Source
r/Volvo•
Grunkenn

eAWD just doesn’t measure up

s60/v60

Car: 2023 V60 T8 Polestar Engineered

Point of reference: Subaru AWD (manual transmission)

Sure, in most driving conditions the car is great at managing traction, but when deep snow hits, I feel like the eAWD system falls apart.

To be fair, much of my complaints might be because since the introduction of AAOS, there is no longer an option to enable ESC Sport Mode. But …

In Pure mode, the system clamps down on the rear wheels hard, and your car goes nowhere. There is a significant delay before the ICE kicks in to engaged the front wheels and when it does, it quickly engages the traction control once more.

In Hybrid mode (with a charged batter), it’s much the same as Pure.

In Hybrid mode (with an empty battery), the front wheels are much quicker to respond since the power request quickly triggers the ICE any way.

Constant AWD is the best starting point, but again, the traction control system comes down hard and cuts you off. I have struggled to pull in/out of parking spots with only half a foot of snow, and forget about modulating the throttle to attempt to point your car through a turn. The constant interruptions by the traction system result in an unpredictable mess of under steer, with some over steer, all the while having your power cut in and out over and over.

And I was hopeful that at least Polestar Engineered mode would be better, but even it is still gimped constantly by the traction control.

Anybody have any advice on how to manage this eAWD system in slippery conditions? Does anybody else share my frustration with the system?

EDIT: Many of you are taking about using winter tires. That’s not the point of this post. I simply don’t like how the system manages traction loss. And as I mentioned in a reply, I’ve been using a rotating set of summer/winter tires for 25+ years. I’m well aware of the benefit. But I’ve also driven plenty of all-seasons tires that behave much more predictably than this eAWD system.

Posted Mar 12, 2023, 4:48 PM UTC · edited

712
vancepepa•

I would recommend starting with winter/snow tires if you don’t already have them.

5
siebek•

I live in Norway and have never been stuck in snow in my V90 T8, which happened quite often before in the previous FWD car. When I got V90, I even stopped to shuffle the snow from the driveway, as there are now issues to plow through 25cm snow. I guess nordic winter tyres help a lot though.

4
angelcake•

Just posting to agree with everyone that if you don’t have winter tires you need winter tires. All of the awesome all wheel drive capabilities and stability control and traction control are phenomenal but you need the right rubber on your vehicle.

3
PaddlingTiger•

Based on your write-up, I don’t feel like you have a great understanding of the system.

The electric motor drives the rear, the ICE drives the front - there is no crossover at all. So I’m not sure why you’d even try it in Pure, as you write above. Further, hybrid mode uses the electric only unless under had acceleration or low battery. Again, not sure why this is in the write up. Further, Polestar is maximum power. This is great when dry, but is not meant to be for adverse conditions, meaning you’ll get wheelspin as it’s a steep power curve on the systems.

You should ONLY be using Constant AWD for this. With winter tires.

2
GrunkennOP•

I’m not sure why you think I don’t understand the system. I’m fully aware of why the ‘e’ is in eAWD.

As for why I mention Pure/Hybrid … just as the ICE kicks in for the front wheels for extra traction, the ERAD kicks in for the rear. All this being electronically controlled (no centre differential). That IS the system; driving fronts or rears as needed, independent of what drive mode you are in. All drive mode have eAWD. You CAN’T deactivate it.

With the ERs, it’s about a 60/40 F/R torque split. This should be plenty for the motors to mimic a traditional mechanical AWD. It just feels poorly managed. But again, perhaps most of that is due it’s over-zealous traction control system.

And yes, of course winter tires make a huge difference. I’ve driven rotating summer/winter sets for 25+ years, but I have also driven plenty of all-season tires with very competent AWD systems in snow. This Volvo one just doesn’t feel like one of them.

1
LazyEntertainment368•

First, are you using winter tires? If not, the AWD system barely matters. I do find wheelspin to be an issue on the rears in slick conditions, but I haven’t had significant issues getting traction after some initial slip when leaving drives etc. I have Verdestein Wintracs on my 2022 S60 T8. It’s still on Sensus so I do have the sport ESC option which definitely allows a few degrees of slip before intervening. You can definitely get ahead of the system’s ability to reel the car in, though, so I’m not shocked Volvo reined that in. This is the same company with a 110mph limiter on their 450hp car.

I would say driving dynamics on the S/V60 are below market. Dry Corning I’m sure is vastly better in the PE cars given their suspension setup, but that won’t help you with traction from a stop. Just the reality of the eAWD as you laid out, unfortunately.

1
GrunkennOP•

I do not have winters tires, no. I'm running a set of Continental ExtremeContact DWS06 PLUS tires for the PE wheels. They are great in the snow for how often I need them.

I suppose my point is more about wanting the system to just spin some wheels on all 4 corners (independent of how much grip my tires have). Perhaps comparing the Volvo eAWD to the AWD found in a manual STi is not fair, but I'm still disappointed at how limited the V60 feels. It was really easy to disable the traction control on the STI (and lock the centre diff) which made for some predictable cornering.

-2†
wRojtheoriginal•

Following. Coming from a quattro Audi to XC90 T8 the functionality of AWD is the biggest disappointment

1
Blog_Pope•

Not really surprising, the T8 doesn’t have a transaxle. Rear wheels are only powered by the 80hp electric motor, all the ICE power is routed to the front, it can’t drive the rears. It’s a weight compromise

3
GrunkennOP•

The extended ranges can send 230 lb of torque to the rear wheels with the ERAD. That’s a 60/40 split.

2
DefiantLaw70272022 XC60 T8 Extended Range•

My XC60 T8 is a tank in the snow. I just put it in sport mode and let the ICE engine warm up before heading out in any significant snow fall. Makes it a bit more fun and twitchy than constant AWD mode.

My winter tires are getting a bit old now and this is likely their last winter. That that seems to be the limiting factor for me when it's slushy.

1
Masteraustin‘22 XC90 Recharge ER / ‘21 XC40 P8•

Two major differences here.

Your Subaru is always in AWD, why would you be in pure or hybrid which is RWD and then wait for the front engine to kick in? That’s what constant AWD is for.

Assuming the Subaru is using “symmetrical” AWD. The system is almost perfectly balanced in power distribution and it’s all mechanically connected. So they all get pretty much the same power. Now if they have limited slip difs, it can help transfer powers between the two wheels. This is the same as a true Audi Quattro.

The Recharge model is very different. The front engine only drives the front. There is no mechanical connection to the ERAD. This means the computer controls the front tires and the rear tires separately. From my experience with mine, they are open differentials so if one tire loses grip it will just spin and steal the power.

You have to let traction control do it’s work. It uses the brakes on each wheel independently to control wheel spin. This helps to prevent the loss of power to both wheels once one spins. So once you get wheel spin don’t just let off. Let the computer figure it out, but don’t just sit there and slam the pedal.

I just had to pull my travel trailer through mud in my XC90 and had no issues even with summer tires.

1