2WD Vs. 4WD SUV (purchase, luxury, living in)

[Mercruiserdr]

Originally Posted by jasperhobbs

Do Subaru's have interference or non interference engines in them?

Jasper Hobbs

The older models were non , the newer ones I must admit I am not sure of.
Around the late 90's Sube started pricing itself right out of my market so I started rebuilding Jeeps and big GM FWD cars , they sold well around here and were more affordable.

[SharpHawkeye]

I've had a FWD Toyota RAV4 for years now. Great college car--good weekend tripper, nice balance between gas mileage and ability to haul a lot of junk around. It's pretty comparable to your Sportage.

I've had a mixed experience with it in the winter, to be honest. It does pretty well, (it's gotten me everywhere I wanted to go), but it's no snowmobile. It struggles sometimes with getting traction (little engine sitting over the front axle = little weight on the tires = little traction). Good tires help a lot, and so does smart driving; but now that I have a "grown-up job" I'm going to start looking for a new car and AWD is something on my list.

A lot depends on where you live/drive and how much you like/need to get out in the weather. If you live in Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, QC, etc. and you have a boss who understands that you might not make it in when there's 10" of snow on the ground--you'll probably do all right with the Sportage. If you live in the sticks and your boss wants you in come hell or high water--you might want to look elsewhere. It doesn't have to be AWD--but just a little bigger, heavier car would do.

Sorry for the long reply, hope that helps.

[Mercruiserdr]

Probably the best Sube buy I ever had was one I bought in Texas.
It belonged to a lawyer's wife , it had just quit on them and was sitting in their driveway and wouldnt move.
It was a 96 Outback, I found out about it thru an ad in the thrifty nickel where they wer advertising it for junk.

I was in Dallas at the time on my way to hit a couple of the insurance and lenders auctions when I ran across the ad while at a truck stop.
I called and her hubby said its tranny was locked up and they didnt want to spend the money to fix it, the car had 54,000 miles on it so they considered it deceased.
I got the directions to their house and we stopped by to take a look at it.
after getting the keys i messed with it for a bit and made a discovery , the tranny wasnt bad , the rear differential was what was locked up !
So I inquired how much they wanted for it,, when he said $500.00 I couldnt hardly count the money out fast enough LOL !

After buying the car and getting the title signed over i went out and my friends and I winched the sube onto our car toter and drove off to the auction.

While they attended the auction I worked on the sube.
I popped the two rear axles loose from the CV's and took out the drive shaft.
After tying the offending pieces securely to the bottom of the car I drove it around the lot to make sure it was road worthy, and it was.
I ended up driving it home from Dallas , popped a used rear differential into her, and had me a nice Outback for sale.

[ashcody]

Thanks for all the input everyone! I live in Cedar Rapids...so they tend to take care of the snow fairly quickly. The particular Sportage I was looking at is a 4 Cylinder. So I think it'd do pretty well as for gas mileage. The only problem I was worried about was the fact that I live off a VERY busy road in C.R. and getting to work in the morning last winter was NOT fun in my little stratus...even though it did pretty well for being a low-to-the-ground car. People breaking down a hill with snow...not a good idea. And that's the real isssue I was concerned with was traction for the 2WD SUV. I barely could bring my car to a stop last winter driving down a busy hill with people breaking all over the place....so I was hoping the SUV would fair slightly better.

[Mercruiserdr]

Originally Posted by ashcody

People breaking down a hill with snow...not a good idea. And that's the real isssue I was concerned with was traction for the 2WD SUV. I barely could bring my car to a stop last winter driving down a busy hill with people breaking all over the place....so I was hoping the SUV would fair slightly better.

You need to study up on the teachings of one Dr. Ferdinand Porsche , its harder to stop and change the course of a bowling ball than it is a basketball.

Unfortunately you are going to learn the same lesson that all those hotshot Formula 1 and indy car drivers have had to learn the hard way upon moving to NASCAR.
Those bigger heavier cars dont turn or stop nearly as fast as those lightweight open wheel jobs.
If you are buying a sport ute under the belief that it will stop and handle better, you are headed in the wrong direction my friend !

[GraniteStater]

Originally Posted by ashcody

Thanks for all the input everyone! I live in Cedar Rapids...so they tend to take care of the snow fairly quickly. The particular Sportage I was looking at is a 4 Cylinder. So I think it'd do pretty well as for gas mileage. The only problem I was worried about was the fact that I live off a VERY busy road in C.R. and getting to work in the morning last winter was NOT fun in my little stratus...even though it did pretty well for being a low-to-the-ground car. People breaking down a hill with snow...not a good idea. And that's the real isssue I was concerned with was traction for the 2WD SUV. I barely could bring my car to a stop last winter driving down a busy hill with people breaking all over the place....so I was hoping the SUV would fair slightly better.

Uh, a Subaru AWD is a better choice than any 2WD SUV. The AWD has a lower center of gravity, better traction, better handling, and better control. Gas mileage is about 30 mpg on the highway with four cylinder models.

[jasperhobbs]

Originally Posted by ashcody

Thanks for all the input everyone! I live in Cedar Rapids...so they tend to take care of the snow fairly quickly. The particular Sportage I was looking at is a 4 Cylinder. So I think it'd do pretty well as for gas mileage. The only problem I was worried about was the fact that I live off a VERY busy road in C.R. and getting to work in the morning last winter was NOT fun in my little stratus...even though it did pretty well for being a low-to-the-ground car. People breaking down a hill with snow...not a good idea. And that's the real isssue I was concerned with was traction for the 2WD SUV. I barely could bring my car to a stop last winter driving down a busy hill with people breaking all over the place....so I was hoping the SUV would fair slightly better.

Are you sure that isn't a Front wheel drive and not a two wheel drive? As far as the traction with braking, what is the condition of your tires? New tires can make a ton of difference with snow and braking.

Jasper Hobbs

[ashcody]

The website I found the vehicle on said it was front 2WD. I'm looking at a 4WD of the same model now...slightly more expensive but I think it would definitely be worth it in the long run!

[sequoias]

I have a 2000 Honda Civic EX which is a 4 cylinder and fwd. It should do ok in snow. I drove it in snow few times in the past and made it no problem. I got stuck in a parking lot with over 6-7" of snow on the ground....I made it out barely! Also, got stuck on a side street as well, had to get a shovel to get snow out of the way to get a bit more traction. That was when I lived in Seattle area which left witth bad snow totals.

[wretched wrench]

Many new snow drivers with 4WD are so taken with the traction that they forget that a 4WD doesn't stop any better or corner much better than a 2WD. In fact, some front wheel drive cars do better than most 4WDs.

Anybody remember the old Saab corn poppers? They made 4WDs look silly.