The sheer size of a luxobarge does make it very intimidating when you first find yourself perched behind the wheel. Mentally, you remind yourself that you’d have to make additional allowances for the elongated footprint of the vehicle.

Though the you’d soon realise that there’s no need to – that’s because the rear wheel steering system in most modern luxury cars works really well, genuinely allowing you to take the same tight turns that you could only do in a supermini.

But I don’t like it, and here’s why.

How It Works

In a nutshell, the system relies on steering angle sensors to actuate motors in each corner that alter the toe angle of each rear wheel in real-time. By allowing the rear to also rotate, it drastically reduces the turning radius of the vehicle.

As most modern systems are electronic, there’s no feedback loop via the steering wheel to the driver. So all the sensations of it doing its job is felt through your hind end.

The Perks

There’s a reason why manufacturers equip their vehicles with this system. It clearly works, allowing you to steer some fairly large vehicles with relative ease even in some tighter, older carparks.

U-turns are much easier too – so it’s safe to say that it works really well when you need to do some low-speed precision driving.

So, Why Do I Not Like It?

You’ll want to experience some driving joy when you have a clear stretch of road. A welcomed relief from the congestion that we usually experience in Singapore. As these vehicles tend to also have a lot of power, you’d expect an experience that rewards you with feedback when you start to push the performance envelope.

And this is the main reason why I don’t like these systems. The active toe does make the car feel darty and responsive, even at slightly higher speeds. But it does rob you from the sensations of traction loss on the rear axle.

This issue is further amplified when you introduce some rainwater to the equation. I found myself constantly second guessing my steering inputs, as I tried to work out how much of the rear end movement was actually intentional via the rear-axle steering, and how much of it was actually from slip as a result of the low-grip conditions.

Seeing that these systems are really only beneficial for longer wheelbase vehicles, cars that you are unlikely to drive on the ragged edge in the first place, I’m sure this is a non-issue for the vast majority of the cars’ intended drivers and owners.

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