Off road vehicles....are they any good on road?

Depends on what you mean by "off road vehicle". Most SUVs made today are designed with the idea that most drivers will never take them off pavement.

Probably the biggest advantage of many of them is interior space. But you also tend to sit up higher and you have more underbody clearance so that you can actually go over things laying in the road without them damaging the underside of your vehicle.

4WD used to be the big selling point but you can get 4WD or AWD on so mant standard passenger cars nowadays that has dropped down as an advantage IMO.

Thanks for your reply Fishin'....Do you think the higher clearance makes the vehicle more or less safe? I know it makes the centre of gravity
higher.

I have been considering a Nissan Xterra.....it
looks neat! I live in the country, and battle
getting out of snow-covered roads etc. on occasion during the winter, but most of my driving is
on a tarred road. I also need the space for
the many items that I transport in my vehicle.....
paintings, sports equipment etc.

If the comparison is between say, a Chevy Suburban that has 10" of ground clearance and one that has 8" - yeah, the higher one is less safe because of the center of gravity issue you mention. Comparisons aren't easy though because maker's have been widening the vehicles because of the roll-over potential and that increases the vehicles stability (i.e. if I have 2 vehicles that both have 9" of ground clearance and one is 6' wide and the other is 7' wide the 7' wide model will be safer from a roll-over standpoint.)

I'm not all that famaliar with the X-Terra but I tend to go with the down-sized SUV that are similar to it. I drive a Jeep Cherrokee right now but I've been looking at replacing it with another SUV or a small pick-up. At the moment the Subaru Forester and Toyota Tacoma have risen to the top of my list of choices. Mostly based on a combination of reliability, cargo capacity, fuel economy, comfort and safety.

Fishin' I have a little Toyota Rav4 which has been
absolutely superb in terms of affordablility, reliability and maintenance. It is just too small for my needs now. Also, when I drive to Quebec in the winter ...about an 8 hour drive on the highway, I feel very vulnerable in this sport-cute when I am
sandwiched between all those transport trucks.

I believe the Xterra has a rollover bar. I haven't looked at any other manufacturers yet.
Nissan seem to be more affordable now than when
I last looked about 7 years ago. Anyhow, if I
go to the expense of a new vehicle, I want something fun!

shepaints - if you've got a CAA membership - go to their website and run through their test in re best vehicle for you. It's really quite a good test - and compares similar vehicles for you.

All other things being equal, I'd look at a Volvo or Subaru in the circumstances you've described. Both decidedly unfun/unsexy - but really the best things going for mixed highway/deep snow/city driving (with good interior space).

Thanks eBeth, I will check it out....but I guess I
will have to join CAA first!

shepaints,
Do yourself a favor. Go to your local VW dealer and test drive a 2005 automatic diesel Jetta TDI station wagon with All Wheel Drive. "TDI" stands for Turbo Direct Injection. I won't make a pitch for the car, you'll make the pitch to yourself if you take that test drive.

I need to point out that the modern diesel is quiet, is clean running, has strong acceleration, starts at well below zero (no plug-ins are needed), and with 36 mpg in the city, 47 mpg on the road, is the third highest of the top ten cars in miles per gallon.

I'm getting tired of our 1996 VW Passat TDI (diesel). It's not just the years, but 250,000 miles! Enough already. No motor overhaul. Burns about a pint to a quart of oil in 8-10,000 miles. I use 5-30 weight fully synthetic oil year round. Oh, yes. Still gets 40+ mpg at 80 mph.



Ou

Only the Hummer (H1) and Jeep Wrangler are true off road vehicles. The rest handle the road just fine, nice and smooth. Also, don't feel any added security from a "roll bar"... they usually call them style bars these days, because they do little in an actual rollover. Head to the library and look up the appropriate consumer reports to learn about your choices. Off hand, I would think the X-Terra is a good one… Although if you can find a Subaru big enough to suit your purpose, you'll probably like it better in the snow.
Ps. I would not be looking at diesel for going to Canada. You guys go way to far below zero to trust them, unless you have a garage or plan on letting it run all night.

My friend has an X-terra and has done some light offroading in it, it is a fun car. It is also comfortable for roadtrips. Bill is right about Wranglers and H1s being the only vechicles made for off road. The Wrangler is great but uncomfortable after being in it for more than an hour. It sounds like the X-terra would be perfect for what you need.

Very kind of you all to help me do my homework.....lots of good suggestions for me to check out. I'm familiar Landrovers and Jeeps
and don't mind a vehicle that feels more like a truck than a car.

Also, I have no plans to ford a river or catch air! But I do want something safe and sturdy enough to navigate the mud, slush, sleet, and snow, sometimes on slippery ski hills and snowed-in farm roads.....I guess the appeal of off-roading is that the vehicle can take you to places that are generally inaccessable.

I saw the opposite of what I want at a fair today.....a smart coupe....built for 2 people with close to zero cargo space!

www.canadiandriver.com

I can attest to the appeal of offroading. I built up my Wrangler so it can go almost anywhere (lifted, big tires, winch ect...) but I also have a Stratus for more sensible(?) driving. Only problem is that the Jeep is so much fun the Stratus doesn't get much use.

If you have to plow through snow say eight inches or more not only the four wheel drive but low range can be very usefull. I'd say anything that has low range is off road capable. However I've done some serious off-roading, deep mud, steep climbs etc. using first gear and tire chains on a VW bug.

I have a Toyota 4 wheel drive 4 door Tacoma pickup, I love it. (and, of course, the Porsche 911 Carerra)

...went for a test drive today in an Xterra.....
OMG why would anyone make one orange?

read about a Toyota SUV hybrid.....

This is what you need. The new CXT

That thing is absolutely retarded. It's for executives who fantasize about being truck drivers.

I say GAY.

I agree it is even worse than the soccermom mallcruising H2

I don't know about that. Have you seen the back seat?