4 x 4 - raison d'etre?

leosayer

I love my X5 because:

-It has loads of room for passengers and their luggage
-It's got a great seating position, not sitting on the floor like most cars. Quite important when you're as tall as me
-A great feeling of 'go anywhere' ability, demonstrated on many occasions
-Fuel economy 30% better than previous estate car
-Fantastic refinement
-Superb handling
-Loads of luxury toys and equipment
-Great residuals
-Loads of power and super-slick gearchanges

lovesgshp

leosayer wrote: »

I love my X5 because:

-It has loads of room for passengers and their luggage
-It's got a great seating position, not sitting on the floor like most cars. Quite important when you're as tall as me
-A great feeling of 'go anywhere' ability, demonstrated on many occasions
-Fuel economy 30% better than previous estate car
-Fantastic refinement
-Superb handling
-Loads of luxury toys and equipment
-Great residuals
-Loads of power and super-slick gearchanges

Whats it like in a muddy field?
Do you need all the luxury toys?
Does it go through 1/2 mtr of snow with no problems?
Our Mitsubishi copes with those no problem in the winter,

snowcat75

motorguy wrote: »

Because peoples choices are their own to make?

I dont see the problem here.

If someone wants to drive a 4x4 then why not? It takes up a smaller footprint on the road than say a 7 series or S Class Merc, so if thats what someone wants to do then fine.

Footprint I couldn't give a rats !!!! about, I can guarantee I often have a bigger footprint than anything on the road...

If they want to buy an expensive 4x4 then fine, however dont justify either the need, or the pretense that's its needed, or even that there economic or cheep to run there not, but most of all when that urge to go "off roading" kicks in don't use my fields to drive in, as so many others seem to. Give me poachers and hare courses any day.

Richard53

andydiysaver wrote: »

why its ok to waste hundreds at the pumps each year and drive a vehicle built to be anti social

dangerous and irresponsible because as heavier vehicles they are likely to come off much better in a crash and added to it they often have high grade metal bars on to ensure the result is all you and none of them. This kind of "enhancement also ensures the guaranteed destruction of smaller vehicles, road user, and the likely death of the pedestrian, cyclist, child)


And there was me thinking that getting older is meant to be like a fine wine, we're no longer insecure, unsure of ourselves, we don't require an obnoxious 10 foot tractor outside our house to confirm to ourselves who we are and what we have achieved?

views please, I fully accept farmers and off roaders have every right to want and need to own these vehicles...but does anyone else have half an argument?

andydiysaver wrote: »

in my opinion it's about one thing - and that is poncing it up to flaunt your wealth in the most gaudy low class way possible.

just because the drivers have self esteem issues.....

Sounds like it's you that has the problem here.

Let me put it another way. I have a small television with freeview. I can't see why anyone would want a big flash plasma telly, which they only want to show off to their friends how wealthy they are, because 99% of them don't use them to watch actual programmes on. As for Sky packages, only morons without a proper life would ever want one of those. Fat, lazy people who eat chocolate and crisps on a dirty leather sofa and don't get any proper exercise. People with big TVs are obnoxious retards who don't care about the environment or saving the sea kittens, and I can't see how any normal, reasonable person could do anything but agree with me.

Or perhaps we could all live and let live, without feeling the need to judge people all the time?

marlot

andydiysaver wrote: »

- if you have a caravan most modern vehicles will do it and you know this.

Leaving aside your clairvoyance, its not that simple.

My caravan weighs 1500Kg (and indeed we may be upgrading to an 1800Kg model). It is much safer towed behind a heavy 4x4 than it was when I towed it with a mondeo. The 4x4 can also get the caravan out when I'm pitched on a CL which has gone muddy.

There is also the factor of the nose weight - there are very few cars which can take 100Kg nose weight, which is the optimum for my caravan.

marlot

andydiysaver wrote: »

- ok four wheels are better than two in winter snow. that's perhaps 2 weeks or less every year.

So I'm not supposed to go to work for those two weeks?

Plus, I live round the corner from the hospital, and often do emergency runs for them when its snowy. If the 4x4 owners near me didn't, then people would go untreated.

pelirocco

Most modern cars may just be able to pull caravans , but will they do it safely ? There is such a thing as the cars towing limit , the cars gross train weight and the maximum technically permissible weight. Sadly a lot of people either ignore this or more dangerously are ignorant of this......

CKhalvashi

snowcat75 wrote: »

If it looks and drives like a car, why not go for the cheeper option and buy a car?

I'm about order a RR Sport.

It's got 7 seats, an excellent driving position and the one I drove for 2 days averaged 36mpg; not bad for a car with that power/practicality.

Yes, they're the more expensive option, but if you can afford it (and I know mine will be used off road), then I don't see the issue.

CK

keith1950

Its all about personal choice, I drive a Nissan Xtrail.

My preferences are ...
1/. Good and comfortable driving position with good all-round visibility

2/. Plenty of space in the back ( with the seat down ) for moving large items.

3/. Reasonable MPG depending on driving style....around 38 mpg on dual carriageways and motorways and country lanes falling to around 32 mpg around town or when driven hard( remember a lot of family saloons only average around 35/36 mpg around town.)

4/. Reasonable acceleration...around 11 seconds for 0-62 mph as standard and around 8 seconds for 0-62 mph when re-mapped.

5/. As they are made for more rugged terrain they seem to be better made and ( in my case ) more reliable .
I have had nearly 8 years without a " fault " , just normal replacement of discs/pad/oil/filter etc.

The one drawback is the cost of the tax disc which has now risen to around £280/year but this means I am paying for the extra wear and tear that I may be causing to Britains roads.

The one thing that upsets me is when people start griping on about "4x4 gas guzzlers " yet we have one car that has reasonable mpg, what about the families that run 3-4 small cars.... they are doing more than me to kill the planet !!

arcon5

I just cannot understand why people buy Citreon Picasso' - they are ugly & uncomfortable. Yet I accept not everybody likes the Mondeo which would be suited to me.

Based on this logic most should be driving C1s or Fiestas, simply because they don't need a large hatchback.

We're all individual.