I'm actually a bit concerned
I'm actually a bit concerned about one thing in this AWD system. For those who drive a lot in the hilly, snow-covered areas in upstate NY/New England, emptying the battery on a hybrid and making the car engage the engine to refill it is pretty common. There's not a lot of start/stop driving up there and that means you don't get the benefit of regenerative braking that you would in other areas. What you do have are highway ups and downs, which draw down the battery because you need to press the accelerator hard to keep up your speed up hills. Considering that the AWD system ONLY works when there's a charge in the battery, how would one deal with an empty one (if only temporarily)? There's no locked center differential here either (no center differential at all). If the front wheels lose grip, you then only have 40bhp to rely on and if the battery empties..?