Vehicle driving force control apparatus and method

There is provided a driving force control apparatus for an automotive vehicle, including an internal combustion engine (2) to rotate main drive wheels (1L,1R) of the vehicle by engine torque, a generator (7) driven by the engine (2); a motor (4) powered by the generator (7) to rotate subsidiary drive wheels (3L,3R) of the vehicle by motor torque in a four-wheel drive state, a detecting section (8F) to detect a vehicle start failure under which the vehicle has failed to make a start in response to a vehicle starting operation in the four-wheel drive state, and a motor torque characteristic changing section (8Aa,8Ab) to change a target torque characteristic of the motor (4) to a higher level so as to increase the motor torque upon detection of the vehicle start failure.