Audi vs. BMW vs. Jaguar: Whose AWD performs the best?

It is no secret that many different all-wheel-drive implementations exist out there, each one with advantages and disadvantages of its own. To put it bluntly, which one would be the best one overall? The only way to find out is via extensive testing.

This is what Tyre Reviews did with an Audi A4 Quattro, A BMW 3 Series xDrive and a Jaguar XE AWD. Granted, the ideal test would have to involve completely identical cars, whereas these contenders have their fair share of differences. For one, the gas-powered BMW 3 Series has far less torque than its diesel opponents, and the Jaguar sports different tires. Nonetheless, all three have comparable weight-to-power ratios and come with automatic transmissions.

Four tests were arranged in total: acceleration on a snowy field, driving on ice, hill climbing in snow, and steering performance on snowed-under highway. The first test had Audi as the clear winner of thethree, followed by BMW and then Jaguar. The ice test returned the same results. BMW won some ground back by climbing the mountain better than its rivals. On the snowed-under highway, the A4 once again took the upper hand (or wheel).

As a result, Audi’s Quattro AWD was proclaimed the best all-wheel drive implementation overall.