Small 4wd suggestions please

tortoiseshellcat

Hi we need to get a new car as ours is irrepairable and are looking to get a small to medium 4 wheel drive if possible, we don't want or need a huge car.

Does anyone have, or have driven, a car they would recommend please?

We are thinking of something no more than about four years old and budget probably up to about £12k.

Any suggestions would be very much appreciated,

Thanks for reading.

RichardD1970

Fiat Panda 4X4 are meant to be really good, and you don't get much smaller than that for a 4X4.

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/fiat/panda-4x4

MX5huggy

Why do you want 4wd?
Because you need the advantages of a 4x4 drive train but are happy to pay the extra fuel bills this causes.
Because you like the 4x4 look and style of car but actually a 2wd would be fine.
Or you want a 4x4 that is one and looks like one.

tortoiseshellcat

I was thinking of a 4x4 because up until now I have chosen to avoid driving when in snowy and icy conditions (I know not that weather atm!) however we have moved house to a hilly semi rural area where a lot of roads aren't gritted and too far from work to be able to walk. Therefore I thought a 4x4 would be a good option - or alternatively a 2 wheel drive that would be capable of managing hilly snow/icy roads. I am a careful confident driver but as the time has come to change our car I'm just thinking of the best options.

BigBopper

Winter tyres?

marlot

Try a decent set of winter tyres first.

My wife swears by hers, on a yaris.

I think we got hers from mytyres. Came already mounted on steel wheels. I put them on in November, off around march.

loskie

no get decent all season tyres. They will be ideal for the Surrey climate.
Something like Suzuki SX4 may meet your needs.

AdrianC

Another vote for winter tyres.

There's three main factors in play in poor conditions.

- Ground clearance. A soft-roader-type vehicle may have more ground clearance, whether it be 2wd or 4wd - or it may not, since many of them are based on the same underpinnings as normal cars, just with a taller superstructure.

- Grip. I'm taking about braking and changing direction. 4wd doesn't help here. This is where winter tyres REALLY score.

- Traction. Starting moving and keeping moving. This is the one and only place where 4wd can help you - but you have the same braking and cornering grip as 2wd. There's not a lot of point in getting moving if you can't change direction or stop moving again when you need to...

Look at countries where they get "proper winters" - do they all drive 4x4s? No. They mostly drive perfectly normal cars, just with tyres that are intended for the conditions.

What do your neighbours mostly drive...? If they're anything like ours, out here in the middle of nowhere in the Welsh borders, they're mainly normal cars, with the odd 4x4. But those with 4x4s are mostly driving them because they also spend a lot of time on farms, driving around on muddy fields, where the extra traction really DOES have a benefit.

daveyjp

If you want a true 4wd, theres only one to consider. Subaru Impreza with a sensible 1.6 engine.

Gloomendoom

AdrianC wrote: »

- Traction. Starting moving and keeping moving. This is the one and only place where 4wd can help you - but you have the same braking and cornering grip as 2wd.

Same braking but traction and cornering grip should be improved over 2wd.

bigjl

Another vote for Subarus.

The Legacy is a great vehicle and available as an estate if you need the space.

One of my favourite ever cars and if it hadn't been stolen I doubt Inwould have sold it.

Winter tyres are also a good idea.

The only issue with a Subaru is that they tend to be shod with normal tyres rather than M&S tyres.

Winter tyres will be going on our little Berlingo soon as they are extremely good in the wet and colder temperatures.