What sort of car is best? (Denver: to buy, schools, camping)

[IslandDreamin]

I know car styles are a very personal choice and opinions differ greatly from person to person. However, what sort of car or truck would you say is the best type for the terrain in Denver?

By terrain I mean, the city streets / highways in the winter and perhaps some light camping off-roading as well.

I'm not a snow driver AT ALL and thought of driving on icy / snowy roads really terrifies me.

[davidv]

I am a big believer in the idea that you should buy a car suited for what you will do most, not what you might do sporadically. To that end, most of my driving is done while commuting 20 miles one way on the highway to my job. Therefore I have a car that gets good gas mileage (35 mpg) and front wheel drive.

It does not snow very often in Denver, and, when it does, the main concern is good tires. Snow tires on a FWD car will often more than adequate. Since I have grown up here, and I am used to driving in the snow, good all-season tires are fine with me. If it snows a lot (more than 6 inches) the city starts to shut down (schools close, businesses delay their openings or send their employees home, etc).

As for camping, you can reach most campsites using a regular car or an AWD wagon like a Subaru (you'll see more Subarus here than any other place). A car with AWD will be adequate to get you 95% of the places in the mountains.

As for off-roading, I believe that you should have an SUV or a truck with 4WD, preferably with a lift kit and large tires. You may say that you are only doing some light off-roading, but too many people get stuck in places because the light off-roading turns into serious off-roading quickly, without warning, and with no place to turn around.

You need to ask yourself if you want to buy a car that is suitable for an activity that you might do only a few times each year, while eating the cost of increased maintenance and gas the other 360 days a year.

Just my opinion.

[davidv]

P.S. There are driving classes you can take to learn how to drive on the snow and ice. Check out the Bridgestone Winter Driving School in Steamboat.

[Idlewile]

Originally Posted by IslandDreamin

I know car styles are a very personal choice and opinions differ greatly from person to person. However, what sort of car or truck would you say is the best type for the terrain in Denver?

By terrain I mean, the city streets / highways in the winter and perhaps some light camping off-roading as well.

I'm not a snow driver AT ALL and thought of driving on icy / snowy roads really terrifies me.

Do a search, there are plenty of thread about types of cars and recommendations for the front range.

Yes, tires can make a difference.

For you, an AWD car will provide you the best handling and can make up for what you lack in poor condition driving -- they are specifically designed to handle slippery conditions. 4WD is only better for clearance issues, snow drifts and otherwise, and rugged off-road endeavors but can be driven as well as an AWD in bad conditions if your skill is decent. Without much experience and being fearful from your inexperience with winter driving, you do not want to be driving a rear-wheel drive vehicle. (most sports cars and pick-up trucks).

In all likelihood you will see responses here pile up something akin to "I've driven a Civic here for 5/10/20/200 years and it's served me just fine in bad weather, no accidents." The key point in those responses is 20 years. That is experience and honed expertise in winter driving.

[SkyDog77]

Tires, tires, tires!!!

I have lived here my entire life and cannot emphasize this enough. You should own two sets of tires and switch them out seasonally. All season tires = no season tires in my opinion. This is especially true if you are going to be skiing in the winter. People who have never used snow tires just don't understand what a difference they make. It's like driving a completely different car. Studded tires, while the absolute best thing on ice, are unnecessary for most people. They drive like crap on dry roads and that is what we have the majority of the time. Non studded snow tires are the ticket for most of us. I have tried a lot of different brands and have settled on Bridgestone Blizzaks for both of my vehicles.

I have owned FWD, RWD, AWD and 4WD cars and SUVs. 4WD or AWD is fantastic to help you get going when it is slippery but does absolutely nothing to help you stop. Since stopping is more important than going, This can be quite dangerous for inexperienced winter drivers. I would take a RWD car with good snow tires over a 4WD truck with all season tires any day of the week in snowy weather. Having done a few winter driving clinics and AutoX races on frozen lakes, I have formed a strong opinion about this.

Currently we have an Audi S4 wagon and a Toyota 4Runner. If you are planning to do some "light" off roading, I think a 4Runner is an excellent choice. I kayak a lot in the spring and summer and some of the river access points require higher ground clearance. The stock 4Runner has never let me down.

[dude_reino]

Any FWD car with snow tires will do just fine on the highways during winter. You can even do a little bit of car camping with them (I have an Accord).

For any more serious off-roading (getting to most 14er trailheads, etc.), you'll need a truck. 4Runner/Tacoma seem to be the most popular, as are the older Jeep Grand Cherokees. Any Ford/GM/Dodge half-ton also works.

Stay away from CUVs, they aren't built for off-road.

[Mike from back east]

Thread closed for moderation action; we have several EXCELLENT threads on "which car for me" so now I'll go try and find it and do a merge-threads.