A Waukesha Subaru salesman’s TikTok says most all-wheel-drive systems are “scams” compared to Subaru’s. His TikTok sparked debate about AWD technology just as Winter Storm Fern dumped historic snow and ice across the nation. But it also appears that he’s greatly oversimplifying the reality.

Ryan Stetz (@ryanssubarus) comes out steaming hot in the TikTok which has generated over 37,500 views as of this writing.

“If you bought an all-wheel-drive vehicle and it’s not a Subaru, you got scammed,” he begins. 

“Virtually every all-wheel-drive system out there is actually front-wheel-drive. Until the car slips and loses control. And then it will send power to the rear tires, and usually just does it evenly,” he continues. 

Of course, since he is trying to sell you a Subaru, he invoked some snark: “I don’t know about you, but good enough is not good enough. In Wisconsin, or anywhere there are icy conditions.” 

This message comes timely given the recent winter storm.

He went on to explain how his brand’s system worked. 

“The Subaru Symmetrical All Wheel Drive System actually sends power to all of the tires at all times, actively trying to prevent you from slipping in the first place,” he said. “And if you do happen to lose traction in one of your tires, it’s just going to cut power to that tire and redistribute it to where there is more traction. It’s constantly trying to keep you planted, gripping the road, and in control.”

Stetz probably sells a lot of Subarus, but the truth of the matter isn’t nearly as clean as he declares.

What Makes Subaru’s AWD Special?

Stetz has a few things going for his Subaru. The Symmetrical AWD does send power continuously to all four wheels, unlike some traditional systems that only engage when slippage is detected. The system also provides some power and engine torque to both axles at all times. Subaru’s Active Torque Split system splits torque 60:40 between the front and rear wheels, and is called “active” because it doesn’t wait for a loss of traction to engage.

Symmetrical AWD is standard on virtually every model, so it is inherently part of the brand identity.

Honda’s Real Time AWD with Intelligent Control System is a part-time system that delivers additional rear-wheel traction when needed. But it operates as a front-wheel-drive (FWD) in everyday conditions. Reasoning for this switch back to FWD is to conserve fuel. 

Toyota’s system offers a range of sophistication, but mostly operates in FWD mode. While extremely advanced in some models, it is still technically a largely “part-time” system.

Subaru Isn’t The Only True AWD

First, Subaru isn’t the only manufacturer with full-time all-wheel-drive. One person commented, “(BMW) xDrive and (Audi) Quattro have entered the chat.”

BMW’s relatively lightweight xDrive distributes between front and rear axles in a 40:60 ratio with normal driving, but loads up to 100% of power onto one axle with changing conditions.

One comment said, “Not exactly an Audi fan, but they have a true AWD with their Quattro system and they did it all the way back in the 1980s.” This is a fact.

The heavier, space-intensive Quattro is actually the first permanent all-wheel drive system for passenger cars. Introduced in 1980, it featured a variable torque split between the front and rear wheels. The first two iterations of Audi’s Torsen center differential automatically directed engine torque to individual axles based on conditions. It had a 50:50 default under normal conditions and a max of 90-100% of torque directed to one axle.

Even Stetz is willing to admit the Quattro is formidable.

The latest Torsen T-3 (specifically the Type C), however, is a planetary-type differential that defaults to a 40:60 front-to-rear split. Also, newer Audis with “Quattro Ultra” have a part-time AWD system that decouples the rear drivetrain to save fuel when AWD isn’t needed. This helps owners of many Audi models, which take premium gas.

What is slightly interesting, though, is that while the Honda and Toyota AWD models do get slightly better gas mileage, the Subaru gets better mileage than the Audi (as it should due to weight alone) and roughly the same as the lighter BMW.

Let’s take one comp example that TrueCar used: Subaru Outback vs. Audi Q5. The Outback gets 26 MPG in the city and 32 MPG on the highway, while the Q5 gets 23 MPG (city) and 29 MPG (highway). 

Stetz Doubles Down On Subaru Being The Best AWD

In his second video, Stetz addresses all the commenters mentioning Audi being the best. 

“I will hand it to Audi, they got the second best AWD system… Audi focuses on gripping the road, cornering, and performance. For off road utility and snow which I believe is the most important and how I am judging these rankings. Subaru is number one,” he shares. 

He alters his argument somewhat to simply say Subaru is the best, but it’s not the basis of his argument in the original video. 

His original argument was that most other all–wheel-drive systems were a “scam,” not that Subaru offered the best value strictly on the AWD basis and nothing else. 

MotorBiscuit reached out to Stetz and Subaru via email for more information. The article will be updated upon response.

@ryanssubarus Your car's All Wheel Drive system SUCKS #Subaru #carsales #carsalesman #cardealership #fyp ♬ original sound – Ryan Stetz