Subaru AWD tech

[Damn True]

Had the outback in the snow for the first time this winter. The only thing different from last winter is the addition of new tires. Over the summer I put on a set of the Goodyear Assurance Triple tread tires as opposed to the Michi MX4's that came stock on it.

The car seems to understeer A LOT now. Wondering if it is the tire, or if perhaps my AWD is malfunctioning. Anyone know of a way to troubleshoot the AWD or at least determine if it is working correctly now that I am back on dry ground?

[YoungGun]

I am not positive, but isn't subaru AWD a reactive AWD system. So are you talking about when the AWD kicks in you have steering problems, or just in general now? I could understand that when the AWD kicks in that the adjustment of power to all 4 wheels might have an affect on steering.

[Damn True]

Well last year the car worked great in the snow. Point and shoot essentially. Now, the front end seems to push significantly on snow and very wet pavement.
No difference noted on dry or damp pavement.

[YoungGun]

I found this from Automobile Mag.

What's odd is how the Outback slides. The tires are an easy scapegoat for the understeer, but if you stab the brakes or even lift off the gas in the middle of a turn, the tail breaks loose and heads for the nearest ditch. The theoretical AWD strategy of keeping your foot on the gas doesn't seem to correct this habit, and when you're off the gas, the Outback's standard limited-slip diff doesn't do diddly. Strange: despite the AWD hardware, boxer engine, and wagon body balancing out the weight distribution, this is still a 56% front-biased car with a sophisticated multilink suspension. Since oversteer is a trait shared by all past Legacys, maybe it's intentional.

I also found another article that said the stock tires are horrible and you should get new ones. So I wouldnt blame getting better tires on it.


Tim

[Damn True]

Wierd thing is, the car worked better last year with the stock tires on it.