So I've been looking at the 2018 sportsman 450 and I see that it has 2wd/AWD system what's the difference in AWD and 4wd is it the same?

 

awd (all wheel drive) is what means as allwheels when lost traction will spin where as a 4x4 only one front wheel spins at one time unless it has a lockable front diff.

 

Basically on Polaris 4x4 models, all 4 wheels spin when the awd button is pushed. In order for it to engage awd, it senses the rear tires spinning faster than the front(loss of traction) and automatically engages awd. On others, its limited slip 4x4 which means that the front 2 tires won't both be spinning unless you engage front differential lock. Enagaging front diff lock requires flipping an extra switch or pushing another button on other models. Not difficult but does require a couple extra seconds. If your atv doesn't have front differential lock(like many Hondas for instance) you will never have true 4 wheel drive.