Where RWD, AWD, and FWD Vehicles are Sold in the U.S. [Infographic]

From the March 2014 issue of Car and Driver

Everybody knows that people in the northern states buy way more four-wheel-drive vehicles than do the people in the South. But by how much? And is it even true? We wondered, as is our wont, if it is indeed the case that Northerners buy more driven wheels than Southerners. We wanted to see the facts, so we contacted the number crunchers at IHS Automotive, an industry data clearinghouse that provided us with a state-by-state breakdown of front-, rear-, and four-wheel-drive sales over the last year, as well as the take rate for each drivetrain layout in every vehicle class for the same period. The truth may not totally surprise you.

Help Yourself

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, then nobody will be around to help if you get stuck trying to drag it away for firewood. The five states with the greatest market share of four-wheel-drive vehicles are also the five with the lowest population densities:

Four-wheel-drive sales (%)/population-density ranking:

• Alaska: 78/50
• Wyoming: 76/49
• North Dakota: 76/47
• Montana: 72/48
• South Dakota: 67/46

The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow

Four of the top five states for rear-drive sales are also among the five wettest states in terms of annual precipitation. The fifth-wettest state, Florida, ranks eighth in terms of rear-drive sales.

Rear-wheel-drive sales (%)/ Precipitation ranking:

• Louisiana: 28/2
• Texas: 26/35
• Alabama: 22/4
• Mississippi: 21/3
• Hawaii: 21/1

We’re not going to start a save-the-rear-drivers campaign. Yet. Cars for work and play still rely heavily on the rears.

Financial Stability

Security being the ultimate luxury, the percentage of four-wheel-drive vehicles is higher in every luxury segment than in its mainstream counterpart.

Luxury/non-lux four-wheel sales (%)

• Full-size SUV: 88/60
• Compact crossover/SUV: 79/52
• Full-size car: 40/10
• Mid-size car: 31/8
• Compact/subcompact car: 35/4

Bentley’s Continental family inflates the exotic/ultra-luxury category’s four-wheel-drive total far more than do the Lamborghini Aventador and Ferrari FF.

Data courtesy of IHS Automotive, based on Polk new-vehicle registrations. Due to rounding, not all segments and states add up to 100 percent.

South Comfort

As you move north, the trend line for four-wheel-drive sales does indeed rise, but the starkest difference is between the southeastern corner of the country and the rest of us. Four-wheel drive has a market share of just 27 percent in that region. That’s more than 20 percent lower than the West’s or Midwest’s, and barely half the Northeast’s.

There are countless ways to divide the United States into different regions. Here, we’ve employed the divisions used by the U.S. census bureau, with one modification: We’ve split the west into north- and southwest. Call this split USCB.CD.2014-3

Jared Gall

Contributing Editor

Jared Gall started his career with Car and Driver as an unpaid intern, but has now worked here more than half of his life. He has held numerous positions within C/D's digital and print teams and has driven some 2500 cars. Employee records indicate that he is the only staffer ever to T-bone a school bus with another school bus.