The speed is always compromised when you speak of front wheel drive vehicles. They are definitely not the epitome of what fast means. Front-wheels though have leverage in terms of marketing for their efficiency. The new Honda president, Takonobu Ito, is firm that there will be no RWD cars rolling off their factories.
Some experts comment on the absence of the Honda brand in the premium end of the auto world where rear wheel drive sedans from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Lexus dominate the race. Ito does not see the sense in producing front engine and rear drive cars by imitating the other brands that have devoted almost half a century developing their cars.
The Honda leader wants to focus 
their target on producing medium and large sedans that will sport their new engines, transmissions, technologies, packaging, and efficiency. The Japanese brand is locked on developing good hybrids that may dominate the market in the future.
Last fall, Honda announced the release of the 2010 Acura TL SH-AWD equipped with a V6 engine coupled with manual transmission. The car targets drivers which are after the performance of their cars, and they will surely capture a chunk of the market with the SH-AWD system paired with manual transmission.
The use of the AWD system in the premium brand Acura places it side by side with Audi which has crafted the AWD very well with their Audi quattro technology.
The market will tell if the Acura brand relying on front drive, fuel efficient sedans can compete with the premium brands producing RWDs.
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