More of a did you notice what I did question...

I was given a 3.0 AWD to drive for a couple hours while the dealer was making adjustments to my '12 Portfolio. I do, by far, prefer the V8 to the V6, but that's a separate issue.

What I noticed, though, is that it seems like the transmission tunnel has been made wider and the accelerator and brake pedals are quite noticeably closer together on the AWD model. Enough so that my (not unusually wide!!) foot would sometimes catch on the brake pedal when I let up on the gas to apply the brake.

Anyone else notice this?

 

Nope. The awd addition will fit in the original transmission tunnel and is located beside your right hip, not your feet.

 

I'm willing to wager that the footwell dimensions are in fact different in some way - or at least the pedal positions.

You are at least partially incorrect about the location - the transer case would be located at about the hip position while seated, but the front differential clearly protrudes out to the left at about the position of the feet (see attachment).

I'm pretty certain they had to rejigger things a bit. I wonder if this is only the case on the AWD, or if they did it across the board for simplicity. By the way, as I originally stated, I'm not seeing this as a problem (though people with wide feet might just find it not to work very well for them), but as an observation of what needed to be done to get something to work that wasn't originally part of the plan.

 

Could also be due to a change in dimension of the new 8 speed transimission versus the 6 speed...

 

I think the 8 spd transmission is no bigger than the 6 spd. It is lighter.

The front driveshaft will be below the pedal box by the time it reaches the left side of the sump where the front diff is bolted.

I have not compared the two footwells but I am not conscious of there being any difference.

Now I am intrigued and will investigate further.

 

I think you're right. Looking closely at the tranny tunnel there is a definite bulge on the left side. The drivers side floor mat is an odd shape also.