reliable 4x4's (not for towing)

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angelish

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hi
i'm thinking about getting a small 4x4 as a run around ,i drive a lot for my job and with the current snow and winters seeming to be getting worse i am totally fed up of getting stuck and having to dig myself out and as much as i love my sporty little no in the summer it sadly is just not cut out for this treatment :( and may just have to go !

i have a wagon so it would not be expected to tow anything at all.
i have been told to avoid susuki jimmys but are the grand vataris ok ?
i was looking at freelanders but have now been put off due to other post.

any ideas ?
it could even be a 4x4 car if thats poss ,anything that will cope with the snow better my current car but would have to be cheap as poss to run,as in fuel ,tax insurance etc as it would be on the go all day :)
 
I had a Vitara for 5 years and found it a fabbbbb car! you mainly drive around in 2wd - then put it into 4wd when needed. Some 4x4s are always in some form of 4wd hence use more fuel.
I went from my vitara to a little city car, then a picasso for the family, and have just gone back to a 4x4 last september but this time i've gone with a Discovery.
 
missshell said:
I have a Honda CRV and I love it! It was awesome in the snow! :)
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Echo that! I have had 2 CRVs (stupidly sold the first one. Got a horribly uncomfortable Merc A class. Sold it after 2 weeks and bought another CRV!) Both have been totally reliable, great in the snow and ice and not too bad on running costs (for the size and comfort.)
 
Until this summer I had Discoveries. Fed up with the unreliability and cost of spares I bought a CRV. Have had 7 months of trouble free and fun driving and highly recommend them - plus it coped really well in the snow.
 
Yep my dad had a diesel CRV for 3 years and loved it! He says its the best car he ever had. He claimed to get 40 mpg out of it too. He got it after 2 freelanders. He sold his CRV this summer and bought a Ford Kuga 4x4 which he hates!!!!!
I foolishly didn't buy the CRV off him ... I got a vw beetle... doh!!!!!!!
 
How about a Kia? I have the Sorento which is fab as a 4x4 and a tow veichle, but the smaller version is the Sportage which also has good reports. I have found mine to be very economical and 100% reliable.
 
noblesteed said:
Yep my dad had a diesel CRV for 3 years and loved it! He says its the best car he ever had. He claimed to get 40 mpg out of it too. He got it after 2 freelanders. He sold his CRV this summer and bought a Ford Kuga 4x4 which he hates!!!!!
I foolishly didn't buy the CRV off him ... I got a vw beetle... doh!!!!!!!
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yep ! thats what i'd have done :)

small convertable sports car not really ideal for horse owner ,but listen me! no duhh :D

however it is very practical for transporting feed and shavings as you can get quite a few bags in with the roof down :o
 
I was also thinking about this, really wanted a small 4wd as like you I have a small lorry and need a small car for round town. Although very tiny by 4wd standards the Suzuki JImny gets good write ups and is economical to run. Failing that had you thought of just havving a set of winter tyres fitted to a spare set of wheels? Much cheaper than changing your vehicle if you just get a second hand set of steel rims, my Peugeot Partner coped with the snow quite well and it's so useful am loathe to get trid of it.
 
custard said:
I was also thinking about this, really wanted a small 4wd as like you I have a small lorry and need a small car for round town. Although very tiny by 4wd standards the Suzuki JImny gets good write ups and is economical to run. Failing that had you thought of just havving a set of winter tyres fitted to a spare set of wheels? Much cheaper than changing your vehicle if you just get a second hand set of steel rims, my Peugeot Partner coped with the snow quite well and it's so useful am loathe to get trid of it.
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hi, i have a peugeot 206cc so didn't even think i could get snow tyres fitted ,its really not good though iv'e also spun around 3 or 4 times as well as getting stuck daily :(
i'm looking to get something else this year anyway and get something more sensible but can't make my mind up weather to get a nearly new small car fiesta/corsa etc or a small 4x4
 
We have a Shogun which is brilliant! If you want a run around one you could get the short wheel based one which is cheaper.

Have you thought about just getting winter tyres put on your current car though? As 4x4s are so expensive to run and when its icy it doesn't matter what car your in. My friend has winter tyres on her skoda and she was absolutly fine in the snow and ice yet we were slipping in the shogun.


ETA: Sorry didn't realise someone had already suggested winter tyres :o
 
If you want a 4x4 for doing road journeys then avoid the Jimny - they are great for bashing around field and going over any terrain but not comfy as a road car really. I have had two Vitaras, one was a 51 reg so not the old, old shape but not the new one that's about now. That was petrol and a soft top (i wanted something fun!). it was fantastic for playing around in the field as, although 2WD most of the time, it also had 4WD and a low and high ratio gearbox so you just didn't gets stuck anywhere! However, i then started getting engine issues with it and to cut a (very long) story short I traded it in for a new model.

I went for the 3 door 1.9 DDis (diesel) as this had the high and low ratio gearbox as well as having a diff lock to prevent skidding/wheel spinning in very bad road conditions. i didn't need a car to tow with either but i have to say it was absolutely fantastic in the terrible snow and ice of 2009/2010 - it wiped the floor with most other 4x4s and I felt safe in it going wherever as it just would not get stuck - half the time I'd forget i was driving on ice and the road to and from our stables is ridiculously steep!

I gad to tarde it in this year as needed something cheaper on finance as just bought a house. I would definitely get another one though as i think they are one of the better offroaders in that price bracket - not to mention they look better than the others!! lol

However, they are not the best on fuel as are permanent 4x4 (if you go for the DDis whihc is really the only one you should opt for it you want decent 4x4 capability) but then you'll find that with most 4x4s anyway and it is a fairly high tax band.

I traded down for a fiat sedici (same as the suzuki SX4) which has optional 4wd either in automatic (car chooses if needed) or locked. If you want a bit of 4x4 capability then it may be worth looking at them as lighter on fuel and lower tax band.

I have to say i definitely rate suzuki for maming good 4x4s though - they've been doing them for years, it's the road comfort that they have now improved.
 
its not just the slipping ,its the getting stuck thats the biggest problem ,i'm down roads that don't get gritted or even cleared of snow mostly and i have just been driving quite fast and just sort of bulldosing the poor little car through the snow to were i need to be ,then digging it out when i need to leave but this has meant ,digging it out every few yards because if i can't get enough speed up it simply gets stuck again.
makes for quite a long stressful day when i have about 9 stops a day :rolleyes:

poor poor little car :o

think i will go have a look around tomorrow ,thanks everyone :)
 
I would definitely look at the Vitaras if that's your issue then - for those type of circumstances you can put it in low ratio with the differential lock and you will NOT get stuck. I have to say i never really needed to use that at all (I did use it actually didn't need to). I got up some of the worst roads round us, they do not get gritted and some are very steep and windy. Of course you still have to drive carefully, having 4WD does not stop you sliding if you brake but it does help you get about where other cars can't

Have fun looking - I love car shopping!!!
 
I have been super impressed with my suzuki Grand Vitara. Got some decent tyes fitted and haven't had a single problem yet. I also traverse some fairly sketchy and ungritted roads so I know what you mean. The fact that you are not always in 4WD and have choice of low or high depending on circs means you will get out of anywhere but have much better fuel economy than other 4WD.
 
I'm on my first and absolutely last Mitsubishi Shogun ( the 2.5 LWB)

The worst 4x4 I have ever owned, unreliable and very expensive. 2 cylinder heads, and several other major repairs later.....

Would not have another.

Buit I did really love my LWB Nissan Teranno - had it for 150,000 miles and loved it.
 
My mother in law has a Grand Vitara and it saved the day last Feb in the heavy snow..she loves it!
I had a mazda mx5 until about 2 months ago when I decided that if it happens to snow this year I wasn't getting to the farm in that so I px'd it for a gorgeous RAV4 (short wheel base) and then a week later we got the heaviest snow ever! Its been amazing!!!!! Highly recommend the Rav!
 
I've had a few 4x4's and my favourite fun one was a Pajero SWB but oh so juicy. I've recently bought a Subaru Forester so I can sling the mutts in the boot, its also got slightly higher ground clearance than most estate cars and I can honestly say it coped with all the recent snow better than any of my previous 4x4's including the Paj and Disco and even though I hate to admit my beloved old defender.
Its not everyone's cup of tea and I do feel like a mad old bat in it but a mad old bat that passed everything that was stuck in snow and sliding down hills past me :)
 
Nissan X-Trail 2.2dci. I love it. No problems in snow, tows really well, and its got me through deep mud where others including Freelanders and Discoveries have got stuck.
 
I am on my 3rd Vitara. They have all been good in snow and all other circumstances. They have all been bought brand new and have ALL been optional 4x4. The current one puts itself into 4x4 mode when necessary, I don't think it is using any more fuel than the previous one. They have both been 5-door diesel.
Sister is on her 3rd Jimny and likes it very much. She does say that it is better in snow than the previous one but that seemed ok to me. We live in a rural area where the roads are rarely ploughed/gritted and although they cannot get us through the worst drifts they have coped well both this year and last in the snow and ice.
I did previously have a Kia Sportage for 7 years but had to spend a lot of money renweing springs several times.
I have found that my local Suzuki dealer is much better than my local Kia dealer.

ETA A neighbour has an X-trail and it is not so good in snow as the Suzukis.
 
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trottingon said:
Nissan X-Trail 2.2dci. I love it. No problems in snow, tows really well, and its got me through deep mud where others including Freelanders and Discoveries have got stuck.
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This! I love mine -never had a problem in snow, switchable 4x4 so economical to run on the roads. The only trouble is you might have a job finding a good one around here at the moment -they're very popular and hold their price well.

Sue
 
princess_jay said:
My mother in law has a Grand Vitara and it saved the day last Feb in the heavy snow..she loves it!
I had a mazda mx5 until about 2 months ago when I decided that if it happens to snow this year I wasn't getting to the farm in that so I px'd it for a gorgeous RAV4 (short wheel base) and then a week later we got the heaviest snow ever! Its been amazing!!!!! Highly recommend the Rav!
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I too have a RAV4 (5 door / long wheel base) and it has been brillant in the deep snow and packed ice. Its the only way I can get to my yard down a country lane early in the mornings in the 'snow season'! Definitely recommend a RAV4.
 
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