly semantics and marketing-speak.
No, it's based on a historical basis, both from the technology and from Porsche.
This article (see link below) is a good start on the way to understanding 4WD (a.k.a. 4x4) vs AWD...here are some quotes from the article:
"...the old-school version, 4WD, sometimes also referred to as Four by Four, or 4×4, is typically used on off-road vehicles – or at least vehicles with all-terrain capabilities."...(this sentence is apropos for those who want to advertise their 996 Turbo as an off-road/all terrain, truck-like vehicle).
"In fact, a good rule of thumb might be to think of AWD as the “car” system while 4WD is the “truck” system."
"The biggest difference between 4WD and AWD is that an AWD drive system is on all the time."
I had a jeep that was full time 4wd and a 997tt that was AWD. There was no difference. Since a jeep can have 4x4 or 6x6, it made sense to be more specific. Since all 911s have 4 wheels, it would be silly to specify how many wheels there were.
An AWD vehicle (short for All-wheel drive vehicle) is one with a powertrain capable of providing power to all its wheels, whether full-time or on-demand.
The most common forms of All Wheel Drive are:
4×4, also known as four-wheel drive and "4WD", reflecting two axles with both wheels on each capable of being powered.
6×6, also known as six-wheel drive and "6WD", reflecting three axles with both wheels on each capable of being powered
8×8, also known as eight-wheel drive and "8WD", reflecting four axles with both wheels on each capable of being powered
Four-wheel drive, 4×4 ("four by four"), and 4WD, is a form of drivetrain capable of providing power to all wheel ends of a two-axled vehicle simultaneously. It may be full-time, or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case which provides and an additional output drive-shaft, along with additional gear ranges.
A four-wheeled vehicle with power supplied to both axles may sometimes be described as "all-wheel drive" (AWD). However, "four-wheel drive" typically refers to a set of specific components and functions, and/or intended offroad application, which generally complies with modern use of the terminology.
My Subaru was marketed as 4WD. Now they market 'em as AWD.
When I was 16 and doing donuts in the Heidi's Frogen Yozurt (!) parking lot at midnight with a car full of dudes, a patrol car lit me up and presented the following option: a citation for Exhibition of Speed or quit being stupid. I was very grateful to be allowed to choose the latter...
Porsche designed and build the car, so they get to call it what they want.
Can't argue with that.
Years ago I worked for a company, and the owner would come in once in awhile a muck up the whole work process. When people tried to tell him that there were better ways to do things, he'd respond: "I own this company, so we will do things any way I damn well want!"
Can't we all just get along? Heck, my Porsche has a 5X4 AWD system - one inside and four outside. Now let's get back to talking about oil, Jake, Martin, and coolant dripping out exhaust pipe. *drop mic*
Porsche designed and build the car, so they get to call it what they want. I'll stick with their philosophy...
Dock, has your wife ever hauled out and punched you in the face for being a belligerent färt? As I was typing yesterday I knew you would not relent.
Please, let me explain it to you in German: Glaub es mir, Du Volltrottel, sie reden von Allradantrieb. Dies, wörtlich ins englische übersetzt ist "All Wheel Drive". Im deutschen hat dies aber die GLEICHE BEDEUTUNG wie Vierradantrieb.
OK?
And maybe the absolute truth is even somewhere in the middle as niether you nor I were at the marketing meetings prior to the 996 Allradantriebsversion's introduction. And the world is not black and white but shades of gray.
But, you will come back and explain that you, and only you are right...
This is a discussion forum. Translation? We discuss things here.
I asked a friend of mine who is in the upper levels of PCNA management about this topic. I asked him what both PCNA and PAG used when talking about the drivetrain installed on all 911 Turbos (from the first 911 Turbo to the present 911 Turbo), and he said that they all refer to it as "AWD".
Obviously, I didn't personally have anything to do with the Porsche lexicon. As I said, it's their car, so they get to call it what they want. I didn't invent either the phrase "all-wheel drive", or come up with the idea that Porsche should use the phrase "all-wheel drive", so this usage by Porsche has nothing to do with me.
07-20-2016, 03:39 PM
As I was typing yesterday I knew you would not relent.